Depeche Mode, “Heaven”
It’s rare that I get to write about a group or performer whose entire career has been roughly the same length as my adult life. So I’ve basically grown up with Depeche Mode from listening to – and not really liking – their first album Speak & Spell back in my college radio days in 1981. In fact I didn’t fully begin appreciating the multi-faceted talents of the band until 1984’s Some Great Reward, when it was extremely clear that they were more than just a new wave synth pop band and had to diversify to survive that era in music. And survive they did; they’ve actually made some of their best and most interesting music in recent years and have a repertoire that any band that’s been in the biz for 30 years would kill for.
“Heaven” (video below) is the first single from Depeche Mode’s upcoming album Delta Machine, due at the end of March, their first for Columbia and latest since 2009’s hit-and-miss Sounds Of The Universe. It’s a languid affair but it does feature a most compelling and passionate vocal by Dave Gahan that definitely pulls you in and brings you back again. I’m sure the band will mix it up for the new album, but think of the song for lack of exact comparisons as “I Feel You” (without the blistering guitar sounds) meets “Stripped” with a dash of “Precious”. Would love to hear some true Depeche Mode fan comments about this one!
Parralox, “Enjoy The Silence” and “Heaven”
In those 30-plus years, Depeche Mode has influenced an endless array of performers. I’ve been writing about Australian electronic duo Parralox recently, and they have been one of the first out of the gate not only with an electronic cover of “Heaven”, but also a reverent and most welcome cover of the band’s biggest North American hit “Enjoy The Silence”. This time John takes on lead vocals from Amii and brings another dimension to the duo’s growing catalogue of songs. It’s no mean feat to carry off covers like these but Parralox performs them in style and they can easily help make them contenders in electro dance this year after already receiving positive notice with “Sharper Than A Knife”. Watch the video for “Enjoy The Silence” and listen to their take on “Heaven” below.
BAKER, “Overload”
It’s only been a few weeks since the video for BAKER’s “If U Love Me” dropped, but after hearing the Red One-produced “Overload”, it’s absolutely no surprise why this one couldn’t wait. This is one of those exceptional powerhouse arpeggio-laden dance records that could send BAKER into the international dance charts. It’s sound goes hand-in-hand with Red One’s contemporaries like Calvin Harris, David Guetta, Ian Carey, and others, but what makes the difference here is BAKER’s stunning vocal, which helps raise the bar even higher. Listen below.
SIRPAUL, “Glow”
SIRPAUL is a New York singer/producer/remixer who has been making music by his own set of rules for the last 15 years. After establishing himself as a force in his own city, his music has been spreading around the world. To be honest, I had only just heard of him when his song “Going Down In La La Land” was a highlight on last year’s absolutely essential This Beat Is…Poptronik Volume One collection. Since then he’s released his latest album The Horse, from which comes the latest single “Glow”, highlighted by an expensive-looking video with some beautiful images below. The song sparkles and has a killer vocal that stands out from the rest.
Sergey Lazarev, “Take It Off”
Some of you may know Sergey Lazarev as one half of Russian group Smash during the last decade. Others may know him from his cover of Johnny Hates Jazz’s “Shattered Dreams”, whose video was clearly shot in my city and looks like Sergey had Yonge Street all to himself (below) 😉 “Take It Off” is from his latest album Lazarev, available on iTunes, a dance track with an upfront flirty intent. You can see how much Sergey’s vocals have progressed since “Shattered Dreams”; you can’t have such a tease of a song without having a commanding vocal. Watch the live performance of “Take It Off” from last summer below. A video for the song has been in production and I hope it will surface.
Everything Everything, “Cough Cough”
Mighty drums are ablaze and surely what will attract you to the latest single from UK quartet Everything Everything. “Cough Cough” comes from the band’s sophomore album Arc, released last month in the UK. It’s definitely an alt.mix of tribal rhythms and electronics that will lift you out of your seat and make you watch and listen, particularly if you like other similar bands such as The Presets or Depeche Mode. The band is signed to The Strokes’ singer Julian Casablancas’ label Cult Records for North American release, and will see an EP of “Cough Cough” on release February 5. Everything Everything also performs two shows at SXSW in March.
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