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210 of 240 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Their darkest... and possibly their best, October 18, 2005
It was not an incredibly difficult feat for DM to surpass the ironically-titled (yet underrated in my opinion) Exciter, but little did we know that they would surpass most of our expectations to this degree. This album rocks. Overall, it's their darkest album yet, especially following the somewhat sweet and tender mood of Exciter.
I don't normally do this, but here's a track by track:
1) "A Pain That I'm Used To" - A great intro track with definite NIN influence. Soft, dark, electronic beats that explode into a cacophony of loud guitars at the chorus. I heard this is going to be the second single.
2) "John The Revelator" - Influenced by a classic gospel track of the same name, this would have fit beautifully on Songs of Faith & Devotion. A heavy electro beat with Dave's preachy, aggressive vocals and a gospel choir that joins in at the chorus. My immediate favorite. I really hope this one becomes a single.
3) "Suffer Well" - The first of three songs written by Dave Gahan instead of Martin Gore (a first for DM). More than worthy of the Depeche Mode moniker, this is another favorite of mine. It's fast and catchy and very reminiscent of old-school pre-Violator DM. Reminds me of "Behind The Wheel."
4) "The Sinner In Me" - Another NIN-esque track. Dark and moody. Awesome synth line. I love it.
5) "Precious" - The first single. Also reminiscent of older DM - a very catchy song with a nice beat, a cool guitar part, and Dave's smooth vocals. For some reason I like this song a lot better within the context of the whole album. A very worthy first single. Many are saying it's one of the best singles of their career. I can't argue with that.
6) "Macro" - The first of the obligatory Martin Gore ballads. This is actually one of my favorites of his. The verses are kind of odd (which is typical of Gore), but I absolutely love the chorus ("see the microcosm in macrovision / our bodies moving with pure precision / one universal celebration / one evolution, one creation"). Severely underrated.
7) "I Want It All" - The next of the Gahan-penned tracks. It's strange and floaty and quite different from a typical DM song, but really good nonetheless. The beat is similar to Bjork's "All Is Full of Love" (which is one of my favorite songs, by the way).
8) "Nothing's Impossible" - The last of the Gahan-penned tracks, and definitely my least favorite of the three. It has an old-school feel, but Dave's vocals are a bit odd and monotone. It's not one of my favorites, but it's grown on me significantly and now I like it quite a bit.
9) "Introspectre" - A creepy little instrumental interlude. Could have been pulled right off of Radiohead's Kid A. There's not much to it. Eerie sound effects among minimal electronics.
10) "Damaged People" - The other Gore ballad. Slow, slightly creepy circus music with Gore's odd vocals. This has grown on me a lot, too, but is definitely one of the weakest tracks.
11) "Lilian" - An awesome, retro-sounding, fast-paced, catchy song about some spoiled, sadistic woman who likes to break hearts for fun. The sound is not stereotypical of DM, though, and I can't put a finger on why.
12) "The Darkest Star" - Another somewhat creepy slow song that's probably the darkest on the album. I didn't care much for it at first, but now I love it.
Since the release of Ultra, it's been my favorite DM album (even though many fans disliked it for some reason), followed very closely by Violator and Songs of Faith & Devotion. Critics keep saying Playing The Angel is their best since Violator. I really think, though, that it has risen up to possibly be their greatest masterpiece yet. Only time will tell if I feel the same way down the road, but right now that's where I stand.
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63 of 74 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Let's be reasonable...., October 20, 2005
This ain't a 5-star release nor a "Violator", but anything less than 3-stars are probably from non-DM fans trying to get a rise out of real DM fans. The first half of the cd mostly contain the more 'upbeat'(as in mid-tempo for DM) songs that all sound really good and are immediately accessible, esp 1,2,3,4,&5. The second half mostly contain the slower songs which are less accessible and requires more listenings to in order to let them sink in and judge them on their own merits; and these are the songs that will probably make or break this release as either 'just another good effort' or 'slightly underrated classic'. All of us can agree to what an up-tempo song has to offer, but all of us will have a different take on a slower song that requires us to take in the lyrics and music more at our own pace.
People putting this cd down off the bat after one or two listens should not be taken seriously. This is a good release as it stands now, with a potential to be even better later down the road. But even if I don't find another personal favorite 'ballad' along the lines of "Somebody", "Home" or "Waiting for the Night" in the second half of this cd in the near future(i actually had trouble with those 3 on first listenings, now all three are personal faves esp "Home"); I still stand by the 4-star rating. For me, the first half is good enough to compensate for the second half. If only there had been a few upbeat 'bonus' remixes at the end to offset the slower second half this might've even been a 5-star release(but i guess that's what cd maxi-singles are for). Btw, is anyone else freaked out by the cd cover? Reminds me of the zulu/zuni(?) fetish doll from that "Trilogy of Terror" horror movie back in the 80's. Spooky.
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15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The career U2 should be having, January 23, 2007
Before I really delve into my own review, I'd just like to point out a small piece of absurdism and downright laziness in the Amazon review above. "All hail the 80s"? Please. No one who has followed Depeche Mode's career with any degree of interest considers them an "80s band." And tossing around such shallow catch-isms simply diminishes the lasting and continuing relevance that the band brings to the music world.
Anyway, enough time spent on such petty issues. Now that "Playing the Angel" has had time to settle in and take its place among the rest of Depeche Mode's canon of works, we can look at it for what it truly is: a rather stunning piece of work. Although it's far from a perfect album, I can safely say at this point in their lifespan that Depeche mode is having the type of career that U2 SHOULD be having, but for whatever reasons simply are not. If you look at the careers of the two bands, you will notice some similarities.
Both are among the few bands who originally gained fame and noteriety in the 1980s, yet who continued to release material and maintain their popularity through the present day. Both reached a career apex of sorts in the late 80s, and reinvented themselves in the 90s--U2 towards a more technologically-savvy, European sound, and Depeche into a more musically diverse and harder sound. Fast forward now to 2005, and both bands have released albums that represent a return of sorts to their "core" sound. However, while U2 delivered the flat, uninspired mess "How To Dismantle an Atomic Bomb", Depeche emerged with their musical integrity firmly intact with the fantastic "Playing the Angel."
While DM ventured off into a grittier electro-rock sound in the 90s (with more success than failure, it should be noted), Playing the Angel finds them crafting an analog synth-driven sound that harkens firmly back to the bands Violator heydey. Don't be misled, however, by thinking that Playing the Angel is merely Depeche Mode getting lazy and retreating towards familiar sounds and structures. Though the band's trademark synths, and Martin Gore's trademark observations on love, sex and religion, are pervasive on the album, Dave Gahan and Co. understand that living solely in the past dooms a band to a career of mediocrity (I'm looking at you, Bono.)
So we have distorted synths and power chords driving the chorus to album opener "A Pain That I'm Used To", a fuzzed-out guitar break in the album's centerpiece and leadoff single, "Precious", and a thunderous, industrial instrumental breakdown during "Sinner In Me" that serves as a smack on the back of Trent Reznor's head to remind him where this sound came from in the first place. On top of the musical stylistic achievements, the band has also added another "first" to their catalog--songs written by someone other than Martin Gore. Dave Gahan (with some help from studio keyboardist Andrew Philpott and touring drummer Christian Eigner) penned three tracks on the album. And although only one--the bouncy sing-along "Suffer Well"--is truly a standout track, it shows that, 11 albumns and 25 years into their career, the band is not afraid to try new things.
Gahan's songwriting efforts also seem to have provided Gore a swift kick in the rear, as his batch of songs on this album easily ranks as among the best of his career. The aforementioned "Precious" (destined to reside amongst the band's best singles), the gospel-tinged electro stomper "John the Revelator" and cinematic closer "The Darkest Star", among others, highlight a songwriter and a band still brimming with ideas, not relaxing on a staid formula.
Which is not to say that everything here is perfect. Every Depeche album has featured Martin Gore taking over on lead vocals for a couple of tracks. And while his turn on the gorgeous "Home" from 1997's Ultra highlights all that is good about a Gore-sung track, the two offerings here highlight the opposite. Over-wrought, over-embellished and generally sub-par, "Macrovision" and "Damaged People" could easily have been left off of the album to no one's detriment. Ditto the plodding Gahan number, "I Want It All", a 6+ minute tune that doesn't really go anywhere. Also, the creeping "Nothing's Impossible", while not in itself a bad number, suffers from under-production and general blandness (something which was rectified on the band's most recent tour.)
So we have--as with most previous Depeche releases--a generally great album with a few clunkers sprinkled in for good measure. By far an improvement over 2001's ridiculously understated (and mis-named) "Exciter", "Playing the Angel" is a remarkable effort for a band soldiering on after 25 years as synth-driven rock pioneers. The songs are generally top-notch, Gahan's voice is in fine form, and (U2 take note) the band as a whole sounds energized and interesting. A "return to form" that meets all of these criteria? If only all bands could be this interesting.
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