Depeche Mode

Depeche Mode formed in Basildon, Essex, England, in 1980, first as Composition of Sound before taking its current name that September. The original lineup paired Vince Clarke, Andy Fletcher and Martin Gore with singer Dave Gahan, who joined later that year. The band signed to Daniel Miller’s Mute Records and released its debut album, “Speak & Spell”, in 1981.

Clarke left after that record to form Yazoo and later Erasure. Alan Wilder joined in 1982 and stayed through “Black Celebration” (1986), “Music for the Masses” (1987) and “Violator” (1990), departing in 1995 after “Songs of Faith and Devotion”. Gahan, Gore and Fletcher continued as a trio through “Ultra” (1997), “Exciter” (2001), “Playing the Angel” (2005) and “Sounds of the Universe” (2009), before moving to Columbia for “Delta Machine” (2013) and “Spirit” (2017) while keeping UK ties to Mute. The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in November 2020.

Andy Fletcher died on 26 May 2022, aged 60. Gahan and Gore continued as a duo and announced the album and tour “Memento Mori” that October, released in 2023. The Memento Mori tour’s Mexico City dates were later documented in the concert film “M”, followed by a CD/DVD, Blu-ray and the live album “Memento Mori: Mexico City” in December 2025.