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no-disco · 3 years ago

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Record Mirror, 1st August 1981

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photo and transcription retrieved from sacreddm.net on the wayback machine

There’s something very unusual about these lads. Not just the funny threads and lop-sided haircuts. It’s those faces: Stern, well-scrubbed, shiny, angelic, even. More like cherubs than boys in a band. Or choirboys.

“Andy and Vince both used to sing in church,” Martin reveals mischievously, “but then the devil got them. Very evil, the devil, you know,” he continues, much to his colleagues’ embarrassment.

But the best is yet to come. Depeche Mode is not the only combo Messrs Fletcher and Clarke have ever had in common. Nor their respective Christian church choirs. No, for five years they both played in the Boys’ Brigade!

Now in case you’re thinking you’ve never seen members of this worthy organisation marching up your high street doodling about on synthesisers, it ought to be pointed out that they haven’t always relied on these fascinating machines.

For the first half of their 14 month existence it was boring old guitar, bass and keys until one day Martin brought along a VC23 or something. “It didn’t take long for the others to follow suit. They’re a lot easier to lean to play from scratch than most other instruments,” the third twiddler admits.

“And portable too,” Dave (silicon) chips in. “We can fit all our gear into a few suitcases and drop ‘em into the boot of the car. No need for amplifiers, back-lines or anything.”

Dave Gahan was the last member to join the group. This comes as no surprise whatsoever since he’s most certainly the odd man out. Whereas the others tend to be guarded and reserved, the singer displays the kind of confidence you’d expect from someone who virtually talked his way into the band.

“Dave started jamming with us in rehearsals one day, so we asked him to join,” Martin recalls. “It wasn’t as if he was a total stranger. In fact we’ve all known each other since schooldays. It’s much better that way. You can’t possibly get on as well with newcomers who’ve been fixed up from adverts in the music press,” he declared baldly.

Must be more of a crack appearing on TOTP when you’re old pals. What do your mums think? Are they proud of their little boys?

“I try not to tell mine much,” the shy chap replies, “otherwise my mum just goes round bragging it to the butcher, the greengrocer… everybody!”

Parental fringe benefit, squire. Any more TV lined up?

“Yeah, we’re on ‘20th Century Box’, too. They’re doing a programme about the music scene round Basildon which is where we’re from.”

Now Basildon might not be renowned as a rock’n’roll epicentre but there’s a club where the quartet started attracting a lot of attention. Crocs is its name and Depeche Mode soon became the focal point of its burgeoning futurist knees-ups.

“We were the first band to play there,” claims Dave. “The resident DJ, Rusty Egan, liked us and so we then got a spot on one of the Thursday nights he was running at the Venue. Rusty’s my hero,” he confides.

Although still holding the affable innovator in high esteem, it is with a rather more low profile entrepreneur that Depeche Mode have decided to entrust their affairs. Daniel Miller, who charmed half a hemisphere (not to mention Grace Jones) with ‘Warm Leatherette’ owns their present record label, Mute, and the boys seem to want to keep it that way.

Mute might only be an indie – and one that can’t pay for its own photo-sessions – but Miller’s use of independent record pluggers makes it a match for the international companies, notwithstanding their heavy sales forces and so on.

Proof of the pudding is present hit ‘New Life’ charting the week it was released before amassing sales currently approaching 200,000. Although not furnished with the title, Miller is to all intents and purposes the band’s manager and is currently producing their debut album which, with expert timing, should be in the (right) shops by the end of next month.

“It’ll mainly consist of the songs we’ve been playing since we started plus a few new ones. No, I’m not going to give away the title or what the next single will be… Actually, we don’t know ourselves yet.”

A likely story. How about some dates? Any megatours in mind? I hear you’ve just got a deal with the same agents who book gigs for David Bowie and Adam & The Ants.

“We’re not like those rock’n’roll bands that play night after night. Y’know, I mean it’s just not us, really.”

This is true but what about the little robots all over the country who have put you where you are today. Don’t they deserve a live shot of the DPs?

“We’ll be playing some dates,” he concedes, “including some major European capitals,” adds Miller, sounding for all the world like the President of a multinational conglomerate.

A far cry from the choir, eh Martin?

“Oh, you get some good singing in church,” he replies, “why do you think I go?”

Hmmm, sounds like another A&R matter for Mute. On yer bike, Daniel.

#depeche mode #dave gahan #martin gore #andy fletcher #vince clarke #s&s era #s&s photoshoot #record mirror magazine #b&w #black and white checkered suit #by simon fowler

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aion-rsa · 3 years ago

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Ted Lasso and Other TV Bosses We’d Walk Over Hot Coals For

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In the heady moments of celebration after England’s victory over Denmark in this year’s Euros semi-final, the sight of team manager Gareth Southgate prompted ITV pundit Gary Neville to comment: “The standard of leaders in this country the past couple of years has been poor. Looking at that man, he’s everything a leader should be: respectful, humble, he tells the truth.”

The former Man U right-back’s words, directed at the political rulers of a country riven by Brexit, tap into a modern craving for decency. Fed a diet of self-serving narcissism from our public figures, we hunger for more wholesome fare: moral character, humility, honesty, kindness. In the year of horrors that was 2020, that appetite was temporarily sated on TV by fictional football manager Ted Lasso.

Played in the Apple TV series by Jason Sudeikis (who, in true Ted style, wore a shirt to the Ted Lasso season two launch in support of the three young Black England footballers who received racist abuse after their team’s eventual loss to Italy in the final), Ted’s thoroughgoing decency won everyone over to The Lasso Way. He’s the gold standard of TV bosses – selfless, caring, wise, inspirational, and patiently dedicated to bringing out the best in his players and the team as a whole. He may not always win on the pitch, but he always wins in our hearts. And if those words make you want to heave, then you, friend, may just need a little more Lasso in your life. #Believe.

To celebrate his return, we present Ted’s TV peers, the bosses for whom you’d go any number of extra miles.

Leslie Knope – Parks & Recreation

There is no finer example set in the TV workplace than Leslie Barbara Knope. The Pawnee public servant leads from the front, the sides and the back. She’s the waffle-powered sheepdog of City Hall, yapping co-workers and townsfolk into shape with her relentless work ethic and bottomless optimism. Leslie’s a boss who cares so much that she’s already bought your Christmas gift. And your birthday gift. And made you a special hand-crafted gift to mark the half-year anniversary of the day you first met. She sleeps three hours a night, runs entirely on sugar (or should that be salgar?), has a binder for every eventuality, and always, always has your back. Her rubber-soled energy is so infectious that over seven seasons she even manages to motivate the lazy (Tom), disaffected (April), dumb (Andy), aloof (Donna), hapless (Jerry) and the downright obstructive (Ron). For a gal named ‘nope’, she’s a whole lot of yes. LM

Bertram Cooper – Mad Men

Technically, advertising firm Sterling Cooper on Mad Men has two bosses – Roger Sterling and Bertram Cooper. Coop, however, is the let’s say…more experienced of the two and takes on the role of boss. And what a boss he is! The eccentric office sage played by Robert Morse takes a decidedly hands off approach to managing the workplace. Do whatever you want in this Madison Avenue ad agency, as long as you take your shoes off when you enter Bert’s office. And if you’re nice enough he might show you his collection of erotic octopus art. AB

Jacqueline Carlyle – The Bold Type

The Editor-In-Chief of Scarlet magazine, the women’s title at the heart of ridiculous millennial wish fulfillment vehicle The Bold Type is part mentor, part mother figure, part fairy godmother to the three young women at the centre of the show. Jane is an intern when she first meets Jacqueline, who greets her with “Are you a writer? You look like a writer.” Because, yep, it really is that easy to get a job at a top magazine. The Bold Type is nonsense but it’s very good hearted nonsense which tries in earnest to tackle big issues while maintaining a sunny outlook. Be yourself, be passionate, be bold, the show says, and the world is at your feet. Sent a couple of tweets? Congratulations, have a promotion! Threatened with a lawsuit because of something you wrote? No bother, have a promotion! Fraudulently passed yourself off as a stylist when you’re not, thereby ruining a key relationship? Meh. Promotion for you! Promotions all round! Jacqueline is glamorous and wise, endlessly patient with her proteges and seemingly in possession of a bottomless budget. We all wish we worked for Jacqueline and she’s a wonderful (imaginary) role model. We’re just slightly nervous for any young fans of the show who ever get to work for an actual, real life Editor-In-Chief… RF

Mr. Krabs – SpongeBob SquarePants

Mr. Krabs is a good boss because he’s refreshingly upfront about what matters to him. Simply put: the crab likes money. As long as you’re putting in the hours and keeping the profit margins fat, Mr. Krabs will be your best friend. Sure, he takes advantage of SpongeBob’s naivete from time to time. But deep down, you know the guy has a heart as big as his enormous whale daughter, Pearl. AB

Supt. Ted Hastings – Line of Duty

Think of Ted Hastings, head of Central Police’s Anti-Corruption Unit 12, as Ulysses – a man sailing on dangerous waters but so determined not to be seduced by the sirens’ song that he’s tied himself to the ship’s mast and stopped his ears with wax. Except replace ‘siren’s song’ with ‘bungs from criminal gangs’, and ‘ship’s mast’ and ‘wax’ with ‘sheer force of will, son’. Ted’s a colossus of integrity in a world of backhanders and turning-a-blind-eye. He does the right thing even when it’s the hard thing, and if you’re one of his officers, then you’re his for life. (Unless you’re a corrupt gangster plant, in which case, by Mary, Joseph and the wee donkey, he’ll never live down the shame.) Ted may have more decency in his side-parting than most officers have in their whole bodies, but he still has his flaws. The stock he puts in loyalty makes him inflexible, and his temper’s a thing to be seen, but the key thing about Ted as a leader is that when he makes a mistake, he owns up to it. We should all be so lucky to have a gaffer like him. LM

Ron Donald – Party Down

Starz’s brilliant comedy Party Down premiered around the same time as classic NBC sitcom Parks and Recreation. As such, Ken Marino’s perpetually stressed boss character Ron Donald didn’t get nearly as much attention as another boss named Ron: Ron Swanson. Let’s be clear, however, nobody would want Ron Swanson as a boss because that means you’d have to regularly interact with a libertarian. Instead, it’s far better to be in the good graces of Ron Donald. This Ron will support your dreams all the while telling you about his own to own a Souper Crackers franchise. AB

Press Gang: How Steven Moffat’s First Show Shaped a Generation

By Rosie Fletcher

Party Down: a US sitcom that richly deserves your time

By Louisa Mellor

Lynda Day – Press Gang

Bit of of a niche one – you probably have to be British and in your 40s to even know who this is – but Lynda Day, played by Julia Sawalha deserves a mention as the youngest boss on the list. Editor of the Junior Gazette, the after school newspaper run by pupils at the heart of Steven Moffat’s very first show she’s an erudite journalist, a ruthless news hound and a self possessed young woman who cares more about being right than about being liked. Lynda isn’t particularly soft or warm but she is a boss who would make you a better writer. You’d strive to please Lynda, want to live up to her incredibly high standards and know that the work you were doing on the paper could actually make a difference. Lynda is all about work ethic and integrity. Small of frame, sharp of tongue, you wouldn’t wanna mess with her, but you know she’ll get shit done. RF

Captain Holt – Brooklyn 99

It says something about a boss when you wouldn’t just walk over hot coals for them, you would also do it for their pet dog. Cheddar the corgi is just one of many reasons to snap your sharpest salute to Captain Raymond “Do Not Call Me Ray Or Use Contractions In My Presence” Holt. Precinct captain of the 99, Holt is a walking yardstick of fine taste, good manners, linguistic clarity and grammatical coherence. Holt values simplicity and despises vulgarity. Do your job and do it right, and you will earn his hard-won respect, perhaps indicated by a very slight incline of the head if he is feeling frivolous. Holt has already earned your respect, for leading an exemplary career as an openly gay NYC cop since 1987, facing down racists, homophobes and the lowest of the low: people who use “What’s up?” as a greeting. Captain Holt’s impossibly high standards are a bar few reach, but to which we can all aspire. LM

Ian Grimm and Poppy Li – Mythic Quest

Mythic Quest creative directors Ian Grimm (Rob McElhenney) and Poppy Li (Charlotte Nicdao) are messes on their own. But when their personalities combine, they create one great boss unit who keeps things moving and keeps things lively. Granted, I wouldn’t want to work for Ian and Poppy as a programmer or dev on the Mythic Quest team because crunch is real (and I also have no such skills). They would make for a great boss team in just about any other industry though. AB

DCI Cassie Stuart – Unforgotten

Some bosses try to impress their status on employees by turning up the volume, but not DCI Cassie Stuart. Everything she does in ITV police drama Unforgotten, from case meetings to suspect interrogations, she does in the same controlled, low voice. It gives her words an intensity that shouting wouldn’t achieve and makes her cold-case murder team lean in to absorb the significance of what she’s saying. Usually, that’s on the theme of how they owe victims answers and are going to find them. Diligent and dedicated, she trusts her team, especially partner Sunny, and is the kind of boss whose praise really means something. A ‘good work’ from her and you’d be walking on air. LM

Conan O’Brien – Conan

This is technically violating the spirit of this thought exercise because Conan O’Brien is not fictional. What he is, however, is a boss…in both the metaphorical and literal sense of the word. No late night talk show host has ever reveled in being the boss of a staff as much as Conan O’Brien has on his shows like Late Night, The Tonight Show, and Conan. He views his role as boss as an opportunity to troll his employees like a corny father torturing his children with dad jokes. Many of Conan’s behind the scenes workers have become stars in their own right, like producer Jordan Schlansky or assistant Sona Movessian. And it’s all because Conan can’t help but want everyone to be involved and having a good time. Just like any great boss would want. AB

Captain Janeway – Star Trek Voyager

Anyone can be a good boss in a thriving workplace, but it takes a person of strong character to stay empathetic, decisive, and focused when everything goes to hell. In the very first episode of Star Trek: Voyager, Captain Janeway is stranded with her crew on the wrong side of the galaxy, 70,000 light years from home. She is tasked with getting not only her Starfleet crew home, but also the remaining members of the Maquis vessel Voyager was trying to capture when they were both pulled into the unexplored Delta quadrant. She does this all without the institutional support of the Federation, and without the certainty that they will ever make it back. It’s not always pretty, and Janeway makes some questionable decisions along the way, but it’s hard to imagine Voyager making it home without Janeway as their tough-as-nails boss. KB

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Ted Lasso Season 2 is available now on Apple TV+

The post Ted Lasso and Other TV Bosses We’d Walk Over Hot Coals For appeared first on Den of Geek.

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depechemodespiritera · 7 years ago

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energized dance floor.

Religiously and without fail, Depeche Mode echoed through the strobe chamber as those in leather and black pantyhose thrashed about — an unapologetic soundtrack to the delightfully queer-fusion future reality emerging. The band was an important sort of proto-GSA with anthems of equality and frustration and overt sexuality.

Many times since 1980 has Depeche Mode almost not made it into the present through their 100-million-sold albums, and their first show in Edmonton Friday night was also the last on the North American Global Spirit tour.

Down to a peace sign on tour drummer Christian Eigner’s kit, the night’s theme was “revolution” — though hardly as overtly as Roger Waters’ call to topple every wall that stands earlier in the week in the same downtown arena.

Over two-plus hours, the U.K. electro-pop band sufficiently-enough then very-much entertained the 13,500 fans, the set leaning heavily on their new album Spirit, the widest-reaching political statement of their career. And why not? These are confrontational times, a fight waiting on every tiny screen.

After the best, trippiest electro warm-up elevator music possible, the show began with the (canned) Beatles’ Revolution, singer Dave Gahan emerging in silhouette up a level on a balcony-tiered theatre screen in front of colourful modern art.

Here, he spread his arms wide to the greatest wave of applause the band would get for about 45 minutes, when they finally unleashed World in My Eyes off 1990’s world-gripping Violator.

The night was rather like that, a byproduct of having 14 albums from which to draw — yet everyone was anxious to visit the ancient landmarks like People Are People and Just Can’t Get Enough they grew up yelping in the clubs, hoping to maybe someday give Martin Gore a hug to cheer him up.

With banter mostly being of the “thank you” and “how are you, insert city name?” type, two really strong new songs kicked open the show. First was the scorn-filled Going Backwards, which observed what Devo’s been saying all along about our regress, followed by the arena-ready So Much Love.

As the first wave of documentary phone-shakers calmed down, Gahan slipped some of Grandmaster Flash’s The Message into Barrel of a Gun, did a fine job on the kinda metal Corrupt, and then it was watch the big screen video as a male and female dancer made living together as a couple look as emotionally torturous as humanly possible during the heavy In Your Room.

World in My Eyes flicked on the already-up-and-dancing crowd like a big metal switch, Gahan running out onto the thrust stage, holding his mic stand up and grinning, “You know that one!” Though Gore — early on holding an amazing sparkly star-shaped guitar — was mostly still through the night, he and Gahan had a delightfully childish vibe, the latter twirling and posing like a playground fusion of John Waters and Freddy Mercury, his tattoos dripping with sweat.

Cover Me, I’d say the best song on the new album, had that great sequencer outro. Eigner did a commendable job playing to the click track all night as the immovable loops whirled about, while Andy Fletcher raised up doing keys. The video for this was the night’s best, too, Gahan slumping around suburbia black and white in a spacesuit, dreaming of the stars, and eventually — enough of that noise — just walking straight into the ocean.

Besides the fundamental hits, the other must-remember part of this show was Gore’s tender and vulnerable ballads when he took over singing, starting with A Question of Lust. This was a near total audience singalong, followed by the also-soft Home as one guy up in crowd was noticed by all, windmilling his arms, utterly swept away. Lovely, and around now I realized, oh yeah, some of these outfits, like the Orange is the New Black ladies, are because it’s almost Halloween — not real inmates out on an Friday-night pass.

Gore, black-lidded and with a huge smile, ran out to the tip of the catwalk, the band’s eternally semi-secret star soaking up his love.

Gahan returned for hand and pencil-goatee face theatrics for a song he wrote, Poison Heart, then the loud and disappointed Where’s the Revolution, written pre-Brexit/Trump, and a definite “be careful what you wish for” moment as revolutions never go quite as hoped, unless you ask the vultures.

The 55-year-old singer in his vest did a yoga stretch for 2009’s sad-techno Wrong, and again the switch flipped on for Everything Counts. This was as far back as the band went, not counting a 1977 cover in the encore. Fans of Dreaming of Me, New Life and Just Can’t Get Enough would have to play those on the way home.

Mind you, Enjoy the Silence — a gorgeous video of farm animals behind — and Never Let Me Down Again were beautiful, Gahan the elastic spider moving his arms around like a window washer after a few too many key bumps.

I was looking forward to openers Warpaint, the innovative, all-female L.A. art rock band, and they were terrific and daring, the techs being generous with the slight sparkly show. Layered and switching instruments every song, besides the harmonies Stella Mozgawa deserves a nod for her powerful drumming. The band was actually kind of scary at times between the sweetness. Elephants, Love Is to Die and New Song were all brilliant, so do look them up.

For Depeche Mode’s five-song encore, it was back to Gore for another piano-driven singalong, Somebody. Walking in My Shoes led to Gahan performing the song that got him into the band, David Bowie’s “Heroes” — the flag that had been onscreen repeatedly during the night black for the fallen (or is that risen?) star. Gahan posed with arms on hips, hair starting to curl like Grandpa Munster’s, pointing to someone in the crowd singing, “You could be me,” between mentions of dolphins. Summoning heroes again brought us back to our revolution theme.

I Feel You was the most U2 moment of the night, especially via the words “I” and “you,” their eternal specialty, and — you guessed it — the night ended with Personal Jesus.

OK, more of the old songs needed? I’d for sure take them, but I dunno. Like Harvey Keitel to Willem Dafoe in Last Temptation of Christ after he came down from the cross, I’ve got my faith covered no matter what happens in the present.

The Gore-Gahan baton-passing was great, Andy Fletcher was solid, there was an engaging video show, amazing opening act, and, though a little tired after a long tour, the band seemed pretty plugged in and interested. What more can you ask for, an actual revolution? It had to be 1983 again? But think of how much you’d miss seeing your own face mirrored and edited on your phone!

#depeche mode #global spirit tour #edmonton

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