Depeche Mode: Dave Gahan, Martin L. Gore, Andy Fletcher.
Personnel: Luke Smith (programming).
Audio Mixer: Tony Hoffer.
Audio Remasterer: Stephen Marcussen.
With SOUNDS OF THE UNIVERSE, Depeche Mode's follow-up to 2005's well-received PLAYING THE ANGEL, the renowned English synth-pop act tones down the dark Wagnerian mood of the earlier effort, resulting in a more dynamic sound that occasionally evokes the lighter, though no less dramatic, DM of the 1980s. As on ANGEL, chief songwriter Martin Gore cedes three songs to vocalist Dave Gahan (and his creative team), with the spiky "Hole to Feed" standing out among the latter's contributions. Highlights by the newly sober Gore include the fierce "Wrong" and the dreamy "Peace," songs that readily take their place along side Depeche Mode classics, and prove that the group is still in fine form nearly 30 years after its inception. minimize