Music For The Masses
| Depeche Mode
Music For The Masses
Music for the Masses is the sixth studio album by English electronic music band Depeche Mode. It was released on 28 September 1987 by Mute Records. - Wikipedia
Critic Reviews
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Sputnikmusic
The group effectively used this album as a training ground for the masterpiece that was to follow. Music For The Masses is not as accessible as later efforts, but it's still well worth a listen.
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The Quietus
Music isn’t a red-headed stepchild or anything in Depecheworld, don’t get me wrong there. We are talking about the album with two of its most defining songs on it - the monstrous ‘Never Let Me Down Again' and the propulsive ‘Behind The Wheel,' about which plenty more to say later. But from a distance it almost feels a bit lost in the shadows of two crystallisations of the evolving story of the band.
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AllMusic
Initially the title must have sounded like an incredibly pretentious boast, except that Depeche Mode then went on to do a monstrous world tour, score even more hits in America and elsewhere than ever before, and pick up a large number of name checks from emerging house and techno artists on top of all that.
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Pitchfork
At the same time, though, this Depeche Mode could be fun, even in its minor keys: The go-to radio pick for this album was the version of “Behind the Wheel” that segued into a cover of “Route 66”.
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Albumism
There is a subtle power at work here. A rawness and honesty that draws you in.
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Slant Magazine
The album is steeped in high drama, each track spilling into the next like a pop-rock opera.
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Smells Like Infinite Sadness
The lyrics grew colder and kinkier.
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Treble Zine
The band described their new music as electronic metal, wore leather (always), sometimes with studs, and really played up the goth-metal imagery. But rather than wallow in misery, Depeche Mode became somewhat of a joyous band to its fans, and Music for the Masses would ironically become exactly what the title jokingly intended.
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Doug's Reviews
Overall, Music For The Masses is a strong album that falls just short of the rarified air of Black Celebration due to the weakness of “I Want You Now” and “To Have And To Hold.”
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NBHAP
Depeche Mode never balanced the thin line between alternative and mainstream pop better than on this LP.
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Musicwaves.fr
A real boost in Depeche Mode's career, and especially on the American continent, "Music for the Masses" can be considered as the real cornerstone of the band's discography.
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Observer
When Depeche Mode introduced electric guitars into their music on 1987’s Music for the Masses, it opened the English synth-pop pioneers up to not only a whole new realm of possibilities but a more rock-oriented fanbase as well.
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Post-Punk.com
The album’s themes were a step in a darker direction for the post-punk synth-pop band; with subject matter that included eroticism, drugs, and sadomasochistic metaphors.
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