Photo by Anton Corbijn
Depeche Mode suffered a tremendous loss last year when Andrew Fletcher suddenly passed of an aortic dissection in May. Martin Gore and Dave Gahan are forging on with the band, however, with Memento Mori, their fifteenth studio album, set to drop on the 17th of March via Columbia Records.
Today, Depeche Mode teased the much-anticipated lead single, “Ghosts Again”, set for release on February 9th with a countdown to the announcement, and yet another clock countdown.
The Memento Mori album marks a new chapter for Depeche Mode’s peerless, evolving legacy. Memento Mori originated early in the pandemic during the chaos of uncertainty and global panic; now the grim title also reflects the sombre reality of a Fletch-less future for the band.
“After Fletch’s passing, we decided to continue as we’re sure this is what he would have wanted,” says Martin Gore, “and that has really given the project an extra level of meaning.”
“Fletch would have loved this album,” Dave Gahan added. “We’re really looking forward to sharing it …and we can’t wait to present it to you live at the shows.”
In October, the band announced that they will embark on The Memento Mori Tour to support the album, beginning with a series of North American arena dates starting on the 23rd of March, before the band heads to Europe for their summer stadium tour. They will perform at Madison Square Garden in NYC, Chicago’s United Center, Los Angeles’ Kia Forum, and Toronto’s Scotiabank Arena, among others. The band will then begin their European stadium tour on 16 May, including the Stade de France in Paris, Berlin’s Olympic Stadium, Milan’s San Siro Stadium, and London’s Twickenham Stadium.
Meanwhile, a classic Depeche Mode song was introduced to a new audience recently, not unlike that which happened with the runaway success of Kate Bush’s 1985 single “Running Up That Hill” via the Netflix show Stranger Things.
This time, it was the post-apocalyptic HBO Series The Last of US featuring “Never Let Me Down Again” in the show’s first episode. The use of the single from the band’s 1987 sixth studio album Music for the Masses resulted in the song’s streaming numbers tripling overnight.
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