Depeche Mode – Speak & Spell (1981/2013)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 45:08 minutes | 879 MB | Genre: Alternative
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Digital Booklet, Front Cover | © Rhino/Warner Bros.
The band’s 1981 debut features the classic early singles, “New Life”, “Dreaming Of Me” and the signature track, “Just Can’t Get Enough.” Speak & Spell reached the Top Ten in the U.K., earning Gold certification. It is the sole album to feature Vince Clarke as a band member. Record Mirror gave the album a five-star review and stated “…sparkling songs…much to admire and little to disappoint”.
Though probably nobody fully appreciated it at the time — perhaps least of all the band! — Depeche Mode’s debut is at once both a conservative, functional pop record and a groundbreaking release. While various synth pioneers had come before — Gary Numan, early Human League, late-’70s Euro-disco, and above all Kraftwerk all had clear influence on Speak & Spell — Depeche became the undisputed founder of straight-up synth pop with the album’s 11 songs, light, hooky, and danceable numbers about love, life, and clubs. For all the claims about “dated” ’80s sounds from rock purists, it should be noted that the basic guitar/bass/drums lineup of rock is almost 25 years older than the catchy keyboard lines and electronic drums making the music here. That such a sound would eventually become ubiquitous during the Reagan years, spawning lots of crud along the way, means the band should no more be held to blame for that than Motown and the Beatles for inspiring lots of bad stuff in the ’60s. Credit for the album’s success has to go to main songwriter Vince Clarke, who would extend and arguably perfect the synth pop formula with Yazoo and Erasure; the classic early singles “New Life,” “Dreaming of Me,” and “Just Can’t Get Enough,” along with numbers ranging from the slyly homoerotic “Pretty Boy” to the moody thumper “Photographic,” keep everything moving throughout. David Gahan undersings about half the album, and Martin Gore’s two numbers lack the distinctiveness of his later work, but Speak & Spell remains an undiluted joy.
Tracklist:
01. Depeche Mode – New Life (03:59)
02. Depeche Mode – Puppets (03:59)
03. Depeche Mode – Dreaming Of Me (03:45)
04. Depeche Mode – Boys Say Go! (03:08)
05. Depeche Mode – Nodisco! (04:15)
06. Depeche Mode – What’s Your Name (02:45)
07. Depeche Mode – Photographic (04:58)
08. Depeche Mode – Tora! Tora! Tora! (04:28)
09. Depeche Mode – Big Muff (04:28)
10. Depeche Mode – Any Second Now (Voices) (02:33)
11. Depeche Mode – Just Can’t Get Enough (06:45)
