THE CURIOUS TALE OF BUT NOT TONIGHT

Record companies are funny beasts really. The artists they support spend ages writing songs that explore deep, important personal feelings, they craft music that fits the song and then they spend ages in recording studios honing the track until they feel it is perfect. Relieved, tired, but ultimately proud, they play it to the record company and wait with anticipation for the inevitable explosion of praise. The record company guy looks at them and says "Nah. It's not a single. What does the b-side sound like?"

That ladies and gentlemen, is a rough approximation of what went through Depeche Mode's U.S. record label Sire in early 1986. They were played the towering majesty of Stripped. They chose to use its b-side But Not Tonight instead. Even thirty years on, that's hard to fathom.

But Not Tonight US 7" single

Firstly, a couple of points about But Not Tonight. When I bought the Stripped 12" many years ago, I was really taken with But Not Tonight. Catchy to the point of infuriation, it's a fine pop song and a more than adequate b-side. The Extended Remix that features on that 12" is joyous and is superior to the standard 7" version for sure. Secondly, when Martin played it live on the Delta Machine tour it was a sublime moment. Those two saving graces aside though, the use of But Not Tonight as Sire's way of helping break Depeche Mode in America smacks of someone really not thinking things through at all. 

Rear of US 12"

The band and Mute went along with this decision which, as the band explain on the Black Celebration re-issue dvd, was more because they thought the label knew the U.S. market well enough and the single even got a place on the soundtrack of the film Modern Girls. You must have seen Modern Girls right? No? Me neither. Despite all the know how and placement on the cruelly overlooked for an Oscar nomination soundtrack, But Not Tonight disappeared without trace in America, but it did reappear on the U.S. release of Black Celebration. Perhaps the grim video (below) hindered it even further. Thankfully, and somewhat incredibly, it didn't impede the band over there that year as we'll see later this month. 

For Depeche Mode hunters however, the U.S releases of But Not Tonight (U.S release date 22 October 1986) offer versions of the track that you don't hear on the original release. The 7" version and Extended Mix on the 12" are remixes by Robert Margouleff and they're both somewhat shinier and poppier in feel than the standard U.K. versions. Neither are vital but both are ok. The Extended Mix and the Margouleff Dance Mix were eventually released in the U.K. on the digital only release of Remixes 81-04. That odd secret site release - you'll remember how frustrating that was in the pre broadband days. None of the versions of But Not Tonight are the equal of the 7" single's b-side of course. That track, the obscure, little known Stripped really has something about it. The 12" single also adds the Highland Mix of Stripped and Black Day from the U.K. 12" version. A positive is the artwork - the white take on the black cover of Stripped is really rather lovely. 

Modern Girls U.S vinyl LP

Overall, in a career that has seen them perform See You whilst holding chickens on a German television called Bananas (trust me - look for it on YouTube) and one that saw them approve the video for The Meaning Of Love, the release of But Not Tonight as a single has to be one of the most baffling decisions ever made about or by Depeche Mode. Ultimately, they trusted Sire, the single failed and the band thought America was a lost cause. The tale of But Not Tonight is indeed a curious one, but as with all good tales, there was a happy ending and Depeche Mode were soon to find that America was very much in love with them.

A lovely postscript to all this was the song's resurrection on the Delta Machine tour (below) which ended up becoming something of an emotional highlight, and I personally found it rather moving.

Perhaps Sire knew what they were doing all along eh?

STRIPPED - THE START OF THE JOURNEY INTO THE DARK SIDE OF DEPECHE MODE

Stripped is arguably one of the most important singles Depeche Mode have ever released. Shake The Disease had provided an indicator of the band leaving behind the poppier elements of their sound, but Stripped was the first real sign that Depeche were headed in a darker, more interesting direction. Yes, tracks like Blasphemous Rumours are dark in a way, but it still has one of the band's poppiest choruses and while Master & Servant spoke of kinky fun in a subversive way, you wouldn't say it was a grand statement of gothic majesty. Stripped is where the darker side of Depeche Mode came to the fore and, let's face it, we are all delighted that it did.

Stripped was released on 10 February 1986 and reached an implausibly low number 15 in the UK. The single was promoted well at the time too, albeit appearances on U.K. television chat show Wogan (see below) and other shows contained the odd sight of a motorbike on stage with the band. Whilst the sight of Alan and Fletch bashing away on drums was perhaps designed to show that Depeche were a "real" band rather than just synth boffins, the motorbike, present of course at the start of the song in sampled form, was stretching things a tad far. Anyway, all that aside, Stripped  was well received by the press at the time but still failed to get a chart placing it deserved. 

Melody Maker called it "a real crackerette" which seemed to be a good thing

Picture courtesy of DMTV Archives

Smash Hits, the UK pop magazine loved it too

SINGLES REVIEW

Reviewed by Simon Braithwaite

Depeche Mode were becoming very predictable but this is the best thing they've done in ages. "Let me see you stripped," sings Dave Gahan and bang goes their appearance on Saturday Superstore. Actually, I think it's all about going back to nature and "discovering yourself". Slow and atmospheric, even though you can't work out what he's going on about.

The best thing they've done in ages indeed. Finally, the No. 1 magazine review was even more positive:

Depeche Mode must rate as one of the most consistent if not one of the best pop bands of the 80s. They have a distinctive sound, but not so much so that each release sounds like the last one. Their lyrics actually mean something without being pretentious and over the top. Yet they never seem to get the adulation that their competitors get. Strange that.

Let’s hope that the haunting stillness of ‘Stripped’ puts them up where they belong, before Frankie and Spandau reappear.

Mark Booker

Yet it only got to number 15....

One thing I love about Stripped, and this is where the geek in me comes to the fore is the fact the 12" was loudly proclaimed to be a "5 track, 25 minute" record (see poster below and the 12" cover itself) and we were told that no further releases beyond the 7" and 12" would be made available. Fair enough. As we'll discover in a bit more depth tomorrow, But Not Tonight appeared on the b-side of the 7" and the 5 tracks that made up the 12" were: Stripped (Highland Mix), But Not Tonight (Extended Remix), Breathing In Fumes, Fly On The Windscreen (Quiet Mix) and Black Day. Together they all last 25 minutes 3 seconds, so you got 3 seconds more than the advertised time. Don't say Depeche Mode aren't good to you.

Stripped UK promo poster - picture courtesy of depmod.com

The 7 tracks this release features became available on cd in the UK in 1991 during the first phase of the Depeche Mode Singles re-issues. As with all the band's releases up to 1988 however, the band's West German label, Intercord, were ahead of the game with a cd single issued in 1986. A French cd single is available too. As well as digital formats,  Intercord released not one but two coloured vinyl 12" versions of Stripped, as well as a red vinyl 7". There's a blue and white marbled vinyl and a white one, both of which are beautiful. They both have the same running order as the U.K. 12" and there's not much else to say about them, other than to say the blue and white marbled vinyl 12" is much easier to find than the white vinyl 12". It took me ages to track it down but I have it and it forms part of my Stripped collection which you can see below.

As well as a piece on But Not Tonight, there will be something about Fly On The Windscreen here later this month, so we'll leave any analysis of those tracks for now. The Highland Mix of Stripped is one of those classic mid 80's 12" remixes that compliments the original track perfectly. Up until this point, the band, along with Daniel Miller and later Gareth Jones, had in the main prepared the 12" remixes themselves with some success on the likes of People Are People (Different Mix) for example. Limited edition 12" singles for People Are People and Master & Servant had seen Adrian Sherwood's On-U Sound take over remixing duties of course, but beyond that, 12" singles were dealt with by Depeche and their studio team. Here though, a keen young chap called Flood was passed the remixing baton and he produced something very special. The song gets more space to breathe which gives it a wonderful moody edge and the individual sounds are easier to pick out than in the 7" version. The main riff is given a distinct bagpipe feel too, hence the title. It's a vital mix for anyone exploring Depeche Mode's back catalogue. 

RRBONG10 - Stripped 12" UK promo

Stripped aside, one important aspect of this release was Breathing In Fumes. Using Stripped as its starting point, the track is a powerful, bombastic, six minute wall of wonderful noise. As we'll read later this month, this was the band, Daniel and Gareth Jones' own take on a 12" mix of Stripped and it really is an outstanding track, with the vocals shared between Dave's sampled lead from Stripped and Martin's heavily processed vocoder parts. The latter can be seen on the Black Celebration reissue dvd. There's a distinct sense of the On-U Sound mixes I mentioned earlier here too. The 12" ends with the first and only Gore/Wilder/Miller co-write Black Day. Even though it's something of a throwaway track perhaps designed to push the record over the 25 minute mark, there's something endearing about it. After the hard slog of the Black Celebration sessions, it shows the band taking it easy and even having fun. The nod it gives to the at that point unreleased title track of the forthcoming album is a nice touch too.

Finally, the video for Stripped (above) deserves a mention too. Filmed just outside Hansa in Berlin and directed by Peter Care, it's a rather neat summary of where Depeche Mode were at this point in their career. It's dark, it's in Berlin, there's more leather than is necessary and they're all hitting things with hammers. What really makes it all work though is the intensity, power and sheer wonder of the song however. Stripped set Depeche Mode off on the path that ultimately led them to become the biggest band in the world for a while and that sees them still full stadia around the world today. Dark, mysterious, uniquely experimental in the pop field and ultimately a fantastic single - Stripped is where Depeche Mode became vital.

DRESSED IN BLACK AGAIN (AGAIN) - DEPECHE MODE AND 1986

I started this blog specifically to have somewhere to talk about Depeche Mode as I'd worn out the patience of my family and friends, yet still needed to get DM related nonsense out of my head. I decided to write an article about each year of the band's life, tied to the releases of the period and, to be perfectly frank, I'm still surprised today by how many people read each piece. The Black Celebration article from 28 April 2011 ( I can't believe it was that long ago) was one of the most popular at the time, so it's reproduced here with a few grammar tweaks for you to enjoy again. I realise yesterday was an introduction and this is a reproduction, but we will properly kick off tomorrow. Promise. Treat this as nothing more than a refresher - something to get you thinking about Black Celebration ahead of the things to come your way over the next 29 days. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPECHE MODE - DRESSED IN BLACK AGAIN - BLACK CELEBRATION AND 1986

So the Singles 81-85 brought chapter one to a close. Depeche Mode were pretty huge in the UK and Europe with a decent following in other parts of the globe and even Amercia was starting to listen. The London and Hansa recording sessions for their forthcoming album would be crucial as the band stood at the point of either remaining a fairly well liked synthpop band or becoming a genuinely huge band on a worldwide scale. Mercifully, they chose not to got further down the Its Called a Heart route and instead released what was to basically become their and their fans manifesto - Black Celebration.

Before the album however came the lead off single. On 10 February 1986 Stripped was released reaching number 15 in the U.K. I wont go off on one again about chart numbers but NUMBER 15? Good grief. Stripped should have been number 1 for at least the whole of 1986. It remains one of my favourite songs by any band let alone DM and I believe that, yet again, Martin and I agree on this. It's still played live by the band and is still a live highlight despite its' familiarity. My favourite live version is on 101 - worth hearing for the metal banging alone. The 7" (7BONG10 - right) added a brand new B-side But Not Tonight. It's a decent poppy track continuing Martin's b-side's written about drinking theme but it's no more than that. For some reason however Sire, their US label, chose to ignore the majesty of Stripped and instead released But Not Tonight as a single with Stripped on the flip side. Partly inspired by the song's appearance in the dreadful Modern Girls film, the label no doubt thought they knew what they were doing. They didnt. What a bloody ridiculous decsion. Anyway, a US 12" of BNT is available and features some remixes and other stuff. As this blog is only concerned with UK releases and the occasional German release I'll leave that there. Back here a 12" of Stripped was released with adverts for the record promising that no further releases would be issued for Stripped. Crikey! The "5 track 25 minute single (12BONG10 - left) is a great thing. Its' 5 tracks are Stripped (Highland Mix), But Not Tonight (Extended Remix), Breathing In Fumes, Fly On The Windscreen (Quiet Mix) and Black Day. The Highland Mix of Stripped was mixed by Flood and is pretty cool. The remix of BNT extends and remixes the song as promised. Breathing In Fumes is an interesting track. I guess the band took a lead from the On U Sound remixes of Master and Servant and People Are People when creating this track. It takes samples from Stripped and turns them into a booming 6 minute track. We then have yet another version of Fly On The Windscreen which is always good to hear and then we end on a strange wee thing called Black Day which was written by Martin, Alan and Daniel Miller. It features Martin singing lines from the then unreleased Black Celebraton over electronics and harmonica. It's a fine track but don't worry if you don't have it. The German 12" version came in one of two colours - a blue/white marble vinyl and a white vinyl. If anyone has any spare white vinyl copies kicking about then I'll happily take them from you! A red 7" vinyl is available too. Finally the video is ok featuring big TV screens, hammers, smoke and cars getting smashed up. Put it this way, it's a billion times better than the It's Called a Heart video....

Instead of a new single, the next release from the band was an album - Black Celebration. Even now, 25 years after its release, the album sounds new, fresh and is just bloody brilliant! The vast majority of Depeche fans (I've learned not to say all) love Black Celebration and rightly so. It was the last of the Hansa trilogy of albums and indeed was the last produced by the band, Daniel Miller and Gareth Jones. If for some reason you don't have it, put this down, find a record shop and buy it. My fear with this blog is that I will go on and on and on about the sheer genius of Black Celebration in ways that will bore even hardcore Depeche fans so, in an attempt to at least keep some viewers, I will restrict myself to saying that it is second only to Violator for me. When I eventually get to the Violator blog you'll see what I mean about going on and on. Anyway, Black Celebration (right) was released on 17 March 1986 on LP (STUMM26) and cassette (CSTUMM26) and features 11 tracks: Black Celebration, Fly On The Windscreen (Final), A Question of Lust, Sometimes, It Doesn't Matter Two, A Question of Time, Stripped, Here Is The House, World Full Of Nothing, Dressed In Black and New Dress. Every one (and yes that DOES include Sometimes - I like it and I will defend it) is top quality and the whole album works perfectly as an complete album from start to finish. I don't imagine anyone had used the phrase Black Celebration before but Depeche did, and the album starts as it means to go on with a track celebrating life, love and happiness albeit from a darker perspective than usual. Fly On The Windscreen then makes another appearance this time in its classic guise. A larger than usual Martin section then follows with three songs - A Question of Lust (more below), Sometimes (it's fine - leave it alone) and It Doesn't Matter Two, so called because It Doesn't Matter appeared on Some Great Reward. IDM2 is my favourite Martin track here - musically and lyrically it's perfect. A quickfire double of classics follows (A Question of Time more of which to come and Stripped) and then we land at Here Is The House. I'll go out on a limb here and say that EVERY Depeche fan loves this song. It's odd that it hasn't featured more live as it was only played a couple of times on the Black Celebration tour and then revisted acoustically by Martin on World Violation. Maybe all the harmonies and counter melodies make it too hard to recreate live - who knows? It's just a pity we haven't heard more of it. Next we find a fourth Martin track (did Dave have a sore throat?) World Full of Nothing which is lovely and then Dressed In Black. DIB essentially sums up all Depeche fans everywhere as anyone who's been to a Depeche gig will confirm. Martin has played this in solo spots on tours which always ends in an extended WOAH-OH part at the end. Finally, Martin gets political with New Dress which takes down the media in four verses. As I'm typing this I'm trying to find a news channel that isn't droning on about the forthcoming Royal Wedding - New Dress seems appropriate in the circumstances.

The German edition of the LP is available in grey vinyl. A cd version was released after the initial release date adding Breathing In Fumes, But Not Tonight (Extended Remix) and Black Day from the Stripped 12". I won't say any more about the album other than demanding once again that you buy it if you don't already have it.

The band's next single appeared on 14 April 1986. A Question of Lust was a Martin sung single which the by now confirmed as cloth eared UK record buying public failed to embrace leading to the song stalling at their second lowest position (if we include Dreaming of Me which is a bit harsh) of 28. The single came in three formats. Firstly, we had a 7" (7BONG11 - right) which was backed with a new instrumental b-side called Christmas Island, a cracking track. The 12" (12BONG11 - left) was yet another 5 track spectacular featuring A Question of Lust, Christmas Island (Extended), People Are People (Live), It Doesn't Matter Two (Instrumental) and A Question Of Lust (Minimal). Whilst not as good a collection as the Stripped 12" it's still an interesting 12". The live version of People Are People is from Basle on the Some Great reward tour and the instrumental of IDM2 is just that. The best track on the record is the Minimal version of A Question of Lust - a nice take on the lead track. There was no limited edition 12" this time. Instead the first ever Depeche Mode cassette single was released (CBONG11 - left). It's a great little item this featuring a cassette, a booklet containing some quite dreadful photos and a badge. The packaging has a handy little ticked list of contents just so you know what you're getting when you buy it. There are 4 tracks on the cassette - A Question of Lust (Flood Mix) (great) and live versions of If You Want, Shame and Blaspehmous Rumours again from the Basle gig. The only snag with this release is the envelope the package comes in - it's quite tought to open and the part you open tends to rip. It also ruins the sticker on the back of the pack. The Germans are an inventive lot however and so to avoid this they released the cassette as a 12" on yellow vinyl. The lead 12" comes on black and white marble vinyl and a red 7" is available too. The black/white vinyl was the one I needed to complete my collection (other than the rare JCGE and Stripped 12") a few years ago and I DEFINITELY spent too much money on it. Worth it though. Finally the video shows Martin singing and the band hitting things.

The last single from Black Celebration was A Question of Time which was remixed for its release on 11 August 1986 and ended up climbing to number 17 in the UK. The 7" (right - 7BONG12) featured A Question of Time (remix) and a live version of Black Celebration from the Black Celebration tour gig at Birmingham NEC. The remix is a decent enough remix but the live B-side is the interesting track here. The band who were undertaking their first full UK Arena tour now sounded like a band destined to play on the bigger stages as the live versions of the new songs showed. As the tour went on the band added larger and larger venues worldwide and played their biggest US shows to date including a prestigous show at Radio City Music Hall. The 12" release (12BONG12 - left) featured Black Celebration from the 7" and added more live tracks from the same show - Something To Do and Stripped. There was also a further remix of A Question Of Time, the rather good Extended Remix. We then got our first limited edition 12" of the Black Celebration era with L12BONG12 (right) which is either a three or a four track 12" depending on what version you have. The first two tracks on the four track 12" are the New Town Mix of A Question of Time and a live remix of the same. They two tracks run into each other meaning that on later re-issues and the cd single from 1991 they are listed as one thing called New Town Mix/Live Remix. All a bit of a fuss other nothing really - the remix part is ok and the live remix features a frankly terrible organ type sound for the main riff. The remaining two tracks were the Black Tulip Mix of Black Celebration (nice) and a live version of More Than A Party from the NEC show. German editions are a red vinyl 7", a black and white marbled 12" and a grey limited edition 12".

The most interesting thing about this release is the video and thus far I have NEVER said that. This was the band's first video that was directed by Anton Corbijn and it represented a beginning of a dramatic shift in the band's visual presentation. The video is a black and white affair showing a mix of live footage and a story that seems to involve Alan waiting for a baby to be delivered to him by a man in a motorbike and sidecar. I admit that doesn't sound great but it is especially when compared to all DM videos prior to it.

The lengthy Black Celebration tour took the band to the next level globally and the album's much more mature sound attracted many more listeners. The next step would be huge taking the band into stadiums and bringing their music to the ..er...masses. We'll look at that next time.

LET'S HAVE A BLACK CELEBRATION

Depeche Mode's Black Celebration is rightly regarded as one of the band's masterpieces. It's not as widely feted as the likes of Violator and Songs Of Faith And Devotion, but Black Celebration played as big a role as those albums did in elevating Depeche Mode to the position they occupy today as one of the most influential acts of all time. 

The album was released on 17 March 1986, and its subsequent tour saw the band first play arenas in the U.K, as well as seeing them properly break through in America, where they moved from a cult concern to a band who filled large venues, albeit with little to no radio support. Without Black Celebration, we wouldn't have the Depeche Mode we have today, and that would be a very bad thing indeed.

In celebration of the 30th anniversary of the release of Black Celebration, this month on Almost Predictable Almost is going to be devoted to this wonderful album, with a new article each day offering insight, opinions and inevitable overuse of the words "Black" and "Celebration."  There will be a few guest posts, the usual things from me, a hugely interesting and, for me, incredibly exciting, exclusive interview with Gareth Jones recalling his time producing the album, interviews with Speak & Spell and Forced To Mode, a chat with Dennis Burmeister, author of the extraordinary Monument book and much more as you can see below.

March 1 - Let's Have A Black Celebration
March 2 - Dressed In Black Again (Again)
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/dressed-in-black-again-again-depeche.html
March 3 - Stripped - The Journey Into The Dark Heart Of Depeche Mode
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/stripped-start-of-journey-into-dark.html
March 4 - The Curious Tale Of But Not Tonight
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/the-curious-case-of-but-not-tonight.html
March 5 - Guest Post #1: Aidan Berry
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/a-guest-black-celebration-1-aidan-berry.html
March 6 - An Exclusive Interview With Gareth Jones
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/an-interview-with-gareth-jones.html
March 7 - Archives Special: Depeche Mode Interview With No.1 Magazine 29 February 1986
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/retro-1-depeche-mode-interview-from-no.html
March 8 - The Black Celebration Reviews courtesy of DM TV Archives
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/retro-2-black-celebration-reviews-with.html
March 9 - Interview: Speak & Spell
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/an-interview-with-speak-spell.html
March 10 - Let's Have An Art Celebration - The Black Celebration Artwork Featuring An Exclusive Interview With Brian Griffin
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/lets-have-art-celebration-black.html
March 11 - Guest Post #2: Panos Sialakas
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/a-guest-black-celebration-2-panos.html
March 12 - A Question Of Lust
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/a-question-of-lust.html
March 13 - The One That Nearly Got Away : Fly On The Windscreen
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/fly-on-windscreen-one-that-nearly-got.html
March 14 - Black Celebration Rarities
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/the-black-celebration-era-rarities.html
March 15 - Guest Post #3: Amanda Stock
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/a-guest-black-celebration-3-amanda-stock.html
March 16 - Black Celebration Formats, with a little help from Depmod.com
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/the-black-celebration-formats.html
March 17 - Black Celebration Release Day - You Can Change The World
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/black-celebration-release-day-you-can.html
March 18 - Guest Post#4: Niggels Uhlenbruch
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/a-guest-black-celebration-4-niggels.html
March 19 - A Depeche Mode Classic Photos And Videos Special
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/a-depeche-mode-classic-photos-and.html
March 20 - The Black Celebration World Tour
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/the-black-celebration-world-tour.html
March 21 - A Depeche Mode Live Wiki Black Celebration Special
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/a-dm-live-wiki-black-celebration-special.html
March 22 - The Black Celebration Tour Live Reviews courtesy of DMTV Archives
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/the-black-celebration-tour-live-reviews.html
March 23 - Guest Post #5: Sean Salo
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/a-guest-black-celebration-5-sean-salo.html
March 24 - A Question Of Time
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/a-question-of-time.html
March 25 - A Black Celebration DJ Mix by Glen Hammarstrom
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/a-black-celebration-dj-mix.html
March 26 - Guest Post #6: Kevin May
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/a-guest-black-celebration-6-kevin-may.html
March 27 - Here Is The House - A Lost Depeche Mode Classic
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/here-is-house-lost-classic.html
March 28 - Interview: Forced To Mode
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/interview-forced-to-mode.html
March 29 - More Gore Than Ever Before
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/more-gore-than-ever-before.html
March 30 - Black Celebration's Legacy
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/black-celebrations-legacy.html
March 31 - A Month Long Period Of Rejoicing - Final
http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/a-month-long-period-of-rejoicing-final.html

I hope you enjoy as many of the next 30 days worth of posts as you can. Please feel free to join in the chat about it here, on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/almostpredictablealmost/) and on Twitter, either on my own page (@davidjmcelroy) or on the blog's page (@almostprdalmost). Finally, there will be pictures of records and so on throughout and you can see more of these on my Instagram - @djm3875. As well as the Black Celebration stuff there are and always will be loads of other Depeche stuff if that floats your boat.

Finally, some credits. In preparing this month's worth of posts, I've used pictures from three very important Depeche Mode fan sites who I have endeavoured to credit each time. The odd picture may slip the net though, so if you're from one of the sites and see I haven't given you credit please let me know. Those sites are:

Depeche Mode Classic Photos and Videos Facebook group - a private Facebook group that contains more pictures of Depeche Mode than Depeche Mode have themselves. It's an incredible source of information and a wonderful, wonderful thing

Depmod.com - http://www.depmod.com/misc/index.html  - THE collector's site. There isn't one Depeche release from any country on earth that isn't covered here. Want to know about the Philippines 12" of Strangelove?  Go there. Need to check how many editions of the A Broken Frame album there are on cassette? It'll tell you.  The forum is a treasure trove of information.

Depeche Mode Television Archives - http://www.dmtvarchives.com/  - An attempt to get a record of EVERY DM television, radio and media appearance from the band's first day to now. The amount of stuff on the site is bewildering and you can lose days there. You can view the archives forums even if you aren't a member of DM TV Archives, but go and register as it's a wonderful site

Do go and check out these sites. The first one is trickier I admit, but the latter two are sites every Depeche fan must see.

Thanks very much to all three sites for their help in putting all this together.

Also, thanks very much indeed to Aidan, Panos, Amanda, Niggels, Sean and Kevin for their articles. and Glen for his DJ skills. Thanks too to Dennis, Matt, Brian Griffin and Gareth Jones too for all contributing so much to this project.

See you tomorrow....

FRIENDS IN AMERICA - BE IN LOVE EP

Ahead of their second album Old Indifference, Friends In America have released a new e.p. called Be In Love.  I've been waiting for this for quite a while as I loved, and still love, their debut release What It Is To Be from 2013 and, pleasingly,  Be In Love is a wonderful release and something of a leap forward for the band. Lead track Bad Pint is as good a track as you'll hear this year. It brings to mind Frightened Rabbit mixed with Talking Heads which I admit sounds odd, but it really works. To my ears, there's a distinct sense of early R.E.M. too. Comparisons are a but pointless though as Bad Pint firmly stands on its own feet. Its mix of wonderous melodies with quite fantastic lyrics that speak of finally having to accept that one day we all become adults - I'm still not quite there yet. Have a look at the lyric video below for the song n its full glory

Bad Pint then leads into the equally superb Souvenir which, like the lead track is further evidence that Friends In America are onto something special. Like Bad Pint, it is nostalgic in tone, almost a downbeat continuation of that song's lyrical themes The third track, You Are is a dark sounding tale of love and loss, filled with noisy, clanging guitar lines and, once again, it's simply a great song.

The e.p. then concludes with two covers. Firstly, there is the band's take on Joanna Newsom's Peach Plum Pear which is really cool and, following that, a version of Grow Old With You from The Wedding Singer, with that song's lyrics a nice conclusion to them themes of the band's earlier self penned tracks.

Ultimately, Be In Love is an excellent bridge between What It Is To Be and Old Indifference and it certainly builds the anticipation for the band's forthcoming album. Definitely an e.p. to check out and you can do so at the band's Bandcamp page where it's available free or for whatever price you fancy paying

https://friendsinamericamusic.bandcamp.com/

Friends In America Facebook https://www.facebook.com/FriendsInAmerica/?fref=ts

EMMA POLLOCK - IN SEARCH OF HARPERFIELD

With her work initially with the wonderful The Delgados and after that as a solo artist, Emma Pollock has made an indelible mark on the Scottish music scene. The Delgados' music inspired a legion of bands and their label Chemikal Underground is easily one of the most influential British indie labels there has ever. Add to that the creation of Chem 19 studios and the work it has done both for the music community and the wider community at large and you begin to get an idea of the importance of the work Emma has been involved in since The Delgados' inception. Now, six years after her last solo release The Law Of Large Numbers, she has returned with her third solo album, In Search of Haperfield and, quite simply, it is one of the best albums you will hear this year.

The album's title is central to its whole theme. Harperfield was the name of the first house Emma's parents bought and she uses her childhood memories and a nostalgia for the past as a way to express herself of what is a very personal record. I love this type of music, introspective but warm and full of emotion. A bonus is that, like Emma, I'm from Castle Douglas in beautiful South West Scotland. The songs here share that part of the world's space and my time there is something I look back on fondly. It's hard for me not to love this album.

Opener Cannot Keep A Secret sets the scene perfectly. An understated but captivating verse leads to a piano driven, gripping chorus that propels the song along beautifully. The track, echoing its nautical lyrics, ebbs and flows and you are grabbed immediately. The superb dark pop of Don't Make Me Wait follows, string laden and energetic with Emma's voice soaring throughout. There is a distinct 60's pop vibe here, something Dusty like which is a real joy. Alabaster starts like an experimental track, but is still warm and human despite its almost robotic feel and that leads into Clemency which brings to mind REM at their most serene, albeit a serenity laced with a tough lyrical edge. With an album this good, picking a highlight seems almost futile, but if pushed, I'd have to say Intermission is that highlight. Beautifully evocative strings underpin an incredibly striking track that is all perfect melody and lyrics that you simply wish you had the ability to write. It;'s one of the best songs I've heard in ages and more than enough justification to get this album based on one track alone. As with all the songs here, the lyrics, whilst obviously distinctly personal, are so well written that you can easily interpret them to hold some meaning for yourself and Intermission is as good an example of that as there is. And as for that strings part running through the sing....wow.

Parks And Recreation changes the album's tone next, a song that sounds like a call and response Pixies doing glam rock which is clearly a very good thing indeed. Guitars stay to the fore on Vacant Stare which, for me, brings to mind Belly's Star which I have to say is nothing more than a high compliment. It's a track that, along with Intermission, I've been playing on a loop since I heard this album. In The Company Of The Damned returns us to the contemplative nature of the opening tracks before the stunning Dark Skies arrives, rivalling Intermission  in the album highlight stakes. It is s stunning track that shows off all the best there is to Emma Pollock's talent. Just perfect. Monster In The Park then leads us to the closer Old Ghosts which is just about as spot on an end to an album of this nature that you could hope for. Recalling the 60's pop vibe of the earlier Don't Make Me Wait, the song lifts you up, embraces you and floats away with you, closing off the album majestically.

In Search Of Harperfield  is the sort of album that you hear and wish you had written. It's emotional, evocative, warm and, frankly, bloody brilliant. This will be one of my albums of the year and I know that it will be one of yours. 

WEATNU RECORDS - YEAR ONE

WEATNU Records (We Are The New Underground) is an immensely impressive organisation of electronic artists with a mission to expose as many of their collective's works to as many people as they can. Combining an internet radio station, a record label and a magazine, the label plugs loads of new artists each month, covering all possible areas of electronic music from head melting experimentalism to ambient to drone electronics to classic synthpop and beyond. It's certainly one to watch as there is so much fascinating music to discover even with just a cursory listen to the odd track. They first came to my attention when vvsi remixed a track by How Hot Is Your Cloud for a remix project. Having loved vvsi's debut album Dispersions (https://vvsimusic.bandcamp.com/), I checked out their remix, the original artist's material and the WEATNU label itself and found more than enough to grab my attention.

Anyway, WEATNU Records is now a year old and to celebrate that they've released a compilation called Year One. There are many reasons for you to get this. Firstly, it features 72 tracks. That's right - 72 tracks. Radiohead have only released around nine tracks in the last 6 years. This has 72 tracks straight off the bat. Secondly, it only costs $8. Now, I'm no economist but that's remarkable value, and that's before you even translate the cost into Pounds Sterling. I've listened to the whole lot twice (not in one sitting I might add) and there is a remarkably high success rate for this many tracks with the contributions by How Hot Is Your Cloud, Anodic8 and Terminator Benelux ones that jumped out at me straightaway. There are many, many more cracking tracks there though and for the price, it's impossible to argue that Year One is anything other than an absolute steal. Have a spin through the tracks below then get over to WEATNU's page to get the album. You won't regret it.

Here's the link http://weatnu.com/product/weatnu-records-year-one/ The album is up on Mixcloud too. Here's part 1 and you can find part 2 at https://www.mixcloud.com/synthoelectro/

WEATNU Records Year One Part 1 by Almark on Mixcloud

WEATNU Bandcamp https://weatnurecords.bandcamp.com/

WEATNU Home http://weatnu.com/about-weatnu/

WEATNU Twitter https://twitter.com/weatnu