British electronic music pioneers Depeche Mode announced a comeback on Tuesday with an upcoming new album and their first tour in more than five years, following the death of founding member Andrew Fletcher.
Lead singer Dave Gahan said the new record, Memento Mori, due out in March, was inspired both by the pandemic and the loss of Fletcher, who died in May from a tear in his heart artery.
Gahan, 60, told reporters in Berlin that after a long absence, the band was ready to embrace its fans again with a series of big stadium shows also beginning in March, in Sacramento, which arrives in Dublin's Malahide Castle on 14 June 2023 for what will be their biggest ever Irish concert.
Tickets from €79.65 including booking fee go on sale 9am this Friday at Ticketmaster.ie.
Speaking about the new tour, the band’s 19th, Gahan added, "We get to make music and we get to play music for you and hopefully bring a sense of joy and togetherness, you know, in our own small way, in a world that seems to be constantly in some kind of turmoil."
The band, one of Britain's most successful and long-running acts, had tantalised fans last week with a cryptic teaser on Instagram showing only grainy footage of a music mixing console and the words "Berlin 4.10.22".
Credited with bringing electronic music into the mainstream, the band last released a studio album, Spirit, in 2017. Memento Mori will be their 15th studio record.
Speaking about Memento Mori, Martin Gore commented, "We started work on this project early in the pandemic, and its themes were directly inspired by that time.
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"After Fletch's passing, we decided to continue as we’re sure this is what he would have wanted, and that has really given the project an extra level of meaning."
Gahan added, "Fletch would have loved this album. We’re really looking forward to sharing it with you soon, and we can’t wait to present it to you live at the shows next year."
Depeche Mode triumphed with a string of hits in the 1980s and early 1990s, at first becoming synonymous with danceable synthpop but then gradually adopting a darker sound.
The band has sold more than 100 million albums since it began in 1980, winning over a global audience with hits such as Personal Jesus, People Are People and Enjoy the Silence.
The group has nevertheless maintained an underground appeal, even as it was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2020.
Source: AFP
