Black Celebration & Music For The Masses (Part 1)
Revisiting the sister albums of Depeche Mode's peak years.
Of all the synth-pop bands of the 1980s, one stands far above the rest in both their commitment to the genre and the quality of their output—and yes, the title may have spoiled it: it’s Depeche Mode.
They may not have been the first or, initially, the most revolutionary group of the bunch—New Order takes that prize, in my opinion—but DM maintained an incredible streak of consistency: seven phenomenal albums in nine years throughout the decade. This made them the most globally acclaimed synth-pop group ever.
Other groups—like the Pet Shop Boys, The Human League, OMD, and even New Order—either couldn’t reach DM’s creative heights or failed to match their prolific output. They aren’t inherently lesser acts, but they simply don’t belong on the same podium as this legendary band.
The Prime Years
The golden age of Depeche Mode spanned four studio albums over six years, from 1984 to 1990, culminating in a band at their commercial and creative peak. It was quite a surprising turn of events, considering where DM began the decade. In 1981, they were glorified synth-brats, riding the New Wave trend, making songs with little musical expertise or lyrical nuance—though they certainly weren’t bad ones (see the music video for “I Just Can’t Get Enough”—it’s laughable).
But over this time, a transformation occurred for the British synth-pop quartet. While most contemporary acts faded away, Depeche Mode endured—and evolved into mature, cultivated songwriters. In March 1990, they released their seventh studio album, Violator, which featured their magnum opus—one of the greatest songs of all time: “Enjoy the Silence.”
The journey to Violator was long and intricate. In this article, we’ll examine the two pivotal records at the center of this era: Black Celebration (1986) and Music For The Masses (1987)—their similarities, differences, legacy, and how they paved the way for the band’s greatest work.
But before diving into Depeche Mode’s 1986 effort, let’s first take a brief look at all the group had accomplished up to that point.
Stories of Old
Depeche Mode began life in 1980 in Basildon, a suburb of London, with an original lineup featuring vocalist Dave Gahan, songwriters Martin Gore and Vince Clarke, and keyboardist Andy Fletcher.
They released their debut album, Speak & Spell, the following fall and saw immediate commercial success, with three charting singles—one of which, “I Just Can’t Get Enough,” reached #81—and the album itself peaking at #10.2
Following this, at the end of 1981, Clarke left the band. The remaining members continued on as a trio. As an aside, Clarke embarked on a legendary career of his own, founding two subsequent groups: Yazoo with Alison Moyet, and later, Erasure with Andy Bell.
DM released their next album, A Broken Frame, in 1982, which largely continued the accessible synth-pop sound of Speak & Spell. With Clarke off working on Yazoo, Gore took the helm on this record, writing every song—a role he would maintain across the band’s next five releases.
That winter, Depeche Mode solidified their lineup with the addition of multi-instrumentalist Alan Wilder, who became their primary arranger. He would go on to become group’s unsung hero, transforming Gore’s bare demos into beautifully layered electronic tapestries.
In 1983, DM began their creative ascent, releasing the delightful single “Get the Balance Right!” and their third studio album, Construction Time Again. With this release, the band entered their ‘industrial phase,’3 fusing a darker, more mechanical sound with politically and socially relevant lyrics—as exemplified by “Everything Counts.”
Some Great Reward
Despite this growth, a tinge of triflingness remained in Depeche Mode’s music. This would be an unfair judgement—one not applied to other bands, like Duran Duran—were it not for the incredible work ahead; the standard they are retrospectively held to must be higher.
This is why, for me, their next release, 1984’s Some Great Reward, marks a watershed—the bridge between the youthful frivolity of DM’s early work and the emotional maturity of their latter. It is, truly, both an exhilarating and demoralizing listen at the exact same time.
Some Great Reward is probably my favorite Depeche Mode album—not because it’s their best (that prize goes to Violator), or their most innovative (that’s Black Celebration, as we shall see), but for entirely intangible reasons: I just like its vibe.
And while this—the first release of DM’s golden era—isn’t supposed to be the focal point of this article, I feel compelled to mention one standout track: arguably one of the most important songs the band has ever released.
Blasphemous Rumours
This song is heavy—certainly the most wrenching the group ever wrote. Martin Gore, now a seasoned storyteller, weaves a harrowing narrative of teenage despair: a girl of sixteen slashes her wrists, only to embrace Jesus and a second chance—before being struck by a car. On this, Gore reflects: “I don’t want to start any blasphemous rumours / But I think that god has a sick sense of humour / And when I die, I expect to find him laughing.” The industrial synths only deepen the sting—it’s haunting.
This track—released in October 1984 as a double A-side single alongside the ballad “Somebody”—caused a stir in religious circles for its not so subtle critique of God. Still, it performed well, reaching #16 on the charts.4 Depeche Mode was finally ready to ruffle feathers with music that tackled issues of real weight, and with this artistic shift, their next album would reach new heights.
“Life In The So-Called Space Age”
After the release of Some Great Reward and the supporting tour that followed, Depeche Mode put out two non-album singles in 1985: “Shake The Disease” and “It’s Called a Heart.” While the latter track was admittedly forgettable, the former marked a bold departure. “Shake The Disease” signaled the band’s embrace of a darker brand of synth-pop—what would later be identified as darkwave.
Darkwave would prove to be the defining theme of DM’s fifth studio album. Released on March 17th, 1986, Black Celebration marked the band’s first concept album and remains, to this day, their most cohesive effort. Its atmosphere—vividly “a tech-noir future dystopia”5—is penetrating, unbroken throughout the album’s twelve tracks.
The songs coalesce so seamlessly that it’s hardly apparent Black Celebration isn’t just one continuous 45-minute track. Gore uses this space to bleakly reflect on everything from mortality and loneliness to technology and the British cult of celebrity. This record also sees the songwriter stepping into the spotlight, singing lead on an unprecedented four tracks.
Black Celebration represents Depeche Mode at their most audacious—and it’s their album with the least filler. This is truly the quintessential no-skip record. Each track holds a distinct place within the album’s framework and, quite unusually, none stand significantly above or below the rest in terms of quality—or commercial success, for that matter. Glancing at the band’s Spotify stats, the most streamed song on the album, “Stripped,” doesn’t even crack their top 20 most popular tracks.6 It’s a collection of nearly a dozen cult favorites—songs never destined to be smash hits, but exceptional just the same.
At this point, I would usually discuss the album’s strongest tracks—but since they’re all incredibly strong, I’ll highlight several that I feel are the most innovative.
Fly On The Windscreen
The second track of the record sets the tone for all that follows: “Death is everywhere”—that could be the album’s motto. “Fly On The Windscreen” is a very vocal-heavy track, with the synths preferring to stay in the background. Dave Gahan’s voice shines like gold against an apocalyptic backdrop, complete with zombie sounds and excerpts from ABC World News Tonight’s special report, “Hiroshima: 40 Years Later”7—of all things.
A Question of Time
“A Question of Time” is creepy—but not in the dystopian way you might expect. This track is one of Gore’s great narratives: about a man trying to protect a 15-year-old girl from exploitation, though its unclear whether he’s any less culpable himself. It’s fast-paced, catchy, and provocative—much like Sublime’s “The Wrong Way,” which would arrive a decade later.
Stripped
The most popular—and best—track on Black Celebration, “Stripped” is, by all definitions, a typically structured pop song: a song about love. But, as implied by its name, the production is strikingly bare—driven almost entirely by Gahan’s powerfully chilling vocals, his best on the album by far: “Let me see you stripped down to the bone.”
It’s eerie and seems to be missing something, yet it’s unmistakably sincere—Gore teases a hidden meaning that simply doesn’t exist. Beginning at a hair over the 24-minute mark, “Stripped” stands as the zenith of the entire record.
World Full of Nothing
Another of Martin Gore’s flirtations with lead vocals, “World Full of Nothing” is a sleepy track—even more minimalist than “Stripped,” built around just one lone synthesizer. It doesn’t even sound like a finished product—more like one of Gore’s demos (see his version of “Shake The Disease”—it’s as strong as the final cut).
It’s the story of two teenagers, each feeling the embrace of the other sex for the first time—“Though it's not love, it means something.” The quiet brings tension—raw, quivering tension—viscerally reminding the listener of some silence they felt before—maybe like the song’s two subjects. I know it does for me.
New Dress
“New Dress”—not to be confused with Violator’s “Blue Dress”—is the final track on U.K. release of the record; U.S. versions included the bonus track “But Not Tonight.” And, cheekily, it’s the closest Depeche Mode comes to breaking the character of Black Celebration. After all those themes of death, loneliness, and perversion, we’re interrupted—at long last—by a political song. How interesting.
Gore delves into the superficiality of British tabloids and their enamorment with the royal family. He’s not shy about sharing his opinion—though by this point in the record, its meaning may be lost on more than a few listeners. All of it is held together by Gahan’s distorted refrain: “Princess Di is wearing a new dress”—a poignant end to a record with no shortage of emotional intensity.
Reception
Despite being a daunting record to market due to its concept-driven nature, Black Celebration proved to be Depeche Mode’s highest-charting album yet— peaking at #4 on the UK charts.8 Three singles were released to support it: the aforementioned “Stripped” and “A Question of Time,” along with “A Question Lust”—none of which cracked the top ten.
Critically, the album was relatively well received. Smash Hits’ Chris Heath gave it an 8 out of 10, writing that Black Celebration was “the first time they haven’t had to throw in any second-rate stodge.”9 And he wasn’t wrong. In the past, DM—like many bands of the era—prospered on their singles: “Everything Counts,” “People are People,” and the like. How rare to find an album where most of its strongest songs didn’t even make the cut.
Melody Maker was less kind, lambasting the band as “even more over-anxious than they were on the depressing Some Great Reward to shock for the sake of it, pussycats desperate to appear perverted as an escape from the superficiality of teen stardom.”10 It was an extremely harsh review—certainly in the minority, but not out of the ordinary, especially among those who preferred the radio-friendly tunes of Depeche Mode’s yesteryear.
Interestingly, Spin ranked Black Celebration the 15th greatest album of all time just three years after its release11—New Order’s Low-Life came in at #10. Now, I love both these albums as much as anyone, but I’m not sure I’d go quite that far…
That said, it does invite a fascinating question: who’s better—Depeche Mode or New Order?
Depeche Mode vs. New Order
I know—I claimed at the beginning of this article that Depeche Mode were superior to all their contemporaries, including New Order. However, Low-Life and Black Celebration—released slightly over ten months apart—feel like sister albums in many ways: two bands rapidly approaching their creative high marks.
New Order pushed forward not so much through lyrical prowess, but unmistakably with their instrumentation. Low-Life is a feast for the ears: sleek electronic textures crossed with an unpolished alternative rock charm.
Conversely, Depeche Mode moved the needle not through their instrumentation, which was already polished and quite strong on Some Great Reward—if anything, they took a “less is more approach” on Black Celebration. What DM did do, however, was write songs with more heart—Gore’s narratives propelled them to the forefront of innovation in the darkwave genre.
When deciding which album is better, personally, I’d have to call it a tie. They are both incredible records that showcase the imperial phases of two decade-defining bands. And the fact that the community-driven website RateYourMusic shows them in a statistical tie—each receiving a 3.85 out of 5—only reinforces my opinion.
An Enduring Influence
Black Celebration was an incredibly influential album—arguably more so than any of the band’s other releases. Depeche Mode proved that emotionally resonant music could be crafted within the framework of the extravagant, aesthetics-obsessed New Wave movement. And with that, many upstart artists quickly took notice.
The album’s most direct impact was on Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails, who saw Depeche Mode in the summer of 1986 during their supporting tour for the record. On DM’s Facebook page, Reznor shared his story, commenting: “I left that show grateful, humbled, energized, focused, and in awe of how powerful and transformative music can be… and I started writing what would eventually become Pretty Hate Machine.”12
There’s a striking similarity between the two albums’ sounds—both musically, through intense minimalism, and lyrically, with Reznor taking a page from Gore’s songwriting handbook. In fact, NIN’s producer on Pretty Hate Machine (1989), Mark “Flood” Ellis, had previously worked with DM—on their single “Black Celebration.” He would go on to collaborate with them again, producing their seventh album, Violator (1990).
Without Black Celebration, it’s safe to say that Nine Inch Nails’ debut album Pretty Hate Machine would sound significantly different—if it were even created at all—and the history of industrial rock would be much poorer for it. Going further, it’s doubtful that another connection between the two groups would have formed: both had their songs later covered by Johnny Cash.
Some Final Words
Although I’ve been a devoted Depeche Mode fan for years, inexplicably, I never got around to listening to Black Celebration in full until this February. It was always the odd one out—the record that threw me off. It doesn’t have any of their greatest hits, I used to say. So why should I listen?
It’s incredibly challenging to do justice to an album that hinges entirely on atmosphere—one so novel for its time and, arguably, unsurpassed in the four decades since. The only way to truly grasp Black Celebration is to hear for yourself—and enter your very own world full of nothing.
Stay tuned for Part 2—where we’ll discuss DM’s sixth album, Music For The Masses, and the monumental American tour that followed.
https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/depeche-mode-just-cant-get-enough/
https://www.officialcharts.com/albums/depeche-mode-speak-and-spell/
https://thequietus.com/opinion-and-essays/anniversary/depeche-mode-construction-time-again-review/
https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/depeche-mode-somebodyblasphemous-rumours/
https://www.classicpopmag.com/features/classic-album/making-depeche-mode-black-celebration/
https://kworb.net/spotify/artist/762310PdDnwsDxAQxzQkfX_songs.html
https://dmlive.wiki/wiki/List_of_Depeche_Mode_sample_sources_by_album/Black_Celebration#2._%22Fly_On_The_Windscreen%22
https://www.officialcharts.com/albums/depeche-mode-black-celebration/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/57779449@N02/28877769146/in/album-72157669234693174/
https://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.com/2016/03/retro-2-black-celebration-reviews-with.html
https://books.google.com/books?id=h-bxxO5B-xsC&pg=PA46
https://www.facebook.com/depechemode/photos/a.148688865328.141865.26101560328/10156072684730329/?type=3&theater