Depeche Modes 2005 Playing the Angel - Essay Example

For this report, I have chosen to write about the CD of Depeche Mode Playing the Angel released in 2005. Not did I only listen to this CD but also attended a concert by this band back during their world tour in 2006. It is crucial to pay profound attention to the tracklist of the CD so that to have a better understanding of the overall mood and musical qualities of Playing the Angel. The opening song of the CD “A pain that I’m used to” is exclusively powerful and emotional. It is very integral, and at the same time filled with various musical elements.

The “industrial” noise at the beginning of the track transforms into a pulsing rhythm in the background and the reserved vocal line of David Gahan. Bit by bit the sound comes back to the roughness and the craziness of the initial motive. Contrasted to this musical aggression are the “phlegmatic” guitar parts. “John The Revelator” is the second track of the album, and it is close in its musical characteristics to the first one. Its zest is in the combination of vivid rock’n’roll-style melody, electronic effects and old-fashioned accompaniment. “Suffer Well” has an amazing refrain that is at the same time extremely expressive, ecstatic, and elevated. “The Sinner In Me” is gloomy and a bit tense, with a lot of nice electronic effects. But its problem is that is it situated between two real masterpieces – “Suffer Well” and “Precious”.

“Precious” is the first single from Playing The Angel and reminds me of their earlier song Enjoy The Silence. In both songs the voice of Depeche Mode’s frontman David Gahan has similar vocal qualities: it is melancholic and a bit “distant”. The song has a very remarkable keyboard party that contains magical elements in each and every sound and in its overall harmony. “Macro” is one of the two songs on the CD with Martin L. Gore’s vocal. The refrain of the song is built predominantly on two notes only, however, the song produces a most powerful impression. This song is amazing because depending on the mood you listen to it in, it may produce either the impression of the gloomiest track of the LP or a clear and positive one.

“I Want It All” produces an impression of sounds flying high in the atmosphere. The song is very unusual by its structure, however, the music is so amazing that there is no need to dissolve it into the parts it consists of. The only desire I have when I listen to this track is to immerse completely into its heavenly sounds. “I Want In All” reminds me of “Waiting For The Night” from DM’s Violator – mostly by its overall mood and elaborate melody.

“Nothing’s Impossible” has a melody that is crammed with electronic effects, and the voice of Dave Gahan sounds in this song a bit melancholically and even somewhat gloomy. “Introspectre” is the only instrumental composition on the CD, and it performs the role of interlude rather than a self-sufficient track, even though it does not lack attractiveness and musical value.

“Damaged People” is one of my favorites on the CD. The accompaniment of the song is constituted by the soft phlegmatic party of the keyboard, and the melody is tender, clear and extremely expressive. The refrain, however, is tense, pulsing and dramatic. The voices of both singing leaders of the band – D. Gahan and M. Gore – are excellently combined in the song: Martin’s soft and Dave’s emotional vocals are a perfect duo for this track that managed to reveal all the dramatic meaning of the song. “Lilian” is an extremely powerful song. It has a dancing rhythm that is enhanced by the excited vocal party of Dave Gahan. The CD is ended with the track “The Darkest Star” – this is, as for me, the pink of perfection, combining in itself all the best contained in Depeche Mode’s 11th album. The song’s melody is truly dramatic, and its accompaniment has interesting phlegmatic harmony. It combines crystal-clear sounds and “dirty” electronic effects.

The overall impression from the CD is truly excellent. For me, it is perfect in its music, bright and expressive melodies, excellent and very rich arrangement, and all its songs are extremely powerful and compositionally perfect. The music is mesmerizing and impressive. Even though the CD’s style is so much different from the previous Depeche Mode CDs, I am sure if you like this band and are interested in modern music – you will enjoy listening to Playing The Angel. Read More