Fan of Depeche Mode? Then you might be on board for today's Retro Spin.
Martin L. Gore is known as one of the head founders of the group Depeche Mode, and along with guitarist and keyboards, he's credited as the band's main songwriter, and lead singer. So when he separates himself from the band to record his first solo work, Counterfeit E.P., it's no surprise that it sounds very familiar.
Much like how Paul Stanley proved in 1978 that he didn't need the other members of the band to create a Kiss album, so too does Gore on this album that he doesn't need his bandmates. Though a solo effort, this is very much so a Depeche Mode album, from it's sound to its structure. This in and of itself is odd, because the songs on the album are all covers.
The downside here, is that it ends up being an album without a lead single, or any real hits at all. I picked it up for the opening track, Compulsion, and while the song Gone is decent, the other four on the EP are easy to skip.
Ideally, when an artist from a band goes solo, it's because he wants to branch out from the music styles he or she has been "stuck" in, and spread their own creative wings. I look at Freddie Mercury's Barcelona album as an example. That's not something Queen would have ever gotten away with. Whereas here, Gore has just done more of the same, but on his own with other artists material.
Considering it's not a very expensive album, I can't grip about it too much. I mean, at least it's not like some of those one-hit wonder albums that will set you back over a hundred dollars for one song.
While Gore has continued to dabble in solo work here and there since its release, he has mainly stayed focused on Depeche Mode's albums. Perhaps that's for the better. Counterfeit E.P. isn't a bad album. It just feels unnecessary.
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| THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS March 18, 1989 |
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