Few artists in the history of music define their genre. Michael Jackson was the King of Pop and Donna Summer was the reigning Queen of Disco. Arguably, the defining artists of New Wave were the one band like none other – Depeche Mode. It’s nearly impossible to count the classic turns this monster group created or on which the members collaborated, but their sound is, for certain, the signature sound of alternative rock stations throughout the eighties and nineties. From their immense catalog of amazing songs, I was only able to narrow it down to two of my all-time favorites, and trust me, that was a difficult task. Today I present People Are People, a song as current today, to this very minute, as it was when it debuted on MTV in the young eighties. More people need to put their stubborn ears to their Bose speakers and LISTEN. Help me understand! More than a decade later, It’s No Good slams onto the airwaves, and it’s VERY good. So good, in fact it’s almost hypnotic. The lyrics are a little stalkery, but hey, they sort of mimic the mood of this song, and isn’t that what most of Depeche’s music is about, the mood? I could listen to playlist after playlist of Depeche and never get tired. How about you?
From the historical writing archive. Original date: December 6, 2018. Recovered from local source material; editorial review is still in progress.