I mean, I was so into them, I used to have re-occurring Rookie dreams... You know, the ones where you're sitting in the stands at your favorite game supporting your favorite team and right at that pivotal crunch moment, the coach stands up, points to you and pulls you off the bleachers to join the team on the field and lead them to victory!!! I would dream I'd get pulled aside right before the start of a DM show and they'd ask me to play one of the keyboards for the show! The rest of the dream would be me on stage playing the songs with the band. It was usually from a show I'd seen before. But it was always uplifting and put me in the best moods when I'd wake up.
So where did it all go wrong?
For a lot of fans, "Songs of Faith and Devotion" was too much of a change. I think if you asked most die-hard fans when the band jumped the shark, they'll say that record.
Watching a band who spent most of the 80's on the forefront of electronic music pioneering new forms of sound engineering and design, suddenly trying to catch up to the sound of younger grunge bands seemed like a death knell. But for those of us who embraced the journey, we witnessed something extremely mind-blowing.
The first time I saw the Devotional Tour I couldn't believe what I was seeing. David Gahan, who up to this point, was actually extremely embarrassing to watch perform (and we're talking cringe worthy like watching The Office cringing), was SEXY!!! The young kid who's entire dance repertoire centered on spinning around with his mic stand was replaced with a longer haired, calmer, more commanding performer. It was like someone took him out back and taught his some moves.
I was flabbergasted.
And the show was visually and mentally challenging as well. They really delivered. And I was re-hooked. I saw this tour and the extended Exotica portion a total of 5 times.
The subsequent material was hit and miss with me. "Ultra", another greatest hits package... the company coffers were continuing to siphon off my excess income. I got really excited about "Playing the Angel". I loved that record and I loved the tour. I was momentarily reinvigorated. And that, my friends, is where everything went so 'Wrong'.
I... actually hated a new Depeche Mode track. Literally hated it. And as I listened to other tracks from the disc, the glaring reasons for my waning interest were suddenly right in front of me. I felt like the song writing was getting too predictable and they weren't putting out any new ideas or doing anything challenging musically. They were just releasing a new record to tour behind.
Something inside snapped and I quit. I stopped. I haven't bought a single record more. I just crossed them off my list.
No more dreams.
So... I got invited to see them for this tour by an old friend I haven't had contact with in some time. To be honest, my motivation in going was mostly to hang with her and reconnect. She'd never seen them live before and although none of their subsequent tours have matched the masterpiece of "Devotional" I know a band that can work a crowd and DM does put on a good show. That's how I ended up at the USANA Amphitheatre to catch the opening show of the US leg of their new Global Spirit Tour.
Of course, there's a new album; which I've never heard nor had any intention of hearing. But I wasn't going for that. I was going for the hits. For the older songs I knew they'd play.
And I was prepared! And then this happened:
Dave come out on stage in front of a rainbow colored modern art piece that is continually shifting as the visual plays out. 'Going Backward' was the song and the painting indeed went backward until it was a blank canvas with Dave telling us there's "nothing" inside.
Wow
A few more new songs rolled in with some hits and then, BAM!
Nothing prepared me for the musical onslaught of this track. I was dancing, singing, jumping, laughing, crying and completely caught up in the show.
Martin's impassioned performance of 'A Question Of Lust' and the wonderful under-rated song, 'Home' had me utterly emotional.
Suddenly, I wasn't watching a band I'd given up on years ago, I was with old friends who'd waited patiently for me to come around again. And when I finally did, they welcomed me back and embraced me back into the fold.
I stopped worrying or thinking about my critical thoughts on their new music and instead, I simply let myself get caught up in the moment and feel it.
Even when they played the dreadful 'Wrong', I didn't lose interest or walk away. I was part of something so much bigger than myself, my friends, Martin, Dave or Andy Fletcher. I was "home".
If Depeche Mode are playing near you or you have the chance to see them on this tour, don't hesitate. You won't be disappointed.
Here are Depeche Mode performing 'Home'. One of my favorite moments from the show.
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