Some People Think You're Cute, But Some People Think You're Slightly Vile...
[Look In, 22nd May 1982. Words: Phil Parsons. Pictures: Jill Furmanovsky / Uncredited.]
"SOME PEOPLE THINK YOU'RE CUTE, BUT OTHER PEOPLE THINK YOU'RE SLIGHTLY VILE..."
It’s difficult to know what to expect from Depeche Mode. Last year they were a four-piece band of serious young men making happy pop records. Now they’re three happy people making more serious records!
If you’ve seen them on TV you will probably have noticed a change in the line-up. Vince Clarke, the very quiet member of the band who wrote their first three hits, left earlier this year. So that’s why Depeche Mode are now a three-piece band. However if you’ve seen them you will have still counted four. That’s because they’ve drafted in Alan Wilder for live and TV appearances. But in the studio, and therefore on record, Depeche Mode are Dave Gahan, Andy Fletcher and Martin Gore.
It all seems a bit confusing, so in their studio, a converted church near London Bridge would you believe, we asked the full-time Depeches to clear things up a little.
Where’s Vince?
First of all, what about Vince’s departure? Dave explained what had happened. “When we did our European tour he just sat in the front of the van and didn’t talk. He only spoke when he was spoken to.
“We knew he wanted to leave a while before that. Then when we came back, he came round all of our houses and just said he wanted to leave. He didn’t like touring or the way Depeche Mode were becoming public property.
“He just wanted to do things on his own, but he could have done that anyway, that’s what I don’t understand. He could have done something and still been in Depeche Mode.”
“But when would he have had the time?” chipped in Mart (as the others call him). “He wouldn’t have had any time this year to do anything.” So it looks as though he probably wouldn’t have had any time to give to his current group Yazoo.
Vince wrote most of Depeche’s songs so his departure could have meant the end of the road for the band. “It put us out on a limb really, but luckily we thought he was going to leave a few months before he did so we’d been planning, sort of thing. He’d been getting more distant from the group,” said Andy.
Martin Gore had written two tracks for their debut album Speak And Spell so he took over and wrote the smash hit See You and their latest single The Meaning Of Love. [1]
“We weren’t worried about Mart’s song writing capabilities,” said Dave. “In a way it was less poppy,” said Mart. “There was quite a long gap between Just Can’t Get Enough and See You, and we didn’t release a single with the album,” commented Andy. “We were just generally worried!” joked Dave.
Smart Mart!
No one could deny that Mart is now a successful songwriter, but he’s very modest about it. He told us how he sets about it. “My style of writing has changed since I started writing more seriously. I’ve always written songs, but I don’t really keep to the format. Sometimes I write the words first, sometimes the music, sometimes both together.
“I have to lock myself away. The thing is a lot of ideas I come up with are embarrassing so you have to be on your own when you come up with them!”
It could seem unfair that the responsibility for writing hit material should lie solely with Mart. What about Dave and Andy?
“Sometimes I think of a tune in my head. But I can never remember it the next day,” said Dave. “I always try,” said Andy defensively. “It’s hard for me, I’ve never really written before and I’d have to come up with a song that’s possibly going to go in the English top ten or something. It might take me years to get up to that writing ability.
“I can’t write any lyrics at all. They just sound stupid: I couldn’t imagine anyone singing them. My opening line to every song is ‘I was walking down the road the other day.’ Imagine that as the opening line to a musical, it would really set people alight!”
The New Boy
Apart from songwriting, Vince’s departure left another hole in the band: it is filled by Alan Wilder. “At the moment he’s a live session man. He just plays live for us, not in the studio, but that might change,” said Andy.
“I don’t think it’s right really, not yet, it’s just like someone jumping in after you’ve been together for two years. And if he came in the studio now it would be hard for him to fit in,” added Dave. “Especially when we’re doing things like finishing off tracks,” confirmed Andy.
But there will be plenty of work for Alan. Depeche Mode are off to promote their first single in America with a tour and there are numerous appearances to be made on TV in this country to promote The Meaning Of Love.
No Big-Heads!
Despite all the weird and wonderful things that have happened to them, Depeche Mode aren’t letting success go to their heads. In fact, some fans stop them getting too big headed. Andy explained: “A lot of people might like us, but a lot of other people really dislike us. They think we’re vile.”
“Vile? That’s a bit strong! I’ve never heard that one!” chortled Dave. “A girl came up to us once and said, ‘Some people think you’re cute, but some people think you’re slightly vile,” said Andy.
And while we’re on the subject of critics, let’s not forget the Depeche Mums.
“Oh yes, my mum still listens to our work,” said Dave. “We recorded a slow track, more like See You. I played it to my mum and she said, ‘I like it, love, but I don’t think you should have it as the next single. It’s a bit too slow.”
“Andy’s mum’s description was the best,” said Mart. “What was it? She said she liked it but that it was like an Egyptian death march!”
“Mart’s mum is a heavy critic,” Andy retorted. “She doesn’t like any of it, she likes Motorhead!” Mart joked.
They all fell about laughing at the thought of Mart’s mum as a rocker. So you can see there’s no need to worry about these Basildon boys. Maybe they did lose their songwriter, get called vile by their fans and their mums don’t like some of their work. But despite all that they’re a happy bunch. And successful too: The Meaning Of Love proves it!
[Look In, 22nd May 1982. Words: Phil Parsons. Pictures: Jill Furmanovsky / Uncredited.]
"SOME PEOPLE THINK YOU'RE CUTE, BUT OTHER PEOPLE THINK YOU'RE SLIGHTLY VILE..."
It’s difficult to know what to expect from Depeche Mode. Last year they were a four-piece band of serious young men making happy pop records. Now they’re three happy people making more serious records!
If you’ve seen them on TV you will probably have noticed a change in the line-up. Vince Clarke, the very quiet member of the band who wrote their first three hits, left earlier this year. So that’s why Depeche Mode are now a three-piece band. However if you’ve seen them you will have still counted four. That’s because they’ve drafted in Alan Wilder for live and TV appearances. But in the studio, and therefore on record, Depeche Mode are Dave Gahan, Andy Fletcher and Martin Gore.
It all seems a bit confusing, so in their studio, a converted church near London Bridge would you believe, we asked the full-time Depeches to clear things up a little.
Where’s Vince?
First of all, what about Vince’s departure? Dave explained what had happened. “When we did our European tour he just sat in the front of the van and didn’t talk. He only spoke when he was spoken to.
“We knew he wanted to leave a while before that. Then when we came back, he came round all of our houses and just said he wanted to leave. He didn’t like touring or the way Depeche Mode were becoming public property.
“He just wanted to do things on his own, but he could have done that anyway, that’s what I don’t understand. He could have done something and still been in Depeche Mode.”
“But when would he have had the time?” chipped in Mart (as the others call him). “He wouldn’t have had any time this year to do anything.” So it looks as though he probably wouldn’t have had any time to give to his current group Yazoo.
Vince wrote most of Depeche’s songs so his departure could have meant the end of the road for the band. “It put us out on a limb really, but luckily we thought he was going to leave a few months before he did so we’d been planning, sort of thing. He’d been getting more distant from the group,” said Andy.
Martin Gore had written two tracks for their debut album Speak And Spell so he took over and wrote the smash hit See You and their latest single The Meaning Of Love. [1]
“We weren’t worried about Mart’s song writing capabilities,” said Dave. “In a way it was less poppy,” said Mart. “There was quite a long gap between Just Can’t Get Enough and See You, and we didn’t release a single with the album,” commented Andy. “We were just generally worried!” joked Dave.
Smart Mart!
No one could deny that Mart is now a successful songwriter, but he’s very modest about it. He told us how he sets about it. “My style of writing has changed since I started writing more seriously. I’ve always written songs, but I don’t really keep to the format. Sometimes I write the words first, sometimes the music, sometimes both together.
“I have to lock myself away. The thing is a lot of ideas I come up with are embarrassing so you have to be on your own when you come up with them!”
It could seem unfair that the responsibility for writing hit material should lie solely with Mart. What about Dave and Andy?
“Sometimes I think of a tune in my head. But I can never remember it the next day,” said Dave. “I always try,” said Andy defensively. “It’s hard for me, I’ve never really written before and I’d have to come up with a song that’s possibly going to go in the English top ten or something. It might take me years to get up to that writing ability.
“I can’t write any lyrics at all. They just sound stupid: I couldn’t imagine anyone singing them. My opening line to every song is ‘I was walking down the road the other day.’ Imagine that as the opening line to a musical, it would really set people alight!”
The New Boy
Apart from songwriting, Vince’s departure left another hole in the band: it is filled by Alan Wilder. “At the moment he’s a live session man. He just plays live for us, not in the studio, but that might change,” said Andy.
“I don’t think it’s right really, not yet, it’s just like someone jumping in after you’ve been together for two years. And if he came in the studio now it would be hard for him to fit in,” added Dave. “Especially when we’re doing things like finishing off tracks,” confirmed Andy.
But there will be plenty of work for Alan. Depeche Mode are off to promote their first single in America with a tour and there are numerous appearances to be made on TV in this country to promote The Meaning Of Love.
No Big-Heads!
Despite all the weird and wonderful things that have happened to them, Depeche Mode aren’t letting success go to their heads. In fact, some fans stop them getting too big headed. Andy explained: “A lot of people might like us, but a lot of other people really dislike us. They think we’re vile.”
“Vile? That’s a bit strong! I’ve never heard that one!” chortled Dave. “A girl came up to us once and said, ‘Some people think you’re cute, but some people think you’re slightly vile,” said Andy.
And while we’re on the subject of critics, let’s not forget the Depeche Mums.
“Oh yes, my mum still listens to our work,” said Dave. “We recorded a slow track, more like See You. I played it to my mum and she said, ‘I like it, love, but I don’t think you should have it as the next single. It’s a bit too slow.”
“Andy’s mum’s description was the best,” said Mart. “What was it? She said she liked it but that it was like an Egyptian death march!”
“Mart’s mum is a heavy critic,” Andy retorted. “She doesn’t like any of it, she likes Motorhead!” Mart joked.
They all fell about laughing at the thought of Mart’s mum as a rocker. So you can see there’s no need to worry about these Basildon boys. Maybe they did lose their songwriter, get called vile by their fans and their mums don’t like some of their work. But despite all that they’re a happy bunch. And successful too: The Meaning Of Love proves it!
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