Album Review: Depeche Mode - Sounds of the Universe (4/5)

When I first heard that Depeche Mode was going to record Sounds of the Universe with a lot of old synthesizers, I immediately hoped the new album would sound like Violator and Music for the Masses--albums the band released in their late '80s/early '90s heyday. Hoping for songs like "Enjoy the Silence," "People are People" and "Never Let Me Down Again," I was initially disappointed by this album when I first listened to the tracks that had leaked onto YouTube.
However, in the course of listening to it over the last week, I've grown to rather like its moody atmospheres.

"In Chains" pierces us with noise for about the first minute, before settling in with old school synth chords and subtle beats. Rather than open with a bang, the album begins with this slinky number, which is perhaps appropriate, since nothing on this album really provides a big "bang." "Hole to Feed" rumbles with synthetic beats, but also provides a gentle warmth underneath them. As does "Fragile Tension," with its shimmery reverbed guitar wrapped in its synth textures, along with a beat that's at least fast enough to warrant some head nodding. Although there's nothing to dance to here, there isn't a lack of musical drama. "Wrong," the album's first single, is charging and angry with a chorus of voices repeating the song's title.

The songs in the middle are among my favorite. "In Sympathy" has a chugging beat, synth arpeggios, and growling bass line, along with a judiciously used guitar melody. The '80s futurism of "Peace" is a contrast to its warm harmonized vocals. It's a lovely song, probably a future single. Equally lovely is "Come Back," on which David Gahan's vocals remind how well a singer can evoke emotions--here, an aching longing for a lost lover--over a synthetic-based melody.

The moods on the album are often extreme and satisfyingly varied, from the heartache on "Come Back" to the angry "Wrong" and the yearning expressed in "Perfect." The melodies of "Little Soul" are discongruent enough to be disturbing but not so much as to be off putting. Same goes for the layering guitar noise on "Miles Away/The Truth Is," which has a bit of western swagger recalling "Personal Jesus," albeit for more understated.

Martin Gore takes over lead vocal duty on "Jezebel," and while he has an expressive voice, it lacks the heft of Gahan, and this plodding track isn't as interesting as those that surround it, although it does have some nice instrumental synth passages. Dark synth pulses course through "Corrupt" like the soundtrack to an '80s sci-fi film.

It's interesting how both Pet Shop Boys and Depeche Mode have reached into their pasts for their latest albums, but have done so in very different ways. While Pet Shop Boys' Yes seeks to capture the style of that band's earlier work, Sounds of the Universe finds its own style despite using sounds the band used in '80s. And while I at first missed the energy prevalent in Depeche Mode's '80s work, eventually I came around to appreciate the range and musical textures here.

Best: Wrong, Come Back, Peace, In Sympathy, Fragile Tension, Miles Away/The Truth Is