ARTIST: Depeche Mode
TITLE: A Broken Frame
LABEL: Mute
GENRE: Pop
BITRATE: 201kbps avg
PLAYTIME: 0h 40min total
RELEASE DATE: 2006-10-02
RIP DATE: 2006-09-28
Track List
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01. Leave In Silence 4:52
02. My Secret Garden 4:46
03. Monument 3:15
04. Nothing To Fear 4:18
05. See You 4:35
06. Satellite 4:43
07. The Meaning Of Love 3:06
08. A Photograph Of You 3:04
09. Shouldn't Have Done That 3:12
10. The Sun And The Rainfall 5:05
Release Notes:
Martin Gore has famously noted that Depeche Mode stopped worrying
about its future when the first post-Vince Clarke-departure single,
"See You," placed even higher on the English charts than anything
else Clarke had done with them. Such confidence carries through all
of A Broken Frame, a notably more ambitious effort than the pure
pop/disco of the band's debut. With arranging genius Alan Wilder
still one album away from fully joining the band, Frame became very
much Gore's record, writing all the songs and exploring various
styles never again touched upon in later years. "Satellite" and
"Monument" take distinct dub/reggae turns, while "Shouldn't Have
Done That" delivers its slightly precious message about the dangers
of adulthood with a spare arrangement and hollow, weirdly sweet
vocals. Much of the album follows in a dark vein, forsaking earlier
sprightliness, aside from tracks like "A Photograph of You" and
"The Meaning of Love," for more melancholy reflections about love
gone wrong as "Leave in Silence" and "My Secret Garden." More
complex arrangements and juxtaposed sounds, such as the sparkle of
breaking glass in "Leave in Silence," help give this underrated
album even more of an intriguing, unexpected edge. Gore's lyrics
sometimes veer on the facile, but David Gahan's singing comes more
clearly to the fore throughout -- things aren't all there yet, but
they were definitely starting to get close.