Ultra

by Depeche Mode

Overview

When news surfaced in 1995 that Alan Wilder had departed Depeche Mode to concentrate on his solo project Recoil, the immediate concern among fans was whether the band would be able to hit past heights again. Though Wilder's profile was always much lesser than that of Martin Gore and David Gahan -- and almost even that of Andy Fletcher, whose nonperformance live has always been a running joke in the fan community and who freely admits to generally being around merely to maintain a vibe with his childhood friend Gore -- his capability at arranging the songs over the years gave the band its increasingly distinct, unique edge. Combined with Gahan's near suicide and lengthy recovery from drugs, things looked bleak. Happily, Ultra turned out a winner; hooking up with Tim Simenon, longtime U.K. dance maven and producer of arty fare such as Gavin Friday's Adam 'n' Eve, Depeche delivered a strong album as a rejuvenated band. The most immediate change was Gahan's singing; for the first time ever, he took singing lessons beforehand, and his new control and projection simply shines, especially on the marvelous "It's No Good," a pulsing, tense, yet beautiful song with another deeply romantic Gore lyric. Opener "Barrel of a Gun" continues in the vein of arena-level stompers like "Never Let Me Down Again" and "I Feel You," with huge drum slams and scratching to boot, but Ultra mostly covers subtler territory, such as the slightly creepy "Sister of Night" and the gentle "The Love Thieves." Gore sings two winners: the orchestral, slow dance groove "Home" and "The Bottom Line," featuring steel guitar and Can's Jaki Liebezeit on drums, distinctly different territory for Depeche. Closing with "Insight," a quite lovely, building ballad, Ultra showed Depeche wasn't ready to quit by any means. ~ Ned Raggett

Product Details

Release Date:	12/12/2025
Label:	Sony Legacy
UPC:	0198028877718

Tracks

1. Barrel of a Gun
2. The Love Thieves
3. Home
4. It's No Good
5. Uselink
6. Useless
7. Sister of Night
8. Jazz Thieves
9. Freestate
10. The Bottom Line
11. Insight
12. Junior Painkiller

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Depeche Mode   Primary Artist
Jaki Liebezeit   Guest Artist,Drums,Percussion
Doug Wimbish   Guest Artist,Bass,Guitar (Bass)
B.J. Cole   Guest Artist,Guitar,Pedal Steel
Keith LeBlanc   Guest Artist,Drums
Gota Yashiki   Drums
Victor Indrizzo   Percussion
Andy Fletcher   Keyboards,Guitar (Bass)
Martin Gore   Guitar,Keyboards
Danny Cummings   Drums,Percussion
Richard Niles   String Conductor
Christian Eigner   Drums
Daniel Miller   Keyboards,Synthesizer
David Clayton   Keyboards
Dave Gahan   Vocals
Dave Clayton   Keyboards
Victor Endrizzio   Percussion

Technical Credits

Gareth Jones   Mixing,Vocal Engineer,Mixing Engineer
Depeche Mode   Composer
Mike Marsh   Mastering,Mastering Engineer
Robin Hancock   Engineer,Recording
Martin Gore   Composer,Lyricist
Philip Bagenal   Engineer,Pro-Tools
Q   Mixing,Engineer
Anton Corbijn   Photography,Art Direction
Tom Rixton   Assistant Engineer
Tim Simenon   Mixing,Producer,Remix Engineer,Mixing Engineer
Richard Niles   String Score
Tim Weidner   Engineer,Pro-Tools
Guy Massey   Assistant Engineer
David Clayton   String Arrangements,Keyboard Programming
Jamie Campbell   Assistant Engineer
Paul Conboy   Mixing,Producer
Seymour Milton   Assistant Engineer
Graham Perkins   String Coordinator
Gary Forde   Assistant Engineer
Dave Clayton   Arranger
Lee Fitzgerald   Assistant Engineer
Paul Hicks   Assistant Engineer
Audie Chamberlain   Assistant Engineer
Kerry Hopwood   Programming
Lee Phillips   Assistant Engineer
Robbie Kazandjian   Assistant Engineer