Sounds Of The Universe
by Depeche Mode
  • Record Label: EMI
  • Release Date: Apr 21, 2009
User Score
7.4

Generally favorable reviews- based on 119 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 86 out of 119
  2. Mixed: 23 out of 119
  3. Negative: 10 out of 119

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  1. ChrisR
    May 1, 2009
    2
    I'm another die-hard DM fan. Loved the last one. This as Nik V said, is VERY boring. Wrong is a great single. the rest a collection b-sides. I feel sick writing this, but it is true.
  2. stephenb
    Apr 23, 2009
    0
    Just awful. I loved Playing The Angel and had high hopes for this cd. There is nothing to like about this album. Definitely DM's worst. Before you dismiss my opinion as a hater, let me say that DM is my favorite band of all time.
  3. AlanO
    May 1, 2009
    1
    Very, very poor album...lack of strong songs, thin, underdeveloped sound. Yuck!
  4. NikV.
    Apr 23, 2009
    1
    Being a DM fan for years, I must admit this is a very very boring cd, probably made wit a lot of love but with very little soul and inspiration !
  5. voter
    Sep 4, 2012
    1
    I've always been a huge Depeche fan, but it's been pretty hard to enjoy their music since Alan Wilder left. Sure, the songwriting is still decent, but it lacks the polish, detail, and depth of Alan's production standards. Case in point, listen to the album version of "In Chains", and then listen to Alan Wilder's remix. Other than matching the long intro of the original track, it justI've always been a huge Depeche fan, but it's been pretty hard to enjoy their music since Alan Wilder left. Sure, the songwriting is still decent, but it lacks the polish, detail, and depth of Alan's production standards. Case in point, listen to the album version of "In Chains", and then listen to Alan Wilder's remix. Other than matching the long intro of the original track, it just sounds so much better. It's interesting. It's dynamic. It builds. It leaves you wanting to hear more. I was slightly let down by Ultra at the time, but with each new album, I am less and less impressed. I find the B-Sides and demos from the SOTU deluxe box set are far more interesting. To me, this album sounds like a bunch of guys playing around with way too much gear that they don't really know how to operate. If it's true that some of the best albums come from strong differences of personalities and opinion, then it's no wonder that the stuff with Alan Wilder was great, and the stuff with more recent producers (sorry Ben Hillier) is a let down. Hope they can find a way to bring back the depth and high production values, and make it more interesting again.… Expand
  6. rudster1138
    Mar 25, 2013
    3
    So, this is DM circa 2009. Well, as a DM fan since 1990 and having listened to and re-listend to every CD dozens of times since then I think that I have finally hit a wall. Is it me with the problem? I read so many good reviews of this and I scratch my head. There are almost no hooks here, the song structure is so loose that there is, at times, almost no recognizable pattern to certainSo, this is DM circa 2009. Well, as a DM fan since 1990 and having listened to and re-listend to every CD dozens of times since then I think that I have finally hit a wall. Is it me with the problem? I read so many good reviews of this and I scratch my head. There are almost no hooks here, the song structure is so loose that there is, at times, almost no recognizable pattern to certain songs. I knew that I was in trouble during the first minute as this annoying computer tone drones in your head for no apparent reason then finally leads into In Chains, one of the few decent tracks on the CD. They really should have made the first minute skipable (reminds me of the annoying opening of Freelove). Wrong, the lead single, was picked for obvious reasons, it is the only track with any clout and aformentioned structure, and it completely misleads listeners as to what the rest of the album sound like, as is is completely out of place in the otherwise atmospheric, formless sludge that follows it. After strong albums Exciter and Playing the Angel, this is supremely disapointing. With 4 years between each CD we will unfortunately have to wait quite a while now, with the hopes of a return to form.… Collapse

Awards & Rankings

37
#37 Most Discussed Album of 2009
100
#100 Most Shared Album of 2009

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
70

Generally favorable reviews - based on 28 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 18 out of 28
  2. Mixed: 10 out of 28
  3. Negative: 0 out of 28
  1. Rolling Stone
    50
    The result sounds like a time machine back to the Eighties.
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  2. Spin
    60
    Sounds of the Universe comes on a bit softer, with less industrial guitar clang and more of chief songwriter Martin Gore's dreamy atmospherics.
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  3. The Guardian
    60
    A less then stellar return, then, but a welcome one nevertheless.
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