Depeche Mode / “Delta Machine” available as 2CD deluxe edition

What do they say about DM fans being moaners? Ah well, get over it, people, Wilder left 18 years ago and is NOT coming back. I still like Depeche Mode, and I still follow them but you can’t expect the same from a band in their 50’s as in their 20’s! Like it or not I am excited by the prospect of a new album!

My fingers are crossed for a renaissance, but for me, Ben Hillier and Flood are not adding anything (apart from caustic sonics) or pushing them in the right direction . Somebody mentioned “Ultra” – that is a great album. Although admittedly not up to their usual opening single quality, I am enjoying “Heaven”.

Craig and Jack, as I mentioned in my previous post, there are glimpses there for us, but I guess the albums as a whole don’t appeal as strongly as earlier works. We know that they have these albums in them simply because they’ve achieved a certain level in the past that satisfied us in our own subjective way.
In saying that, I have a cabinet full of albums with 3-5 good tracks and a few ‘OK’ ones that I come back to from time to time and still find things to surprise.

I’ve got deluxe editions fatigue so a “not quite deluxe” edition is fine with me this time around!!!

Not happy with their new single. Also, ‘All That’s Mine’ is not good enough for me, but is much better than ‘Heaven’. I think that ‘Depeche’ is ready for pension after Sound Of The Universe.

Neil….sad but true.
There are glimpses of pre-SOFAD brilliance here and there (“Home” and “Precious” being standouts), but I agree. It definitely seems that Alan was a bigger component in the DM sound than he may have realised. Actually , from the interviews he did realise it…shame no-one else realised or acknowledged it by the looks.

They haven’t released a good album since SOFAD which was nearly 20 years ago now and after hearing the single from this i fear we are in for the same rubbish that they have been churning out in recent years. Another problem has been the sound quality on their releases especially Playing The Angel which sounds horrible and they have been guilty of this loud mastering nonsense. I don’t think it’s any coincidence that they started going downhill after Alan Wilder left Ultra was ok in parts but since then it has been dross. I hope i’m proved wrong and this album is a return to form but i’m not holding my breath.

The “Heaven” single is actually available today, not March 18 as stated in the article.

Deluxe edition boring.

Oh dear, I always look forward to a new DP album as it usually means a deluxe 5.1 treatment – this is simply dull.

Call me a nerd, but 4 extra tracks on a second CD does not make a deluxe edition (ok, given there is more content in the booklet) but please, deluxe editions are meant to be inspiring etc – why not just make the standard release a 17 track album.

For me, a deluxe edition should include gems that cant easily be downloaded or easily sought and/or have amazing packaging. I’m seeing far too many of these deluxe double disc editions recently (adding 3 or 4 more ‘bonus’ tracks) – very dull

A few Best Buy stores here in the US were blowing out the SOTU Super Deluxe box for $9.99 a few months ago… which is a great deal for DM fans but probably not a good incentive for the record company to pursue another Super Deluxe box for this album. :(

I am beyond disappointed that this looks like being the first studio album of theirs not to receive either a Hi-Res or 5.1 version :-(

The SDE of SOTU was, and still is, one of the best box sets I’ve bought in a long while. It just seems such a shame that after the concerted effort behind the Remasters and continuing the trend on PTA and SOTU, albeit that PTA preceded the Remasters, that Delta Machine misses out. DM’s work lends itself to the 5.1 format so well.

Ho hum…

Got this on pre-order from Amazon (as well as the 2 * cd singles) :)