Halo: The Story Behind Depeche Mode's Classic Album Violator

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RoD: Were you able to see the band live on the “World Violation Tour”? If so, where and what was your experience about the concert? (There was even a kind of fan petition in Hungary at that time to bring DEPECHE MODE to Budapest for a concert, but unfortunately without success. So, I had to wait until 1993 to finally see them live.) David: Kevin asked me to join him on the project in 2019 after he’d taken part in the “Global Spirit Tour” project on my blog “Almost Predictable Almost”. Once he told me his plan (see Kevin’s answer) I immediately agreed to take part. It was a real honour to be asked.

More than an album biography, ‘Halo’ goes deep behind the scenes of the band’s ‘Violator’ period. The book takes the form of a detailed oral history from those who were there in the studio with the band, working behind the cameras, designing sleeves and appearing in the videos; support acts, tour managers, publicists and Depeche Mode fans. This period in the band's history also found them forging a deeply trusted and influential partnership with photographer and designer Anton Corbijn, often viewed as the fifth member of Depeche Mode at this time. Corbijn's work with the Area creative agency for the 'Violator' project delivered iconic, integrated artwork, photography, videos and short films across the album, its singles, and tour design. The band had played some 40 shows in North America over two legs in late-1987 and mid-1988, culminating in the 101st show at the Pasadena Rose Bowl in June, but also taking in destinations as diverse as Austin in Texas, Salt Lake City in Utah and Iowa's Cedar Rapids. Kevin & David: We’ve not seen any firm opinions from fans saying, for example, that Violator is a bad album or something they don’t listen to. Everyone has a favourite album of course, but Violator seems to be generally thought of as a fan favourite. They hated it … Dave Gahan in Portugal for the Enjoy the Silence video, 1990. Photograph: 2020 Anton Corbijn

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FILTER - New single “Obliteration” out on 14th July, new album “The Algorithm” out on 25th August on Golden Robot Records During an intense and pivotal two-and-a-half years in the life of the group, we follow Depeche Mode as they complete their metamorphosis into one of the most significant bands of a generation and place the success and innovations of ‘Violator’ at the dead centre of the rapidly-changing late-80s, early-90s musical zeitgeist.

During an intense and pivotal two-and-a-half years in the life of the group, we follow Depeche Mode as they complete their metamorphosis into one of the most significant bands of a generation, and place the success and innovations of ‘Violator’ at the dead centre of the rapidly-changing late-80s, early-90s musical zeitgeist.Live performances Main article: Available recordings of "Halo" Main article: List of dates where "Halo" was played Trivia The rhythmic vocal rhythm audible in the opening moments of "Halo" is confirmed by Violator engineer Roberto Baldi as having been sampled from a pornographic film. The film is likely to have released on VHS or Betamax cassette and would have been in circulation by May 1989.

Violator is a milestone in the history of the band, it is the milestone in the history of our subculture, and it is finally the milestone in the history of music and pop culture. I am a child of the Violator too (how it sounds ;-P). If not for this album, probably I wouldn’t dive deep into the in depeche MODE’s music as much as it happened after 1989. That’s why I strongly supported the Halo – the Violator bookproject from the beginning. More than an album biography, 'Halo' goes deep behind the scenes of the band's 'Violator' period. The book takes the form of a detailed oral history from those who were there in the studio with the band, working behind the cameras, designing sleeves and appearing in the videos; support acts, tour managers, publicists and fans. In short: this book is essential reading for any Depeche Mode fan, and anyone interested in the process of what it used to take to get an album out there. Highly recommended! Can I persuade you to tell the story of ‘Songs of Faith and Devotion’ next, guys?David and Kevin also hear from those involved in the iconic artwork of the album and its single releases, videos, publicity and other figures associated with the band before, during and after Violator’s release in March 1990. The book features detailed interviews with central figures involved with the band as they transitioned their sound and image to a stadium-friendly aesthetic, as well as those whose trusted contributions, while occasionally understated, were essential for the creation of ‘Violator’, its enduring mystique, sound and success. Writers Kevin May and David McElroy are huge fans themselves, and this book has been a labour of love for them, the result of many years of interviewing everybody and anybody they could find who was involved in the creation of the album. The band are famously wary of publicity, and didn’t contribute to the book, but a vast number of people, from producers, mixers, engineers, but also video producers and editors, cover art designers and even pluggers are given the opportunity to recall the making of the album and the equally iconic videos, and their hugely important collaboration with photographer and director Anton Corbijn, which continues to this day. Mixed in with these recollections, space is given to some fans to tell their stories of their first listen to the album. I could easily imagine my own story having been included, reading the book led to me spending some time reminiscing about first hearing ‘Personal Jesus’, just after I moved to London, aged 18.

Those sharing their stories include Francois Kevorkian, Steve Lyon, Andy Franks, Roberto Baldi, Pino Pischetola, Nils Tuxen, Paul Kendall, Richard Bell, Richard Smith, Pam Heffer, Angela Shelton, Gareth Jones, Neil Ferris, Bruce Kirkland, Billie Ray Martin and many more. This article was amended on 1 June 2021. An earlier version referred to photographs of Joy Division in snow-covered Manchester, and said they were taken by Corbijn. They were actually taken by Kevin Cummins, and this reference has been removed.

The undisputed heroes of that period are François Kevorkian and Flood. It was fantastic to read the stories describing the process of making covers, where Richard Smith from Area studio is the undiscovered hero of the second plan. While reading this fragment, I was simultaneously browsing Mute A Visual Document From 1978 -> Tomorrow (pp. 152/182 – 193). Moreover, in the book, there are many references to external sources that are worth reaching to complement the explored issue. I will not spoil your reading pleasure, so without details. Nevertheless, the stories of Pino Pischetola, Paul Kendall, and François Kevorkian are pearls. This oral history is for fans and general music lovers who are curious about how a masterpiece was created. It’s an opportunity to learn first-hand from many of those involved in the making of Violator , in their own words, how this seminal album was made, marketed, toured and the impact it had on music and fans. DURAN DURAN - Announce the release of their new studio album “Danse Macabre” just in time for Halloween During intense and pivotal two-and-a-half years in the life of the group, we follow Depeche Mode as they complete their metamorphosis into one of the most significant bands of a generation, and place the success and innovations of ‘Violator’ at the dead centre of the rapidly-changing late-80s, early-90s musical zeitgeist.