Depeche Mode

It may not be as far-fetched as it seems to have international new wave godfathers Depeche Mode headlining Perry Farrell’s biggest party. Sure, 18 years ago, their name may have seemed strange alongside Jane’s Addiction and the Butthole Surfers — but not a lineup has gone by without one band or another citing the Mode as a major, if not defining, influence. The original foursome, which included David Gahan, Vince Clarke, Martin Gore, and Andrew Fletcher, came together in 1980 and quickly made a name for themselves with music centered around the heavy use of synthesizers. They released Speak and Spell in 1981, anchored by the U.K. Top 10 hit, “Just Can’t Get Enough,” before Clarke left the group and ultimately formed Erasure. While other synth-pop peers, like Clarke’s Erasure, continued down a bubble-gum pop path, Depeche Mode instead took a turn toward a darker side with albums like 1986’s Black Celebration, 1990’s Violator and 1993’s Songs of Faith and Devotion. Fast forward to 2009 and their formula is still yielding rich results. Their spring release and 12th studio album, Sounds of the Universe, features the single, “Wrong,” an intense depiction of that feeling when everything spirals out of control. Fortunately, “Wrong” can’t be farther from the truth for these musical veterans: it quickly found a home in Billboard’s charts — one of many signs over the years that Depeche Mode got it right the first time.