Violator

When Depeche Mode named their new album "Violator" in 1990, it was for a laugh. Martin Gore said "We called it "Violator" as a joke. We wanted to come up with the most extreme, ridiculously Heavy Metal title that we could. I'll be surprised if people will get the joke. When we called an album "Music For The Masses" we were accused of being patronising and arrogant. In fact it was a joke on the uncommerciality of it. It was anything but music for the masses." In similar vein the only violation you felt, when listening to this album, was  that your ears were being assaulted by a band at the height of it's creative and performance powers. 

A darkly uplifting, malevolently joyous album, with enough rise and fall though it resemble a roller coaster ride for the emotions. They had approached this album differently, with only sketched out demos, instead of working with an almost finished product from the start. This fleshing out of the tracks helped shape them as a far fuller sound and more musically electronic than ever before. The album spawned four singles including the album opener "World In My Eyes", a song about the positivity of love, sex and pleasure. "Enjoy The Silence" was originally slated to be a slow ballad when it arrived at the studio, but Alan Wilder thought it might be better if it was speeded up. How right he was! If you'd like to hear what it may have sounded like, try searching for Tori Amos's version. In an interesting order of tracks, it's message of feelings taking a position of importance over words, just before a track which tells of the importance of protecting a relationship even if it means lying. That track is "Policy Of Truth" which features a great riff over a trippily melancholic melody. The tour de force though was "Personal Jesus", the track that may well be their most famous, enjoying covers from Johnny Cash and Marilyn Manson, neither of which match up to the magnificence of their own version. I'd urge you to look up David Gogo's version, if you wish to hear a worthy cover effort that doesn't tread old ground. There were other great tracks on the album: many fans cite "Clean" or "Halo" as the band's best ever track and the sweaty, brooding, murkiness of "Sweetest Perfection" is a lyrical joy. All in all a classic album, that led to other great albums, but was it ever bettered by them...in my opinion, no.

Then

Now

World In My Eyes

Policy Of Truth

Personal Jesus

Enjoy The Silence