depeche mode remixes 81 ... 04
you know depeche mode? surely i dont need to tell you all about the progression from teen synth pop band to drug addled alternative gothic poprock godheads? the singles that the band released over the years got better and darker as they got older and subsequently things became a lot more interesting. well, running parallel alongside the standard singles, the band recruited various studio boffins, dj's, producers to readdress the originals for the 12" versions. at the start there was the realisation that the 12" single was something that stand on its own. revisiting the original in a dramatic fashion acting as a showpiece for both the bands associated cool and the knock on effects that the new producers would gain from an exposure to the world wide market that depeche mode enjoyed. being one of the first mainstream bands to explore the sonic possibilities of the remix, this set of tracks acts as a historical document of the progress of the remix culture. from the early days where a drum beat was extended and maybe (if the band were really daring) a little extra vocal echo through the dance explosion, the trip-hop years, the industrial noise and beyond .. depeche mode saw potential of this new(ish) format early on, and really went for it, creating a whole sub-genre of their own doing. while progressing their own brand of pop they delved into many areas of the underground dance culture making them one of the most interesting pop bands throughout the 80's and into the new millennium.
for me though this compilation holds an extra level of completion. 20 years ago, for reasons i can no longer recall, i picked up a limited 12" yellow embossed re-remix of 'masters and servant' featuring sounds by on-u sounds' adrian sherwood. the explosion of white noise beats and strange loops while maintaining the song structure sounded to come from another planet, another time, nothing had ever sounded quite a scary to my young impressionable ears, thus this one record started an interest in all things on-u sound which continued for the next 20 years. now, after all this time i get to have both of the 12" tracks on easy to manage silver discs (the b-side 'people are people' is a bonus on the limited 3 cd set). even with the passing of the 20 years these 2 tracks still stand out amongst the rest as being the most daring dramatic revisions of the original. which is not to say that the other 34 tracks are slackers at all. just the prime era on-u sound-ism's are still breathtaking.
the rest of guest list alone should indicate the sheer excellence on offer here, for example air, jack dangers (meat beat manifesto), dj muggs, dj shadow, portishead, dave clarke, francoise kevorkian, kruder and dorfmeister, goldfrapp - all of which provide their usual own trademark sounds to the fine originals ( can it now be assumed that depeche mode are probably on the worlds best singles acts ?)
i will admit that there are a few to many remixes by depeche mode and/or daniel miller (label boss) for my likening meaning that several mixes have not made it onto the final cut, so that they stay in their 'second cd of the two cd set' obscurity, meaning that the excellent one inch punch version of 'barrel of a gun', and brian eno's mixes amongst others remain within their limited hardcore collector audience. oh, and the cover version of 'route 66' just doesn't work if you ask me.
there are, however, the expected full on pumping dance tracks (underworlds 'barrel of a gun'), the ever-so slightly touched up extended versions, the twisted into oblivion remixes, the ambient electro hamonics, and even nu-metal updates, linkin parks' mike shinola has a pop at the classic 'enjoy the silence' thus cementing the connection with the american alt.rock world along with the marylin manson cover of 'personal jesus'.
for a full-on massive compilation of various styles of dance, combining dark goth pop, electronica, electroclash, dj cutups, trance, industrial then this set is stunning stuff.