Depeche Mode - Spirit

Spirit/Playing > the good half of Sounds of the Universe > Delta Machine > the bad half of Sounds of the Universe

^ Yup, I'd agree with that!

As much as I like Playing the Angel, they really should have switched producers sooner... 'Cover Me' is just pure ear candy.

but so is Precious

Ultimately I tend to see the last four albums as of a piece -- there are subtle differences certainly, and Playing and Spirit have some of their most affecting moments lyrically thanks to, for lack of a better term, real world concerns, whether personal or much broader. But compared to how all the previous albums pretty clearly worked on a stake-out-its-own-aesthetics level time for time -- yes, even including Exciter -- then while Playing worked as an excellent recapitulation/reset towards certain strengths with room to move around within said scope, as well as introducing Dave as a songwriter, it's hard for me to hear that great a difference between it and the following three, even with a change in producer for this one. I don't really mind this, and individual songs stand out along the way, easy, so I tend to hear them all through that lens now. (It would make an interesting playlist.)

(I should add this is all separate from ranking. If I had to rank, probably Playing, Spirit, SOTU then Delta but that's arguably more on execution of said aesthetic each time combined with notable strength of songs. I think I still like the SOTU singles more than Spirit's.)

And the strongest Delta single to my mind is "Should Be Higher," which combined with a really dramatic Corbijn concert film made for a standout during the 2013 tour.

“Should Be Higher” and “Secret to the End” are the best songs on Delta Machine

Spirit is not - as I was expecting - a change in sound as obvious as the one between Violator and Songs of Faith and Devotion or Ultra and Exciter, but what multiple headphone listens have pretty much confirmed to me (even more so since revisiting Delta Machine) is that this is way more fuller and richer sounding, with a far more exciting mix. On the surface, it seems like more of the same, but for me this is the nu-Depeche sound perfected and done as it should have been done in the first place.

Nice little bonus for the year -- Null + Void is Kurt Uenala, who cowrote Dave's songs on Delta Machine like "Should Be Higher." New track of his featuring Mr. Gahan, who also appears in the video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xUSJ4XK2UXg

I wanna hear 'em mess around more with time signatures/meter changes like on 'You Move' ... apparently the story behind it was Gore sent Gahan the music as he didn't know what to do with it and Gahan saw it as a challenge to come up with a topline and lyric. It paid off!

I knew it was extreme, but, um, holy shit, have y’all seen Martin Gore’s home studio? pic.twitter.com/wFL21vCLI6

— Bruce Levenstein (@BruceLevenstein) January 26, 2018

I was bracing myself knowing it was going to be good, but holy shit... that's way good

My first thought was that it was all just cool wallpaper, but ... no. It's like one of every module.

I heard 'You Move' on shuffle today and had to listen to the whole album. This is still one of their very best late-period records, IMO.

Finally played this on my proper grown-up sound system and boy does it sound massive. I was initially put off by the first single and the reviews describing the album as a constant mid-tempo dirge, but it is unusually consistent and relentless. Generally DM likes to switch up between bangers and Gore confessionals, but this one is super cohesive. Love it