As you read this, I am probably just sitting down to see Depeche Mode here in Chicago. I am totally psyched that I will be having fun and hanging out with some amazing friends. For that reason, I am keeping this short.
Depeche Mode has been around a long, long, time. Here is a bit of the back story from Wikipedia.
Depeche Mode’s origins date back to 1977, when schoolmates Vince Clarke and Andy Fletcher formed a The Cure-influenced band called No Romance In China, with Clarke on vocals and guitar and Fletcher on bass. Dave Gahan joined the band in 1980 after Clarke heard him perform at a local scout hut jam session, singing to a rendition of David Bowie’s “Heroes”, and Depeche Mode were born. When explaining the choice for the new name taken from a French fashion magazine, Dépêche mode (from French dépêche that means here “dispatch” (from Old French despesche/despeche) or “news report”, and mode that means “fashion”), Gore said, “It means hurried fashion or fashion dispatch. I like the sound of that.” But, in French language, the real and only meaning of the magazine’s name (and hence the band’s) is “Fashion News” or “Fashion Update”. Gore recollects that the first time the band played as Depeche Mode was a school gig in May 1980. The band made their recording debut in 1980 on the Some Bizzare Album with the song “Photographic”, which was later re-recorded for their debut album Speak & Spell.
Now you know, let’s get to the music.
Depeche Mode – Enjoy the Silence
