Hourglass
by Dave Gahan
  • Record Label: Virgin
  • Release Date: Oct 23, 2007
Metascore
64

Generally favorable reviews - based on 18 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 18
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 18
  3. Negative: 0 out of 18
  1. musicOMH.com
    90
    These songs show him in a newly redemptive prime, and will satisfy both short and long term devotees.
  2. Observer Music Monthly
    80
    This kind of electro-glam was acceptable in the Eighties, and Hourglass proves that it still is.
  3. Hot Press
    75
    Gahan hasn’t arrived at the palace of wisdom yet, but it sounds like he’s enjoying travelling this new route there.
  5. AllMusic
    70
    A more electronic, better built, and altogether better deal than "Monsters," thanks mostly to the singer and-don't-you-forget-to-mention songwriter's better sense of self.
  6. Billboard
    70
    Dave Gahan wisely returns to the highly synthesized electronica of his main band Depeche Mode.
  7. Under The Radar
    70
    Gahan has crafted an genuine album utilizing old and new tricks in surprisingly adept and original ways. [Fall 2007, p.73]
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  8. Dot Music
    70
    There are a couple of moments where Hourglass works perfectly.
  9. The A.V. Club
    67
    Gahan has actually made one of the year's best-sounding electronic releases, containing a surprisingly small number of cringe-inducing moments.
  10. Lost At Sea
    65
    For the most part Dave Gahan has a lot of catching up to do after his lackluster solo debut, and Hourglass, while an improvement, will likely suffer from the continued fallout of "Paper Monsters."
  11. Rolling Stone
    60
    On Hourglass, he makes a very Depeche-sounding album indeed.
  12. Mojo
    60
    Hourglass plays the "I, an artist" card with equal earnestness, a collection of electronic songs that mix dungeon-master sexual predation with angst-ridden introspection. [Nov 2007, p.104]
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  13. Uncut
    60
    Gahan is a way off from being a David Sylvian–-but not as far as you might think.
  14. Q Magazine
    60
    It's a vibrant affair. [Nov 2007, p.138]
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  15. PopMatters
    60
    Hourglass isn't a perfect album by any means, but it's got enough really good stuff on it to make your overlook the not-so-good.
  16. Pitchfork
    57
    The problem is that while Hourglass has Gahan sounding a lot more assured and competent as a songwriter, it's also too much what you'd expect of him.
  17. Spin
    50
    Houglass blatantly resembles sedate, later-day Depeche. [Nov 2007, p.118]
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  18. Hartford Courant
    40
    Left to his own devices, Gahan, a mediocre songwriter at best, is forced to rely mostly on personality. Hourglass, his second solo album, is more a collection of moods than tunes.
  19. NOW Magazine
    40
    Some songs start out peppy and intriguing, but his moaning over top sucks all the life out of the groove.

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
8.5

Universal acclaim- based on 25 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 21 out of 25
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 25
  3. Negative: 0 out of 25
  1. Fonik
    Dec 26, 2010
    8
    This album is better enjoyed in an entire sitting, rather than picking out individual tracks. It certainly slopes downward in tempo afterThis album is better enjoyed in an entire sitting, rather than picking out individual tracks. It certainly slopes downward in tempo after Deeper And Deeper, which is painfully beautiful but could be somewhat misleading to the listener. A very dark album, which gives us an insight to a breakaway solo artist's emotions. Standout Tracks: Saw Something, Kingdom, Deeper And Deeper, Endless.… Full Review »
  2. commentspae
    May 14, 2021
    10
    A wise album flowing with peppy senior wisdom that sounds very much like the year it was created in, and rather self-contained for that year,A wise album flowing with peppy senior wisdom that sounds very much like the year it was created in, and rather self-contained for that year, as listening to it in the late future can give any memory from the relative era. Since it proceeds Playing the Angel, there is obvious inspiration from the writing and production from that album, as well as Ultra what with Eigner being hired to play drums for the second time on a studio album.

    The instrumentation is persistent and unique to the album, and by possessing fully electronic elements, it contains some analog-dominant songs like Deeper and Deeper and Endless. There are acoustic elements too, that then get manipulated to become more electronic. Being produced between Playing the Angel and Sounds of the Universe, the album catches the raw electronic-orchestral elements from both, using sharp tones that sound similar to that of Depeche Mode's main discography once the late 1990s rolled around for them.

    As for Dave's gravelly, raspy voice, the messages given are raw and relentless. The messages are the inspiration for the central manner of producing the whole album, of course, and are all the reason why the album exists in the first place. Dave wrote the lyrics, and the other two produced them with the assistance of John Frusciante for Saw Something and a whole assortment of other people.    … Full Review »
  3. JulianG
    May 31, 2009
    9
    Very interesting. I haven't expected that much from Dave (I mean, I absolutely love his 'Depeche Mode voice'... but...). There Very interesting. I haven't expected that much from Dave (I mean, I absolutely love his 'Depeche Mode voice'... but...). There are many good texts and I claim that other people insinuating that it is too much a Depeche-like album to be good are pretty wrong: cannot they see (hear) the difference? Anyway, critics in general are so skilled to denigrate artists and their work, that it doesn't seem astonishing... Even if there are some similarities - and 'its absolutely not a problem, considering his amazing Depeche performances - why doesn't he have the right to bring a little of their atmosphere in his own songs? No, I think we have here a good stuff.… Full Review »
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