Vetiver

I didn’t bother voting because my answer is ‘neither’.

Don’t get me wrong, I loved Depeche Mode during its heyday but, with the exception of Black Celebration, most of the albums have too much filler. While most of the singles released during Alan Wilder’s tenure are stellar, the same can’t be said for the albums and, to me, that’s how I measure great artists and bands.

As for the band, I personally feel they should have called it a day after Ultra. Martin Gore’s songwriting has since declined and Dave Gahan’s insistence on sharing songwriting duties hasn’t injected any new life into the band. Hell, I can’t even think of one Gahan penned song that rivals Gore’s best work.

What was once a great and innovative synth-rock band is now no better than The Rolling Stones, rehashing variations of Personal Jesus. In addition, this band used to have a strong European vibe, but has been unnecessarily churning out blues, gospel and country for far too long that one wonders why this once great band is pandering so much to the US market.