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"Ultra"
The rebirth of a myth
It's February 1997 when Depeche Mode fans exclaim a miracle upon hearing Dave Gahan's voice and Martin Gore's melodies once again. Because it is indeed a miracle, if not musically, at least humanly.
In fact, after the Devotional Tour and the following years spent between Dave's overdoses, Alan Wilder's departure from the group, Martin's alcohol problems, and even Dave's attempted suicide, no fan possibly believed in the remote possibility of rejoicing over a new DM album again.
"Do you mean this horny creep"... These are the first words that caused Martin and Fletch to exclaim a miracle first, and their fans later... These are the first words Dave uttered upon waking from the coma, and they are the same words that open "Barrel Of A Gun," the first single and track of "Ultra."
Even when listening to the first notes of the single, it becomes clear how "Ultra" is a child of suffering, introspection, and the hoped-for rebirth that somehow affected the group in recent years.
The songs written by Martin seem to fit Dave perfectly ("Whatever I've done / I've been staring down the barrel of gun"), reflecting what the blonde genius also experienced himself ("Oh the tears that you weep / For the poor tortured souls").
The rock notes and hard soul of Gore and associates that emerged from the previous album "Songs Of Faith And Devotion" make way for the reuse of electronics not only as a backdrop but as the main structure of the dark and enveloping melodies of "Ultra."
Listening to Ultra is like traveling at night, in a car, with headlights off, crossing a large deserted city and capturing all the darker and more melancholic aspects that daylight manages to hide.
To the anguished melodies of "Barrel Of A Gun," "Useless," "Home," "The Bottom Line," and "Insight," a well-paced but never exaggerated "It's No Good" joins, along with those splendid ballads like "Sister Of Night," "The Love Thieves," and "Freestate." The instrumental tracks present in every Depeche Mode work are inevitable ("Uselink," "The Jazz Thieves," and the hidden track "Painkiller jr.").
An album among Depeche Mode's best to listen to in one go, perhaps right in the car on a night when you need and can think. Recommended.
Tracklist Lyrics Samples and Videos
01 Barrel of a Gun (05:35)
Do you mean this horny creep
Set upon weary feet
Who looks in need of sleep
That doesn't come
This twisted, tortured mess
This bed of sinfulness
Who's longing for some rest
And feeling numb
What do you expect of me
What is it you want
Whatever you've planned for me
I'm not the one
A vicious appetite
Visits me each night
And won't be satisfied
Won't be denied
An unbearable pain
A beating in my brain
That leaves the mark of Cain
Right here inside
What am I supposed to do
When everything that I've done
Is leading me to conclude
I'm not the one
Whatever I've done
I've been staring down the barrel of a gun
Is there something you need from me
Are you having your fun
I never agreed to be
Your holy one
Whatever I've done
I've been staring down the barrel of a gun
03 Home (05:42)
Here is a song
From the wrong side of town
Where I'm bound
To the ground
By the loneliest sound
That pounds from within
And is pinning me down
Here is a page
From the emptiest stage
A cage or the heaviest cross ever made
A gauge of the deadliest trap ever laid
And I thank you
For bringing me here
For showing me home
For singing these tears
Finally I've found
That I belong here
The heat and the sickliest
Sweet smelling sheets
That cling to the backs of my knees
And my feet
But I'm drowning in time
To a desperate beat
And I thank you
For bringing me here
For showing me home
For singing these tears
Finally I've found
That I belong
Feels like home
I should have known
From my first breath
God send the only true friend
I call mine
Pretend that I'll make amends
The next time
Befriend the glorious end of the line
And I thank you
For bringing me here
For showing me home
For singing these tears
Finally I've found
That I belong here
04 It's No Good (05:58)
I'm gonna take my time
I have all the time in the world
To make you mine
It is written in the stars above
The gods decree
You'll be right here by my side
Right next to me
You can run but you cannot hide
Don't say you want me
Don't say you need me
Don't say you love me
It's understood
Don't say you're happy
Out there without me
I know you can't be
'cause it's no good
I'll be fine
I'll be waiting patiently
Until you see the signs
And come running to my open arms
When will you realise
Do we have to wait till our worlds collide
Open up your eyes
You can't turn back the tide
Don't say you want me
Don't say you need me
Don't say you love me
It's understood
Don't say you're happy
Out there without me
I know you can't be
'cause it's no good
I'm gonna take my time
I have all the time in the world
To make you mine
It is written in the stars above
Don't say you want me
Don't say you need me
Don't say you love me
It's understood
Don't say you're happy
Out there without me
I know you can't be
'cause it's no good
Don't say you want me
Don't say you need me
Don't say you love me
It's understood
Don't say you're happy
Out there without me
I know you can't be
'cause it's no good
06 Useless (05:12)
Well it's about time
It's beginning to hurt
Time you made up your mind
Just what is it all worth
All my useless advice
All my hanging around
All your cutting down to size
All my bringing you down
Watch the clock on the wall
Feel the slowing of time
Hear a voice in the hall
Echoing in my mind
All your stupid ideals
Got your head in the clouds
You should see how it feels
With your feet on the ground
Here I stand the accused
With your fist in my face
Feeling tired and bruised
With the bitterest taste
All my useless advice
All my hanging around
All your cutting down to size
All my bringing you down
All your stupid ideals
You've got your head in the clouds
You should see how it feels
With your feet on the ground
09 Freestate (06:43)
I can hear your soul crying
Listen to your spirit sighing
I can feel your desperation
Emotional deprivation
Let yourself go
Let yourself go
Let your feelings show
Picking up the conversations
Deep in your imagination
Tune in to the lonely voices
Talking of their only choices
Let yourself go
Let yourself go
Let your spirit grow
Step out of your cage and onto the stage
It's time to start playing your part
Freedom awaits
Open the gates
Open your mind
Freedom's a state
I can taste the tears falling
The bitterness that's inside you calling
Yearning for a liberation
Emotional emancipation
Let yourself go
Let yourself go
Let your senses overflow
Step out of your cage and onto the stage
It's time to start playing your part
Freedom awaits
Open the gates
Open your mind
Freedom's a state
11 Insight (06:26)
This is an insight
into my life
this is a strange flight
I'm taking
my true will
carries me along
This is a soul dance
embracing me
this is the first chance
to put things right
moving on
guided by the light
And the spirit of love
is rising within me
talking to you now
telling you clearly
the fire still burns
Wisdom of ages
rush over me
heighten my senses
enlighten me
lead me on
eternally
And the spirit of love
is rising within me
talking to you now
telling you clearly
the fire still burns
I'm talking to you now
the fire still burns
whatever you do now (you've got to give love)
the world still turns
I'm talking to you now.
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Other reviews
By il gringo
Gahan’s voice rises above the drum/bass/keyboard wall, reminding me that sometimes fate is cruel and brings us back to suffering.
'Home' begins, a ray of light penetrating the darkness of the night: excellently sung by Martin Gore.
By Darius
"Ultra is the dessert, the work that definitively closes that artistic direction taken since 'Music For The Masses.'"
"Barrel Of A Gun is a musical summary of what Gahan was at the beginning of 1997, a fragile individual, psychologically unstable, almost morally impaired."
