This Break My Heart A Little Bit

dave in 90s

Dave Gahan on stage at the Crystal Palace, London on 31 July 1993. Photos by Phil Nicholls

‘Songs of Faith and Devotion’ reached number 1 in several countries, and became the first #DepecheMode album to top the charts in both the UK and the US. 

To support the album, Depeche Mode embarked on the 14 month long Devotional Tour (DVD filmed by Anton Corbijn), the largest tour the band had ever undertaken to that date.

Recording the album and the subsequent tour exacerbated growing tensions and difficulties within the band, prompting Alan Wilder (Recoil) to quit, making this album the final with him as a band member. The ordeal had exhausted their creative output following the enormous success they had enjoyed with Violator, leading to rumours and media speculation that the band would split. Depeche Mode subsequently recovered from the experience, and released Ultra in 1997.Dave Gahan downplayed his role on the album, stating the only thing he felt he contributed was what he considers his greatest vocal performance for Condemnation. Conversely, Wilder praised his role, stating that on previous releases, Gahan’s studio contributions is often only vocal performance and thus did not get in the way much and that he often offered a lot of positive encouragement despite his addiction, and that it was Wilder’s creative differences with Gore was the source of the real tension in the band.Flood (Mixing|Production) recalls Wilder and Gore having a very heated argument over the mix to Judas, and that there were constant disagreements throughout the recording process between the members of the band and Flood himself. Despite the feeling the band were realising one of their greatest works, Flood commented that the “little things” of the recording process never ran smoothly, leading to constant, largely non-constructive, arguing. Conditions improved between the band when the recording sessions moved to Hamburg largely in part as it was a return to normal studio routine, as opposed to living together. Martin Gore later commented: “I don’t think anyone was ever the same after that Devotional Tour”, highlighting the tense nature of the tour, and Q magazine would later refer to the Devotional Tour as “the most debauched rock tour ever”..Alan Wilder, who announced his departure from the band on his 36th birthday in 1995, highlighting a highly uneven workload distribution, lack of acknowledgement from his bandmates, creative differences within the band and overall lack of cohesion. Wilder’s departure and the internal strife within the band, specifically Gahan’s growing heroin addiction led many to speculate that the band was finished.

Chart Peakings; #1 in the UK, US, Switzerland, Austria, France, Germany & Italy

“Dead Man Talking” from NME, January 18, 1997

"I think that I'm always influenced and inspired by the darker side of things. I don't write too many happy songs."

- Martin Gore, Depeche Mode

🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹

"I've always had an element of melancholy that I should probably have therapy for, but I'm making a career out of it."

- Trent Reznor, Nine Inch Nails

Photo credits: 1st photo: unknown / 2nd photo: Jim Dyson - edited by me

The Depeche Mode lads after Alan released his press statement about leaving the band (1995)