Excited but not Violated (Exciter - Depeche Mode)

Member Name: tim_russell

Product:	Exciter - Depeche Mode
Date:	01/06/01 (30 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Fresh, "I Feel Loved", they're still alive!

Disadvantages: No real classic DM songs, not dark enough

20 years ago, around the time of "Just Can't Get Enought", it would've seemed unthinkable that in 2001 we'd be talking about the Mode in terms of heroin addiction, nervous breakdowns and overdoses, but that's the context in which this album has generally been reviewed.

1997's "Ultra", their first post-excess comedown album, was a patchy, frustrating affair, not helped by a knackered-sounding Gahan and the departure of Alan Wilder, the only classically-trained musician in the band and something of an unsung hero when it comes to the band's grasp of melody. It looked like a halfhearted farewell note from a band who were fed up of music and of each other.

So it's something of a surprise that they sound so fresh on "Exciter". Ex-LFO man Mark Bell's production bubbles and sparkles, and best of all, Dave Gahan is in better vocal form than ever, sounding like the man reborn he genuinely is, most particularly on the awesome "Sweetest Condition".

Single "Dream On", which opens the album, is a delicate, understated gem, and sets a laid-back, mellow tone for songs like "Shine" and "When The Body Speaks". Only "The Dead of Night", a risible Marilyn Manson pastiche, and "I Feel Loved", an awesome slab of throbbing Donna Summer-esque gay disco, increase the BPMs, so it's a surprise the album is named as it is.

Like "Ultra", Wilder's melodic touched is still missed - there's little as touching or memorable as "Enjoy The Silence" or "In Your Room" - and Gore's lyrics occasionally veer close to embarrassing ("Comatose" and "Breathe" being the worst offenders). Unlike "Ultra", the tone of the album is light and airy, if that makes sense, so much so in places that one yearns for the darkness and intensity of "Violator" or "Songs of Faith &
Devotion".

Nevertheless, it is indeed a miracle that this band are still recording, still sounding fresh, and still more inventive than they're given credit for. "Exciter" may not be as good as "Violator", but it's better than "Ultra" and may just represent a turning point in their career.

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