FELIZ NATAL E BOM ANO NOVO

DM | REGRESSO AO ESTÚDIO JÁ EM MARÇO

É muitas vezes da boca de ANDY FLETCHER que as "fugas de informação" relativamente à actividade dos DEPECHE MODE conhecem a luz do dia. Desta vez não foi diferente e, embora nem sempre se possa aplicar a expressão "de fonte segura", num vídeo, gravado no mês passado em Itália, Fletch revela haver uma reunião agendada  já no próximo mês de Janeiro para traçar as coordenadas do que será o sucessor do "mal amado" "SOUNDS OF THE UNIVERSE". Andy Fletcher adianta ainda que O REGRESSO AO ESTÚDIO ESTÁ PROGRAMADO PARA MARÇO DE 2012. Por aqui e a confirmar-se a notícia, torcemos apenas para que na reunião esteja igualmente convocado um senhor chamado...ALAN CHARLES WILDER!

VCMG | "SPOCK" ESTREIA NA RÁDIO

O primeiro single da dupla VCMG (Vince Clarke e Martin Gore), "SPOCK" estrou ontem na rádio espanhola RTVE. Podem ouvir o podcast completo (de onde foi retirada "Spock") no sítio RTVE.ES.

O Single está disponível para download a partir de hoje no BEATPORT. A edição em vinil 12" pode ser pré-encomendada na MUTEBANK e tem edição agendada para o dia 19 de Dezembro.

// ACTUALIZAÇÃO

A seguir ficam as faixas disponíveis para audição, via canal oficial, MUTE.

1. Spock - Album Version


2. Spock - Edit Select Remix


3. Spock - Regis Remix

VCMG | "SPOCK" - EDIT SELECTED REMIX

Aqui fica a "EDIT SELECTED REMIX" (do DJ e produtor britânico TONY SCOTT)  para o tema "SPOCK", o primeiro single a antecer o album dos VCMG ( o projecto techno que volta a juntar MARTIN GORE e VINCE CLARKE, trinta anos após este último abandonar os DM.

Recordamos novamente que "EP1 / SPOCK" estará à venda em formato digital e em exclusivo BEATPORT já esta quarta feira (30 de Novembro)

VINCE & MARTIN | "SPOCK" É O 1º SINGLE!

É já no próximo dia 30 DE NOVEMBRO que o primeiro single da dupla VCMG (VINCE CLARCKE e MARTIN GORE) estará disponível em formato digital (e em exclusivo BEATPORT). Chama-se "EP1 / SPOCK" e é a primeira "amostra" da colaboração entre dois dos fundadores dos DEPECHE MODE.  Segundo a MUTE, o album, ainda sem título, será editado na primavera de 2012 e foi produzido pela própria dupla, tendo as misturas ficado a cargo do californiano ÜBERZONE (nome artístico de TIMOTHY WILES, também conhecido por Q).  A 12 de DEZEMBRO, "EP1 / SPOCK" ficará disponível em todas as plataformas digitais (iTunes inclusivé) e a 19 de DEZEMBRO, é a vez da edição em Vinil ver a luz do dia.

Enquanto aguardamos ansiosamente pelo album e quando falta "apenas" pouco mais de uma semana para o "primeiro aperitivo"... aqui fica a "tracklist" de "EP1 / SPOCK" :

1. Spock - Album Version
2. Spock - Edit Select Remix
3. Spock - Regis Remix
4. Spock - DVS1 Voyage Home Remix
5. Spock - XOQ Remix

Best A. Video | Personal Jesus 11 vence

Os Depeche Mode venceram o prémio Best Alternative Video, categoria que tinham sido nomeados com o vídeo Personal Jesus 11 (Stargate Remix).

Mais informações sobre o evento aqui.

UK Music Video Awards | Personal Jesus

O vídeo 'Personal Jesus 2011', dirigido por Patrick Daughters, foi nomeado pela UK Music Video Awards na categoria de Best Alternative Video.

Os vencedores serão escolhidos na cerimónia que se realiza hoje no Empire Cinema em Londres. Para consultar os nomeados nas restantes categorias clica aqui.

Best alternative video - UK
_ Depeche Mode – Personal Jesus (Stargate Remix)
_ James Blake – Lindisfarne
_ Klaxons – Twin Flames
_ Tom Vek – Aroused
_ Tyler The Creator – Yonkers
_ Yeasayer – Madder Red

Recordo que o fantástico vídeo de Wrong também foi dirigido por Patrick Daughters.

...

"It´s not bad at all. It sounds like some modern young singer. Good on her." Refere-se à versão de Enjoy the Silence de Susan Boyle.

- Martin Gore, 2011 (in Q, Dezembro 2011 - nº 305)

U2 Cover | Depeche Mode "So Cruel"

Depeche Mode “So cruel” é uma das músicas incluída no álbum de versões “Ahk-toog Bay-bi Covered” que presta tributo a "Achtung Baby" dos U2. O álbum é gratuito na compra da revista Q edição de Dezembro.

Todas as outras versões estão disponíveis para escuta no post anterior.

Álbum | "Ahk-toog Bay-bi Covered"

"Ahk-toog Bay-bi Covered" é o nome do álbum de versões que presta tributo a "Achtung Baby", dos U2, que celebra o seu 20º aniversário. Para além de Depeche Mode, o álbum conta com contribuições de Nine Inch Nails, The Killers, Gavin Friday, Garbage, entre outros. O álbum será incluído gratuitamente na edição de Dezembro da revista Q a editar em 25 deste mês.

Aqui fica o alinhamento completo:

01 Nine Inch Nails - Zoo Station << escutar
02 U2 - Even Better Than The Real Thing (Jacques Lu Cont Mix) << escutar
03 Damien Rice - One << escutar
04 Patti Smith - Until The End Of The World << escutar
05 Garbage - Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses << escutar
06 Depeche Mode - So Cruel << escutar
07 Snow Patrol - Mysterious Ways << escutar
08 The Fray - Trying To Throw Your Arms Around The World << escutar
09 Gavin Friday - The Fly << escutar
10 The Killers - Ultraviolet (Light My Way) << escutar
11 Glasvegas - Acrobat << escutar
12 Jack White - Love Is Blindness << escutar

Versão | Susan Boyle - Enjoy The Silence!

Se não fiquei muito satisfeito quando soube que os Depeche Mode iam fazer uma versão de uma das músicas desses rapazes que 'toda' a agente gosta porque é moda, pior fiquei quando à cerca de uma semana li que Susan Boyle iria fazer uma versão de Enjoy The Silence!
Caros devotos apenas posso dizer que estou muito surpreendido. Gostei.

Ouçam 'Susan Boyle - Enjoy the Silence' aqui.

Motor Feat Martin Gore | O Vídeo

No início de Maio deste ano, publicamos uma gravação da estreia na BBC, do fantástico tema "Man Made Machine", resutado da colaboração entre Motor e Martin Gore.  Agora surge o vídeo oficial (com Martin a assumir o "papel principal")... e continuamos a gostar!  Muito!

Podem ler mais informações sobre esta colaboração na nossa publicação de Maio, clicando aqui

Mixmag nomeia Depeche Mode

São 10 dezenas de nomeados e, convenhamos, não poderia ser de outra forma. A conceituada revista britânica Mixmag colocou recentemente em votação a eleição da melhor performance ao vivo de todos os tempos, no território da música electrónica.

Os nomeados incluem nomes como Depeche Mode, Underworld, Chemical Brothers, Prodigy, KLF, Massive Attack, Portishead, Daft Punk, Jean Michel Jarre, Herbert, LCD Soundsystem, Booka Shade, Happy Mondays, Pet Shop Boys, New Order, Human League, Moby, Goldfrapp, Faithless, Gorillaz, Gui Boratto, Laurent Garnier, Plastikman, Soul II Soul, Royksöpp, Kruder & Dorfmeister, entre dezenas de outros.

A lista de nomeados, apesar de ter sido apresentada com 100 nomes, não se resume a estes. No caso de alguém achar que algum outro projecto deveria fazer parte da lista (Recoil, por exemplo, não consta desta!) poderá solicitar a sua inclusão enviando um email para greatest@mixmag.net.

A votação encerra à meia noite de 23 de Dezembro e podem votar aqui *

*tratando-se de uma página facebook, para votarem têm de clicar em "gosto" primeiro e depois cliquem na foto dos Depeche Mode (sim, os outros não interessam para o caso!) ;)

Depeche Mode fazem versão de 'So cruel'

Ainda não existem ainda notícias oficiais sobre a versão que os Depeche Mode gravaram de uma músca dos U2. No entanto depois da conferência de imprensa de Andy Fletcher em Minsk muito se tem falado neste regresso ao estúdio (ainda que tenha sido para gravar apenas uma cover).

‘So cruel’, cantada por Dave Gahan foi gravada em Santa Barbara e Nova York  e produzida pelo próprio Martin L. Gore! Os arranjos ficaram a cargo de Medway Smith.

Para quem nunca ouviu (deviam ter vergonha ;) ) ou para recordar aqui fica ‘So cruel’:

Fonte: Home

Depeche Mode gravam música de U2!

Durante a conferência de imprensa em Minsk, para promover mais uma data da sua 'DJ Tour', Andy Fletcher revelou que os Depeche Mode gravaram uma versão de uma das músicas dos U2!

Esta versão estará relacionada com a reedição de Achtung Baby, que celebra o 20º aniversário e terá edição em Novembro. Andy não revelou o nome da música ou qualquer outro detalhe.

Podem ver o vídeo abaixo:

Outros vídeos da conferência de imprensa podem ser vistos aqui.

'Alan Wilder - Collected': parte 4

Com mais de 400 lotes em leilão dentro de apenas alguns dias, é possível ter um preview de todos os artigos de COLLECTED – The Alan Wilder/Depeche Mode Auction em http://auction.recoil.co.uk, e descobrir a sua história e condição, bem como os comentários de Alan sobre cada peça. O catálogo está disponível para download em formato pdf.

E por fim a última parte do documentário 'Alan Wilder - Collected' dirigido por Martin Vladar. Que recordações...

'Collected parte 1 e 2
'Collected parte 3

'Alan Wilder - Collected': parte 3

A terceira parte do documentário 'Alan Wilder - Collected' dirigido por Martin Vladar já está disponível online há uns dias e provavelmente já o viram, mas não podia deixar de o colocar aqui no dmportugal. Apreciem:

'Alan Wilder - Collected' is a documentary about the musician and producer Alan Wilder. At Wilder's Sussex residence, Vladar discovered the house was filled with memorabilia spanning 35 years of a career spent in music, most notably during the 80s and 90s covering the musician's stint with one of the most famous & successful bands of all time, Depeche Mode.

Para ver a primeira e segunda parte passem por aqui.

Entrevista | Alan Wilder

Alan Wilder fala-nos sobre sintetizadores, a criação de música e sobre o leilão que se realiza no próximo dia 3 de Setembro - Entrevista publicada no Stereoklang Produktion em 12 de Agosto de 2011.

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Steelberry Clones got a talk with none other than the synth legend Alan Wilder (ex-member of Depeche Mode and now front man of the electro/synth experimental act Recoil). Few can match the track record of Alan Wilder and few have had such an impact on the synth scene for the past 30 years, or so. Alan Wilder´s Recoil continues this tradition into the 21st century exploring the boundaries of electronic music, and since Alan now is in full preparation of delivering probably the world´s biggest Depeche Mode memorabilia auction at the Zion Arts Centre, we simply had to pose some questions to him regarding his music creation legacy, gear and plans moving forward.

“Collected” is the name of Alan’s big auction on Saturday 3rd September, for detailed information on how to join please follow this link: http://auction.recoil.co.uk/

So in just a few weeks time, over 400 lots will go under the hammer as Alan Wilder sells a large selection of musical / studio equipment and memorabilia at auction. Many items are very collectable and hold special value having been used extensively in the recording sessions for classic Depeche Mode and Recoil albums, as well as live performances on the ‘Black Celebration’, ‘Music For The Masses’, ‘World Violation’ and ‘Devotional’ tours.

But for most synth/electro fans this is truly not just any ordinary auction, but a clear reason why we needed to pose some questions to Alan about the auction in general and about his music making legacy in particular.

Why are you running this auction?

I’m not over sentimental about retaining every little detail of my musical history. In fact I still have a large collection of essential items, all the releases I have played on, many photographs and unique personal things. But really, I need more space (and peace) in my life and this goes part of the way to achieving that. Indeed I found it an evocative and cathartic experience to sift through all the collectables – the actual sorting and cataloging process brought back great memories and I was able to re-live some key moments which I had inevitably forgotten about, reminding me of how lucky I have been to have enjoyed such a career, doing something I’m passionate about. Many items are very collectable and hold special value having been used extensively in the recording sessions for classic Depeche Mode and Recoil albums, as well as live performances on the ‘Black Celebration’, ‘Music For The Masses’, ‘World Violation’ and ‘Devotional’ tours.

Will it not be hard to let go of many of these unique items – any particular items that are special to you, that we should keep an extra eye on at the auction?

Yes – many do hold wonderful memories of course but I don’t find myself actually using most of the equipment for example. One of my new year’s resolutions for 2011 was to start streamlining my set-up at The Thin Line Studios. My needs have altered since laptops, soft synths and plug-ins have come to the fore, and therefore passing on some vintage gear and historical items seemed like a good way to start. The Steinway grand piano and the ‘Devotional’ drum kit are two things I’m letting go with a heavy heart. Thankfully I have a second piano, and can’t really justify having two at the moment. And if I feel like picking up drumming again, I guess I can easily find myself another (cheaper) kit. As for something to keep an eye on in the auction, I think the unreleased box set known as DMBS 1-4 is likely to spark major interest. Known as the ‘Holy Grail’, these are the 4 extremely rare white labels from the Depeche Mode boxset that was never released. It was recalled at the last minute for unknown reasons. The Emulators with my own sound samples, the guitar used by Martin Gore for the ‘Devotional’ tour, and my touring wardrobe & stage clothing should all prove very popular. We have art proofs and one-off posters, and already we can see that album acetates are extremely desirable, being so rare. Only one or two are ever produced for a record release and I have quite a few of these iconic records. A few selected teaser items are currently on sale via eBay, and more will be added as we approach the auction. (http://shop.ebay.com/depechemodeatomegaauctions/m.html?_trksid=p4340.l2562)

Will you be joined at the event by any of your old band mates (DM)?

Not a chance:)

How can you part with your first synthesizer, the Minimoog?

I guess you could say that the mini-moog does hold particular value as it’s been with me for such a long time, throughout my career. It was the first synthesiser I bought around 1977, pre-Mode, when I was a member of Dafne & The Tenderspots. It was a big deal for us at the time as it was quite expensive and we couldn’t really afford it until we secured our record deal. It is still probably my all-time favourite synthesiser due to the famous fat 3-oscillator sound, and of course it’s an absolute classic. I continued to use it for many years on early Mode recordings such as ‘Construction Time Again’ and ‘Some Great Reward’ and even had a midi update added during the eighties. However, I also own a ‘midi’-moog, which is the rack-mount version of the original mini-moog. It pretty much sounds the same and serves my purpose in the studio. I found that I wasn’t using the original moog any more, and like many of these items, it has been sitting around gathering dust. Much better then that all these old synths should be cleaned, restored, repaired and passed on, to people who will dote on them, use them again – individuals who will fully appreciate their history and the symbolic (as well as practical) value they hold. And, the moog will no doubt increase in value, like most vintage gear. These synths are like old cars that need to be driven. This is also how I feel about the gold discs for instance – I never wanted to display them on my walls in some ostentatious way, and I think often the musicians themselves are not too bothered about those things. Gold discs mean a lot more to those who are more peripheral or outside of the original experience, but who are very passionate about what they represent.

Regarding the patch discs for the Emulator’s and Akai’s – have you made some backup of those sounds somehow?

Yes, of course, I have a copy of the sounds for myself.

The sequencer EDP Spider, was that your first sequencer? And does it work? It’s not clear on the web page – they are prone not to work.

I believe it does work but I didn’t have the unusual connecting cable to actually try it out. I guess it was my first and only non-computerised sequencer! Not that I used it much – although it was used to create the bass sequencer part for the Aggro mix of DM’s ‘Never Let Me Down Again’.

Conclusively, if you are Depeche Mode fan or collector of vintage synth gear this is the one event not to miss out on. Now moving on to the music creation side of things we wanted to ask Alan all those questions about his gear, music creation and plans for the future, that comes when having the opportunity to talk a guy that has been a part of shaping the modern synth scene.

Recoil has been on quite an extensive tour recently, can you let us know how it was received and what your forthcoming plans are?

The European shows went really well at the start of the tour, particularly in eastern parts and Germany, Hungary, Poland, France etc. The US shows were a bit up and down, but generally quite successful I would say. I do think USA is the most difficult territory to tour, and it was a bit of a relief to follow that down to South America where the fans are so passionate and the crowds always wild, excitable. It was quite an experience there.

Regarding on-going plans, this year has been so busy with other personal things which have sadly got in the way of making much new music. I have never undertaken a Recoil project with a particular idea in mind, usually just a very vague notion. My approach is always both experimental and methodical so I just start throwing different sounds and loops together until I get a spark. I may say to myself that I’d like to work more with live musicians or perhaps not include too much spoken-word but these loose rules are never set in stone. I prefer to allow the music to flow completely naturally. I hope to get going soon. Time will tell…

I know that Vince Clarke and Martin Gore worked on remixes for the Depeche Mode remix album, plus that they have been active producing techno tracks together, any chances to see some involvement in these types of projects from your side as well going forward?

I often collaborate, as I am doing right now for a couple of tracks on an upcoming Talk Talk tribute album (due early 2012), but no plans to work with Martin or Vince. The TT project is very interesting with a lot of good artists involved. More will be revealed in the near future.

We interviewed Swedish EBM act Covenant, where Daniel Myer is now a permanent member. How did Daniel influence the work of Recoil, what will be his role going forward and how was it like working with him?

Actually he and I have become good friends. I admire his approach where he just gets on with things without getting too precious. He has boundless musical energy and a high output as a result, which is impressive. I guess he has inspired me to be a bit more spontaneous, make music on the move, and I love his Architect project and also the new Haujobb work (some mixed by Paul Kendall). Daniel is very imaginative when it comes to remixes. He produced some excellent re-workings of a Recoil track called ‘Want’ (available for free download by the way) (http://emr.emi.com/go.asp?/.mute.recoil.forms.download/bEMU001)

We (Recoil/Architect) hooked up for many live shows during 2010/11 and Daniel even joined Recoil on stage recently (along with Nitzer Ebb) for the Short Circuit Mute event at The Roundhouse, London.

Could you elaborate a bit how you interact with your project partners in the studio. Are you the ‘producer’ or are you equal peers in the creative process?

I am both producer and collaborator. I nearly always begin with some musical ideas (although occasionally I may include a voice sample, like The Golden Gate Jubilee Quartet used on ‘Jezebel’) and I try to choose people who are technically proficient, who I also think will be empathetic with the Recoil approach. Good examples would be Joe Richardson and Diamanda Galás – both incredible singers with open-minded attitudes. The basic music (I wouldn’t call them songs at that stage) should at least lay a framework and some atmosphere to hopefully inspire the vocalist. Once a singer has come up with some ideas and we have recorded them, I then re-work everything, trying to wrestle it into a final piece. What we end up with can vary from a fairly straight song through to anything else that feels natural, or that just ‘works’.

In the open letter ‘Music for the masses – I think not’ – you talk about the change of business model for the industry. But the change is also about the other end, the listeners. Considering that the studio is now inside the laptop, distribution is done via Soundcloud/Bandcamp and marketing via Facebook/Twitter the slogan would be – “music made by the masses”? Or will the big money win in the end?

Hopefully not. I am increasingly disillusioned with record companies and what they don’t do for artists anymore, but not disillusioned about music and opportunities for good music to become available – even if it yields little income for the artists:( We all have to adapt I guess, and leave the record moguls to invest only in their pet projects, manufactured acts, A&R whims and fantasies. The rest of us will just get on with what we can, trying to generate revenue in other ways using the on-line tools at our disposal (or perhaps more live performance), with the more entrepreneurial types will coming to the fore I suppose.

From a more electronic music production perspective we have some more specific questions for you; there seem to be a fatigue of software instruments and using the mouse as the major way of interacting, on one hand there’s a growing number of knobs and button controllers as well as the new button matrix controllers (Monome, Launchpad) but also the multi touch screens (iPhone, iPad, Lemur) and the object controllers (Reactable), and on the other hand there seem to be a revival for the analog and in particular analog modular.

What’s you take on this development with a background as trained musician on piano etc. and using hardware synthesizers for decades? How much do you just play instruments or are you happy in the producer seat arranging in Protools/Logic etc?

For someone who plays piano, drums, a little guitar and enjoys the tactile nuances of performance, I actually do most of my work ‘in the box’! And I’m ok with that – I never really got on with mackie control and, even though we use launchpads live, for what I do in the studio I prefer the more meticulous editing approach. My main sound sources however are sampled performance loops and sections. I like to utilise the digital technology to manipulate these, retaining the human performance feels contained therein to try and create new, never-before-heard combinations. Soft synths don’t interest me much. Plug-in effects can be useful but often I apply very little to my original samples because they have all their inherent effects already built in. I’m interested more in dynamics, the jigsaw-like relationship between each musical part, the space and the overall atmosphere generated from a given soundscape.

I haven’t heard much music which sounds like it was inspired by a piece of kit. On the contrary, most of what we hear is cliched and predictable (but that has always been the case). As far as new-fangled toys, controllers & plug-ins go, I’ll look over the shoulders of those getting all gooey about them and occasionally dip into something of interest but I don’t see the toys themselves coming up with the ideas.

As always, the human brain and one’s imagination are by far the best tools.

The equipment used for ‘subHuman’ is quite well documented on your web and in interviews. Any new stuff you added recently?

No – I use less ‘stuff’ in fact, more idea discipline.

You seem to have used lots of analog and vintage synthesizers over the years but what about analog modulars apart from the VCS3?

I’m neither a modular expert nor a synth purist. I like twiddling the knobs and chancing upon happy accidents, and I enjoy feeding samples into analogue processes for filtering, envelope shaping and so on.

I enjoy old-school units like the Roland Space Echo for example.

The Roland RE-201 Space Echo is truly a Vintage (1973) piece of music technology with lots of appeal even today. It’s not a synth, but a Tape-Echo machine for creating true analog echo effects. The RE-201 is a simple system in which a small loop of tape records an incoming signal and immediately plays the recorded sound back over a couple playback heads before being erased over by new incoming audio. A real analog system with warm, gritty and almost noiseless operation, the Space Echo can provide warm, unpredictable and highly tweakable echo effects.

In the early Mode days, the inaccuracies and idiosyncrasies of Daniel Miller’s ARP 2600 or Roland system 100, with their respective sequencers, would make for almost random events. The tuning was wonky, and the triggering of sounds via cv/gate, creating odd envelope shapes and squirting filters, could pleasantly surprise you in a way you didn’t expect. You don’t get that with digital units. I do miss some of that these days but I also remember how long it could take setting all that stuff up, and the frustrations when the boxes just wouldn’t do what you had in mind.

You have made a few longer pieces (‘1+2’, ‘Hydrology’, ‘Black Box’) which are more evolving, introducing several themes. They remind us a bit of symphonic pieces, with themes coming and going. Do you have a vision making longer tunes?

Well I always have an often clouded vision when making music, and allowing that to migrate and evolve as you go is one of the great joys in creating. At times, I end up combining several ideas into one long piece where others might divide them into separate songs. I do enjoy music which takes time to unfold, and which doesn’t conform to the standard pop/rock structures.

What about the super quality sound mentioned in the open letter ‘Music for the masses – I think not’. Have you made any attempts making music that really make artistic use of the hi-fi of 24/96k?

There is a bit of extra ‘air’ and presence/warmth when working at higher digital rates but most people don’t ever hear music in that format and the processing memory needed to run everything is far greater, inevitably slowing down the computer. Since I work mainly on a laptop these days, I tend to stick to what the majority will end up hearing (24bit, 44.1khz). If I do experiment, I’d rather go super high bandwidth to see what can be achieved. We did work at much higher rates for the ‘subHuman’ 5.1 mixes for example.

One final question. We know you are using lots of samples from all different sources. On ‘Allelujah’, there’s this bass line and resonant organ hit – is a sample of Redshift?

No – I’m not familiar with Redshift

Fonte: stereoklang

Entrevista | Alan Wilder

Alan Wilder fala-nos sobre a tournée de Recoil, do leilão que se aproxima, do equipamento de estúdio favorito, das recentes remisturas para os Depeche Mode e sobre a gravação de alguns clássicos dos dm - Entrevista publicada no The Electricity Club em 27 de Julho de 2011.

Luscious Apparatus

In 1982, when young ALAN WILDER answered an advertisement in Melody Maker; “Keyboard player needed for established band ­ no timewasters”; it would prove to be a life-changing moment. The band in question was DEPECHE MODE and Wilder would be stepping into the shoes of founding member Vince Clarke. As a classically-trained musician, Wilder’s contribution to DEPECHE MODE’s sound would prove to be remarkable. Whilst he wrote only a few songs for the band, including If You Want from Some Great Reward and frenetic b-side In Your Memory, his flair for interpreting and arranging Martin Gore’s songs would quickly lead to a winning formula. Most famously, it was Wilder who transformed Gore’s early demo version of Enjoy The Silence from a morose ballad into the upbeat dance track that went on to become a worldwide hit.

During the Wilder years, DEPECHE MODE released a string of their classic and best loved albums, culminating in their dark masterpiece Songs of Faith and Devotion. Over the same period they conquered the States with sell-out stadium tours. However, in spite of helping to steer them to world domination, Wilder felt increasingly frustrated by tensions within the band and his perceived lack of recognition from his bandmates. It was following the well-documented excesses of the Devotional tour, which Q magazine dubbed “the most debauched rock tour ever”, that he announced his decision to leave DEPECHE MODE on 1st June 1995.

Wilder could now devote himself full time to RECOIL, the solo project that he had been pursuing as a sideline to DEPECHE MODE. There were two EPs 1 + 2 and Hydrology before RECOIL released a full length album in 1991 called Bloodline which featured vocal contributions from NITZER EBB’s Douglas McCarthy and Toni Halliday of CURVE. Subsequent albums Unsound Methods (1996), Liquid (2000) and SubHuman (2007) were each highly acclaimed. Whilst each album has its own distinct identity, they share Wilder’s brooding electronic soundscapes and meticulous production.

Wilder is a perfectionist in the studio and draws on a wide pallet of sounds and styles to craft his recordings. He remains a passionate supporter of the physical format, still choosing the release his albums on vinyl as well as CD. He has been highly critical of MP3 download culture, both for the loss of sound quality and the devaluation of music that it entails.

In 2010 Mute Records released a RECOIL compilation entitled Selected, and this was followed by a successful world tour. In February of the same year Wilder made a surprise appearance onstage with his former bandmates DEPECHE MODE for their Teenage Cancer Trust show at London’s Royal Albert Hall, to the unsurpassed delight of the fanbase. His appearance prompted speculation in some quarters that a full reconciliation was on the cards. These rumours were further fuelled when Wilder reworked Sounds Of The Universe track In Chains for 2011’s Remixes 2 album.

Whatever the future may hold, ALAN WILDER’s place in electro royalty is already well established. In September, fans will be able to bid for their own piece DEPECHE MODE or RECOIL history, when Wilder auctions a large collection of his studio equipment, vinyl and memorabilia. The ALAN WILDER/DEPECHE MODE Collection auction will take place in September at the Zion Arts Centre in Manchester.

ALAN WILDER kindly took time out of his busy schedule to talk to The Electricity Club about RECOIL, DEPECHE MODE and his forthcoming auction.

You released a RECOIL retrospective Selected last year. With your albums each having a distinct artistic concept, was it difficult to choose a tracklisting that represented the work of RECOIL, yet acted as a cohesive listening experience?

Well – you could say that was the aim (or challenge) from the moment that Mute suggested putting together a collection. They told me they were planning a series of compiled albums for a number of their artists just to bring people up to speed, and when I realised there weren’t any restrictions, the collection idea started to appeal. I kind of knew it would be possible to create an album with continuity, atmosphere and pacing. My inclination was that it would mainly consist of material from the last three RECOIL albums -so while there is a decent cross section of RECOIL’s overall output, the Selected album is more about my own favourites rather than a ‘cater to all’ concept. It works well I think, and wasn’t particularly difficult to put together.

You’ve toured Selected Events all around the world now to an enthusiastic reception. But what initial apprehensions did you have when conceiving the RECOIL live show and how have you managed to overcome them?

My main worry would have been the perception of ‘live versus playback’. The show was always designed as an audio/visual presentation rather than an out-and-out live performance. The music was certainly tailored to work in the live arena, and was constructed specifically with that in mind. It intrinsically links with a synchronised film and I think it is clear from our set-up that we’re obviously not playing all the parts, but rather adding live elements and effects (which vary with each venue) to a prepared bedrock. Perhaps this is a more modern way to present music than the traditional 5-piece, guitar-drums-bass-synth-vocalist, which is something I wanted to avoid. As the tour continued, it became clear which aspects of the presentation worked better than others, and we have therefore adapted it to be a little more crowd-friendly along the way.

There’s a Telemark modular synth which you have on stage with you. How are you finding that to use and what does it add to the overall RECOIL performance?

I use any number of synthesisers during the events depending on what I can get a hold of at a given time – as long as it is a modular-type with an external signal input. This allows me to feed plenty of our sounds directly into the synth in order to affect them using resonance, filtering, attack and so on. I’ve only used the Telemark a couple of times and haven’t fully explored it.

You’ve played Back To The Phuture, Short Circuit Presents Mute and are now playing Vintage Festival. Bearing in my mind the battles you’ve fought in the past with the ‘real music’ brigade, do you think electronic based music has finally got the recognition it deserves?

I think electronic music has been recognised for a long time, but we do see more and more acts using film and computers within their ‘performances’, and in these modern times (with portable applications on smaller and smaller devices, even your phone), this is becoming more acceptable, even to the diehards. The boundaries between what is performed or programmed is much more blurred. Does it matter? Not really. The bottom line is the effect on the listener/viewer and the enjoyment and entertainment imparted.

You recently reworked DEPECHE MODE’s In Chains for Remixes 2. Why did you choose that track and what do you think you gave the track that wasn’t part of its original vision.

To help me decide which song to work on, I asked Mute to provide stems from several short-listed songs, so that I could listen to component parts and make a more informed decision. In the end I decided that In Chains could maybe benefit the most from my ‘treatment’, hopefully expanding the dynamics and overall power. I thought the song and the existing vocal performance was strong, and even though we ended up with two quite different versions I’m happy with the results.

There is to be a sale of memorabilia and equipment from your career in September through Omega Auctions which focuses mainly on the years between 1982 to 1995. How has this come about?

It began as a small sale of studio equipment and grew into something much bigger when I realised that the process of selling multiple items can be quite complicated. It therefore made sense to maximise everything (in one hit so to speak), so we expanded the consignment to include all kinds of memorabilia. As I got deeper into the process, even though complicated, it actually became strangely enjoyable – to go back through all the years worth of collectibles and review what they all meant etc. The end result will be, I hope, a very exciting event in Manchester, to include workshops, a talk, a documentary film, perhaps even a performance and some other interesting things for the fans.

What do you think is the most unusual item on sale and the story behind it?

I think that would have to be the unreleased box set known as DMBS 1-4. Thought of as the ‘Holy Grail’, these are 4 extremely rare white labels from a DEPECHE MODE boxset that was never released. The proposed set was recalled for unknown reasons. Who knows why? The 4 test pressings were made and sent to me for approval in 1988.

Among the items for auction are several of your vintage synths. Are there any memories associated with particular ones that you can tell us a few anecdotes about, like for example the Minimoog, the ARP Odyssey or Oberheim OB8?

The Minimoog was my first synthesiser bought around 1977, pre-Mode, when I was a member of DAFNE & THE TENDERSPOTS. It was a big deal for us at the time as it was quite expensive and we couldn’t really afford it until we secured our record deal. It is still probably my all-time favourite synthesiser due to the famous fat 3-oscillator sound, and of course it’s an absolute classic. I continued to use it for many years on early Mode recordings such as Contruction Time Again and Some Great Reward and even had a MIDI update added during the 80s.

I bought the ARP in the late 70s privately in London and this also featured on quite a few of my pre-Mode recordings with various bands. I guess I always had a soft spot for the Minimoog but once you accepted that the ARP was never going to sound as ‘fat’ and realised that it could be used as a completely different kind of tool, then it came into its own. MIDI upgrades were added later when I used the ARP on some of the earlier RECOIL recordings such as Hydrology and Bloodline. I can’t pretend I was ever a skilled operator (unlike Daniel Miller for example) but it is certainly a lot of fun to fiddle about with.

To my disappointment, when I powered the OB8 up recently, I couldn’t get an actual sound although I’m told that it is just the voices which need attention. I was surprised as it has been looked after well and, cosmetically, it’s in superb physical shape. I used this synth during my time with REAL TO REAL and THE HITMEN in the early 80s. It has a fat, warm sound and was my first polyphonic synth. I loved the fact that I could actually store patches for the first time and it introduced me to the Oberheim sound which has a unique quality. I have been a fan of Oberheim ever since.

There’s a EDP Wasp in there too. There was an article featuring producer Dave Bascombe which said that you used it on Music For The Masses?

Yes, that’s true, it was used to create the famous bass sequencer parts in the Aggro mix of Never Let Me Down Again. I think we used the Wasp and Spider sequencer and then probably sampled the result, as it isn’t MIDI controllable. We may have been able to sequence it using cv/gate – I can’t quite remember.

What has been your favourite piece of equipment over the years?

In the studio, I’ve always loved my 1970‘s Neve console, Roland space echo, Manley amps and compressor, VCS 3, Minimoog and Oberheim synths… I have plenty of other gear but it’s largely redundant. My needs are quite simple these days: Logic Audio, Ableton Live, plenty of plug-ins. I now work on a MacBook Pro so I’m much more portable these days, finally making music on the move (at least sometimes).

If there’s a favourite all time DEPECHE MODE track here at The Electricity Club, it’s Halo. Could you tell us how you and co-producer Flood put together the palette of sounds that comprised the final arrangement?

From memory, the drums were sampled from LED ZEPPELIN’s When the Levee Breaks (but secondhand from a rap record). It is one of the most commonly used drum samples – for obvious reasons as it has that very special Bonham sound. The same snare drum sound appears on DM’s Get Right With Me. I’ve also heard that snare on a MASSIVE ATTACK record and many others. I think Violator was the first album that we used whole performance drum loops to create rhythm tracks, as opposed to programmed single drum sounds, and Halo was one of the first tracks we recorded for Violator in fact. Flood and I were listening to quite a lot of hip hop and rap records at the time – those artists were the forerunners when sampling larger sections of rhythms and grooves. And the unusual feels that were created on those albums really influenced Violator and Songs of Faith and Devotion.

Other sounds on Halo I’m more vague about, but we certainly would have used Flood’s ARP 2600 in conjunction with other modular synths to create the bass parts and other sequencer parts. For the end choruses, there are some string samples which I think were derived from Elgar. One of my techniques is to find sections of classical strings and transpose / stretch these, then add my own samples, in order to formulate new and unusual arrangements. This was a case in point. The DM track Clean utilised classical strings in a similar way.

How did that fabulous sequence on Waiting For The Night come together?

Waiting for the Night: the main sequencer part here was produced using the ARP 2600 synth and sequencer, because it has many flaws when setting up your 16 note sequence (for example tuning and gate length) – this makes for happy accidents and almost random events. We would have fiddled around with that sequence for a while, tweaking the filters and envelopes within the ARP until we arrived at that particularly hypnotic end result. The resulting sequence shape would follow any held note on a keyboard to transpose between the song’s basic chord changes as it ran, which we would then record, and that is essentially the spine of the whole thing. All the other sounds in that song act as mere embellishment. Each song is different though and we would employ a different approach to creating sequencer parts depending on what was appropriate.

Your surprise appearance with your former bandmates at the Teenage Cancer Trust gig in 2010 was a genuinely show-stopping moment, and became TEC’s Event of 2010. Were you surprised at the sheer scale of the welcome you received from the crowd? Do you have fond memories of the night?

Well, being there on stage felt strangely familiar – which is maybe not surprising considering how much touring we used to do – but it was like I’d never been away. I had forgotten just how it feels though when a large audience is behind you like that. A proud moment for me knowing that most people were so happy about it. It was great to see everyone (band and crew) and to catch up with their news, see how they were all fairing. The fact that is was for a worthy cause was also important of course, and I felt there would be a warm reaction from the people – which there definitely was :)

Over the years you have amassed a remarkable back catalogue with DEPECHE MODE and RECOIL. Which songs / albums from both eras are you most proud of?

Songs of Faith and Devotion is my favourite, and the tracks In Your Room, Walking In My Shoes and Never Let Me Down Again amongst others. No particular RECOIL favourites. Anything from Unsound Methods onward, really.

You commented on the prevalence of MP3 culture and the decline of the music industry to Side-Line Magazine in early 2008. Three years on, what do you think of the situation now and how it affects you as an artist?

Since then, there have been some marketing re-thinks for the better – a more tactile approach perhaps. We are seeing a return to higher quality formats, collectable editions, vinyl and so on. Mute have embraced the idea of limited editions where everyone can benefit – the consumer who gets total choice ranging from a simple download right through to the most luxury items, the artist who can indulge all his creative whims, and the record company who can charge the appropriate price for each product in order to make some profit (as long as they do not over produce and get lumbered with expensive stock). The music business is of course one of the fastest mutating industries and one has to try to understand why things adapt in the way they do. If the consumer isn’t particularly passionate and wants free music (which now seems inevitable amongst most listeners) then I’m not against the Spotify-type concept for example where, in effect, the artist receives his payment via advertisers.

Here at The Electricity Club, we celebrate the best of electronic pop music past and present. Are there any acts from the ‘new generation’ who you particularly admire?

Unfortunately, due to a complicated life (which seems to get more so by the day), I never find I have enough time to research and discover much new music but I enjoy trawling through my catalogue, built up since I was a teenager – and occasionally something new comes along to excite.

RECOIL’s sound is on the organic side of electronic with use of samples and influenced by trip hop, blues, and jazz. How do you see RECOIL developing in the future?

I have never undertaken a RECOIL project with a particular idea in mind, usually just a very vague notion. My approach is always both experimental and methodical so I just start throwing different sounds and loops together until I get a spark. I may say to myself that I’d like to work more with live musicians or perhaps not include too much spoken-word but these loose rules are never set in stone. I prefer to allow the music to flow completely naturally. Time will tell…

Fonte: The electricity club.

Personal Jesus promove Dexter!

A nova temporada de Dexter está quase a chegar - estreia prevista em Setembro na América - e um dos trailers disponíveis tem como banda sonora a versão de Marilyn Manson do clássico dos Depeche Mode, Personal Jesus.
Aqui fica, apreciem:

Outras promoções:
Perfect (Fringe)
Corrupt (True Blood)
I Feel You (Yves Saint Laurent)

Recoil no Vintage Festival

O projecto Recoil vai estar presente esta sexta feira 29 no Vintage Festival  que se realiza em Londres. Alan Wilder e Paul Kendall vão apresentar uma versão dinâmica e ligeiramente mais curta de ‘A Strange Hour’ - à semelhança do que aconteceu no evento da Mute, o Short Circuit realizado na Roundhouse.

Deseja-se que a máquina de 'A Strange Hour’ não pare sem passar por Portugal.

Mais informações sobre o Vintage Festival aqui.

Parabéns Mr. Martin Gore

Martin Lee Gore celebra hoje 50 anos, muitos parabéns.

A minha compilação 'Remixes 2'

Eu ainda costumo compilar os meus CDs para ouvir no carro com regularidade, até porque são bastante divertidos de fazer. Desta vez o objectivo foi escolher as 10 remisturas que mais aprecio da nova edição dos Depeche Mode, Remixes 2. 81-11. Aqui ficam:

The Sinner In Me (SixToes Remix) [5:06] [ouvir] o
In Chains (Alan Wilder Remix) [7:17] [ouvir]
Personal Jesus (Sie Medway-Smith Instrumental) [6:23] o
Ghost (Le Weekend Remix) [8:21] [ouvir]
Behind The Wheel (Vince Clarke Remix) [6:42] [ouvir]
I Want it All (Roland M. Dill Remix) [6:42] [ouvir]
In Chains (Tigerskin's Remix) [7:45] [ouvir]
Personal Jesus (Alex Metric Dub) [5:54] o
The Sun And The Rainfall (Black Light Odyssey's Further Excerpts) [6:24] [ouvir] o
In Chains (Myer vs.Wilder Deconstruction) [6:34] [ouvir] o

o Remisturas oficiais apenas disponíveis via download ou 12" promocional.

A remistura 'In Chains (Myer vs.Wilder Deconstruction)' apesar de pouco ou nada ter a ver com depeche é 'a' favorita.

Depeche Mode - Remixes 2. 81-11 (3CD)

Para os que como eu ainda dão valor ao formato físico (o mp3 também tem as suas vantagens) informo que a Edição Especial 3CD está disponível a 13.83€ na  BangCD e com portes grátis. Com preços assim só não compra quem não quiser. O link já foi adicionado acima.

Parabéns Mr. Alan Wilder

Mr. Alan Charles Wilder (1 Junho de 1959) celebra hoje mais um aniversário. Apesar de não sabermos o que o futuro nos reserva, sabemos que com o Alan os Depeche Mode formaram uma das maiores bandas de sempre.

O dmportugal deseja ao Alan as maiores felicidades.

In Chains (Alan Wilder Remix)

Ouçam a nova remistura de In Chains por Alan Wilder. Aprovadíssima.

Recordo que os Depeche Mode editam Remixes 2: 81-11 em 06 de Junho de 2011.

Behind the Wheel (Vince Clarke Remix)

Ouçam a nova remistura de Behind the Wheel por Vince Clarke.

Recordo que os Depeche Mode editam Remixes 2: 81-11 em 06 de Junho de 2011.

Video | Personal Jesus (Stargate Remix)

Personal Jesus 11, foi o single escolhido para a promoção do novo álbum de remisturas, Remixes 2: 81-11. Segue-se o vídeo:

Feliz aniversário, Dave!

Dave Gahan celebra hoje 49 anos, muitos parabéns.

Motor e Martin Gore | Man Made Machine

Martin L. Gore colaborou no novo álbum do projecto Motor, composto durante a Tour Of The Universe enquanto suportava os Depeche Mode. Juntos compuseram Man Made Machine a que Martin também dá voz.
A estreia foi hoje na rádio BBC6. Ouçam-na aqui: