Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
All Gore, March 30, 2007
A BROKEN FRAME is Depeche Mode's sophomore album and first without co-founding member Vince Clarke, who was the principal songwriter on the band's debut, Speak & Spell. With A BROKEN FRAME, Martin Gore filled this void by penning each of the album's ten tracks. A BROKEN FRAME, however, is not one of DM's strongest albums, even the musicians involved will own up to that sentiment, yet despite the songwriting being wildly uneven it still holds up as an enjoyable record.
Working against A BROKEN FRAME is it's indecision on kind of album it wants to be. Although sections on this album foreshadowed the direction of darker DM songs soon to come, there are interruptions of oddly upbeat songs such as "See You" (which I love), "The Meaning of Love" (tolerable), and "A Photograph of You" (one of DM's worst ever). "Leave In Silence" , "My Secret Garden", "Nothing to Fear", and "The Sun and the Rainfall", are all excellent, up-tempo numbers without diluting the band's spirit and distinctive sound. More intriguing are the songs that open up to the wider possibilities of DM's experimental side, such as the quirky percussive sounds of "Monument" and the odd musical-detours and sound effects in "Shouldn't Have Done That".
Rhino's CD/DVD reissues of DM's backcatalog have been an eye-opener for fans in North America who have enjoyed altered versions of the band's early records without knowing that some of our favorite tracks were bonus material for Stateside audiences. The new reissues are based on the original UK releases. For A BROKEN FRAME this leaves a shorter "Leave In Silence" and the omission of "Further Excerpts From My Secret Garden". The bonus material, three B-sides and a half-dozen live selections from a 1982 concert, is a generous offering, but to regulate it to the DVD side only is frustrating. Couldn't the B-sides at least fit onto the end of the CD? I don't want to sit in front of my TV everytime to listen to this material.
The DVD documentary included, "The Beginning of Their So Called Dark Phase" (perhaps a bit over-dramatic statement for this early in their career), focus on the time leading up to and the release of the recorded music, including those awkward first steps in regaining their footing after Vince Clarke's departure. There are some funny "Spinal Tap"-ish moments in music video and TV performances that I'm sure the band would rather have their fans forget. It is also here that future DM member Alan Wilder enters into the picture, if only as a touring member in support of A BROKEN FRAME.
I can't comment on the audio quality of the mixes offered on the DVD, as I don't have the proper equipment to truly experience what the disc offers.
Final rating (for the music): 3.5 out of 5 stars
Final rating (for the CD/DVD reissue format): 2.5 out of 5 stars
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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The so-called dark phase begins, November 30, 2006
This is Depeche Mode's second album but their first without Vince Clarke. He left shortly after the release of their first album and formed Yaz with Alison Moyet. Now the songwriting was left to Martin Gore and this album would mark "the beginning of their so-called dark phase".The three singles off the album were "See You","The Meaning Of Love" and the haunting "Leave In Silence". Other noteworthy tracks include "My Secret Garden", "Satellite" and "The Sun and The Rainfall".
Because the reissues are faithful to the original UK releases, there are a few noticeable differences between this album and the original 1990 release. First of all, "Leave In Silence" runs a little shorter(In fact the version on the 1990 CD was actually the 12-inch version). The one here is identical to the one on "The Singles 81>85". Also, "Further Excerpts From:My Secret Garden" has been omitted but a shorter version of it appears on the DVD. And for the astute listener, a small part of the intro on "Satellite" was trimmed.
The DVD features three additional tracks that were B-sides or part of 12-inch singles. The 27 minute documentary talks about the band continuing without Vince Clarke, the recruiting of Alan Wilder though he didn't participate in the recordings and the story behind the famous album cover.
Martin Gore was quoted as saying that this was probably their worst album but this is a very enjoyable album after a few listens.
Here's what's on the DVD:
-A Short Film-Depeche Mode: 1982 (The beginning of their so-called dark phase)
-The entire album in DTS 5.1 and stereo.
-Live in Hammersmith October 1982 in 5.1 and stereo:
My Secret Garden/See You/Satellite/Nothing To Fear/The Meaning Of Love/A Photograph Of You.
-Additional tracks:
Now, This Is Fun (B-side of "See You")
Oberkorn(It's A Small Town)
Excerpt from: My Secret Garden (B-side of "Leave In Silence-UK only)
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7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Bizarre, creative, schizophrenic and experimental - Depeche Mode's best, October 8, 2006
It's unfortunate that the band do not have a greater affection for this classic album, because I have always found it their most daring, exciting and experimental album. It is a bit schizophrenic with the addition of some out of place bubblegum pop songs, but that adds an interesting contrast to the otherwise dark tone of the album.
The first thing released from "A Broken Frame" was the terrible single, `See You'. Though it is one of their biggest hits, I've always found it trite and tedious. It sounds like a schoolboy crush put to music, which it may be considering some of these songs dated from Martin Gore's mid-teen years. The follow up single, `The Meaning of Love', is another bit of fluff, though this one is far more tolerable - at least in a novelty way. To have these two singles represent the album is very misleading, and detracts from the excellent material surrounding them on the album. It could have been an obvious choice to select the similarly dreadful `A Photograph of you' as the third single, but thankfully the final single was a far better choice. `Leave in Silence' shows the wonderful, dark and somewhat gothic mode the band were in at the time. Simple music with dark lyrics made it a lasting and classic Depeche Mode single.
My personal favorite Depeche Mode song remains the amazing `My Secret Garden'. Some bizarre musical textures and haunting background vocals, along with the subject matter, always made this sound like the starting point for a great horror film.
`Monument' is probably the most experimental song on the album. The song revolves around a weird sound that sounds like a cross between dripping water and a bouncing ball, and includes more of the haunting feel of `My Secret Garden'.
In strong competition for most bizarre song on the album, `Shouldn't have done that' utilizes some more oddball synth sounds with marching feet and deadpan vocals.
By interesting contrast, that song segues into the most melodic song on the album, `The Sun and the Rainfall'. This song has remained a classic with fans over the years, and rightly song. It's got a great melodic, melancholy feel and is a strong way to end this wonderful album.
And has often been mentioned, the album cover for "A Broken Frame" is wonderfully brilliant, and perfectly represents the moody attractiveness of the album.
The DVD is the first time I've ever heard discussion of this album in detail. There seems to be some that respect it for what it was at the time - proof that there was life after Vince, and others that see it as an unremarkable but necessary stepping stone. They talk of how the band was falling into the teeny bop pigeon hole, appearing on any TV show even if not a very good choice. That is best exemplified by the hysterically awful bits they show of the band miming `See You' in a barnyard setting, each holding chickens. How embarrassing! There are also brief excerpts from all three music videos for the singles released from "A Broken Frame", none of which have ever been available on official video compilations. No, they are not their best, but they do deserve to be available to let the fans decide if they want to view them or not.
Regarding the remastering - I find the whole 5.1 remastering an interesting experiment, and kinda neat the first listen, but in truth the majority of the time I listen to music is on headphones or in the car, so the 5.1 mixes will collect dust. This also adds to the frustration that the bonus material is only accessible on a DVD player. That's a crummy choice.
The sound quality on these new remasters is good, however I cannot hear too much difference from the previous CD's. One disappointment is the first note of `Satellite' has been lopped off, giving the listener a bit of confusion and throws the song off a bit. Other than that, it's just fine.
"A Broken Frame" takes repeated listens and an open mind to truly appreciate it for the classic that it is. Though Depeche Mode released some great music throughout the 80's, (I tuned out after the over exposure of "Violator"... until "Playing the Angel"), They never surpassed the experimentation and creativity of this album.
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