Hello, night owls! Taking a quick break from movies, I thought I'd share with you my thoughts on one of the most unique bands from the 80's that has endured into the modern day. With their dark synth pop and a front man with a voice that can make you melt, it's no surprise they garnered the success that they did and that they've still managed to stick around today. The band I'm talking about is Depeche Mode.
Now, I'm not the biggest fan in the sense that I know lots about them, so I'm not going to talk about their history or their changing line-up (I'm a bigger fan of what their former member Vince Clarke did with the happier sounding Erasure - but that's for another review). I'm also not the biggest fan of theirs in the sense that I've listened to absolutely everything they've ever made, so I won't discuss the evolution of their sound, either. To be perfectly frank, I only like one entire album and a few singles of theirs, so you might think I'm in no position to talk about them at all...which is a fair statement.
So why am I still here? It's because the aspect of their music I really want to talk about is the lyrical content. That I do know a little more about.
You see, I was interested not only by their darker, more industrial sounds, but their musical messages sounded different. Dave Gahan's clear yet somber voice in hits like "People Are People" and "Personal Jesus" sang of more things than just love...or at least, the things he sang about sounded more important in a (characteristic) minor key. When I heard the Black Celebration album, I got a much better idea of what their themes were and by the time I was listening to Violator, I'd grown accustomed to their certain lyrical shticks.
As far as lyrics goes, Depeche Mode has two modes, it seems. Their tone is either thoughtful or sexy.
I find this incredibly peculiar and I'm not sure why...
If you haven't heard or you're not very familiar with their music, I'll show you what I mean. Since Violator is the album I'm most familiar with, we'll look at two singles from that album: "Enjoy The Silence" and "World In My Eyes". I highly suggest you check out these songs if you've never heard Depeche Mode so you can get a better grasp of the material we're dealing with (also because they're both good songs). First, the thoughtful!
While I haven't listened to all their music, I have browsed through the lyrics of several of their songs and one of their trademarks is their capacity to philosophize. Their are quite a few songs throughout the span of their work that deal with life, sin, emotional peace, the inner turmoils of love, and general brooding about the mysteries of life, all accompanied by cold synths and dark vocals. "Enjoy The Silence" definitely ranks up there as one of those songs, as well as being one of their biggest hits ever. It's a pretty song that deals with a man's musings about happiness. Not all-night-long happiness or happiness in the form of instant gratification: rather, he ponders the fragile state of long-term happiness. In this song, silence signifies happiness/peace within the singer and words represent a threat to that inner bliss. Some might pick up on an "actions speak louder than words" message as well, considering that the singer speaks of words as being "trivial", "meaningless", and "forgettable".
However, the silence doesn't just stand for peace within the singer, but the peace in his connections with others, as well. In the first verse, we're meant to understand that he's singing this to a person, probably a lover. Throughout the whole song, he tries explaining to her how words are just shallow nothings that can destroy or remove the meaning and feeling out of strong emotional connections/impacts, the way a relationship can fall apart over one wrong word or one small thing.
This theme in particular is well shown in the music video inspired by Antoine de Saint-Exupery's story The Little Prince. Dave Gahan is dressed like royalty and throughout the music video, he's shown wandering around the world carrying a chair with him just so he can always sit and watch the sunset. A sunset in and of itself is a beautiful visual experience that needs no words to add to its glory, the way the singer's bliss needs no words to last or be more than it already is.
Huh...kind of funny to be writing that when I'm explaining a musical experience that doesn't need to be articulated to be enjoyed...anyway...
Example of the thoughtful - check!
Now for the sexy side...
I really don't need to explain much with the song "World In My Eyes". You can tell by the very opening synths what kind of song this is. It's one of those songs you listen to late at night if you want to feel like the singer is seducing you. The lyrics suggest exactly that. The singer basically takes you down a dark, moody path on a dark, moody ride of dark, moody pleasure (in traditional dark, moody Depeche Mode style). And like the singer says, "that's all there is"! The music video, which cuts between frantic concert footage and Gahan in shades with a woman at a drive-in just further demonstrates this.
Of course, they do have normal love songs, but the prevalence of songs like "World In My Eyes" is very strong throughout their work (especially after Vince Clarke left in the early 80's). It's impossible to ignore, because there's always at least one (if not more) of these kinds of songs in their albums (""Lie To Me", "Master And Servant", "Here Is The House", "Strangelove", "In Your Room", etc.). Now, I'm not saying there's a problem with them creating songs like that - sexy songs have their place in the musical realm and Depeche Mode can compose whatever they want - but it just strikes me as very strange that you would juxtapose songs like "Enjoy The Silence" with songs like "World In My Eyes". Listening to an album of theirs almost feels like living with two very different roommates: one who's always reading classical literature and Foreign Affairs, wondering what his purpose in life is and one who's always trying to convince you to take a chance on him for the night. Interesting, to say the least.
Although I have to say "World In My Eyes" has nothing on some of their other "sexy" songs, which range from typical to downright creepy. "Soothe My Soul" from Delta Machine makes "Every Breath You Take" sound like an innocent love song. And if you think that's nothing, I dare you to listen to "I Want You Now" from Music For The Masses. I never thought that a song could make me feel uncomfortable the way that one did!
So, yeah...half their music makes you pick your brain and think while the other half practically makes you melt. *shrugs helplessly*
As I implied above, I am at a loss for words when it comes to explaining these lyrical theme choices. I don't know enough about the songwriters to know what made them decide to tackle meaningful melodies and ear-worms of seduction. And if you want me to throw in random guesses, the only things I can come up with are personal experiences, musings, and fantasies. At some point or other, all of us have pondered the deeper meanings of things like love, life, right, wrong, and sense of self. Some of us try expressing those musings and some of us either choose to ignore them or tuck them away in the back of our minds for another time. As for the gentlemen behind Depeche Mode, I would assume they were simply using the wonderful medium that is music to express their thoughts on the murky and mysterious aspects of life...as well as dreams of the flesh.
Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to cleanse my ears with some bright, cheesy 80's music.
~Maud,
Official Night Owl
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