Playing The Angel
- Depeche Mode
- Band Name: Depeche Mode
- Record Label: Reprise
- Release Date: Oct 18, 2005
- Critic Score
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100Not only is Depeche Mode virtually indestructible, the pioneering British synth-pop group also keeps getting better.
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Every moment screams to be played a little bit louder and a little bit longer; because Playing the Angel is just that good.
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Like the best Depeche Mode, almost everything on the album will make an initial wowing impact while remaining layered enough in subtle details to surprise and thrill with repeated listens.
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90Sounds so sure and committed that it could be the work of a new band. [Nov 2005, p.127]
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86It's got all the allure of classic D-Mode, but there's that lingering hint of taking oneself a tad too seriously. [#17, p.97]
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It's taken ten years, but our beloved Mode has returned in fast fashion. [#11, p.106]
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80'Playing the Angel' is hardly the most essential Depeche Mode album ever, but it is Depeche Mode doing what they do best.
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80Shows a good deal more focus than their last two studio efforts. [Nov 2005, p.104]
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80A pleasant surprise: engaging, exciting, and a much better album than most bands can muster after 25 years together. [Nov 2005, p.106]
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80[A] remarkable return to form. [Oct 2005, p.75]
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It's DM's ability to make you dance and look over your shoulder--sometimes simultaneously--that makes them relevant. [Dec 2005, p.212]
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80Revels in dirty guitars and fuzzy distortion while maintaining Depeche Mode's familiar electronic sound. [22 Oct 2005]
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80The album skillfully and confidently showcases all of Martin Gore's songwriting strengths.
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80Some may say it doesn't move Depeche Mode forward a great deal; I say I don't give a damn, it's a real treat and I'll have some more, please.
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There's an unexpected freshness to most of the songs. [16 Oct 2005]
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Their most self-assured and accessible release in over a decade. [28 Oct 2005, p.83]
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70Sounds surprisingly vital.
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70If you really are the sort of person who's been waiting with bated breath for a new Depeche Mode release, then don't worry: You'll love this. Dear everyone else: It's pretty okay.
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70It may be grim round Depeche's way, but they don't let it get in the way of a good melody.
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Far from bad... but so much of it sounds like a museum piece, the glum-pop self-harmings of another time. [12 Nov 2005, p.45]
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The formula remains largely the same, although the group adds some production tricks, dialing down the perv factor and turning up some extra chirps and bloops they haven't used before.
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40The second half drops off badly--the band seem to think that the tonic for a weak lyric is to slow the tempo to a crawl. [Nov 2005, p.130]
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User score distribution:
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Positive: 120 out of 131
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Mixed: 7 out of 131
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Negative: 4 out of 131
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8Good album but overall sound quality is not so great-the sound is unbelievably loud and distorted but also kind of flat,with no natural dynamic range.
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DexStud9
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ianb10