Depeche Mode man Dave Gahan is creeping to the cross again on this second album with gloomy British production duo Soulsavers
Now a well-preserved 53, Dave Gahan has travelled a long way from his '90s nickname “The Cat”. He earned that sobriquet for his talent for cheating death but these days he channels his classic rock `n’ roll story into brooding songs of redemption and rebirth.
Angels & Ghosts is more delta than machine - opener Shine trades a gospel chorus with dirty rock blues a la Spiritualised, while Tempted unfurls a very Edge-y guitar solo and, as is the law when it comes to a Gahan album, there will be a mention of angels. The devil will make at least one appearance too.
He will also have "one foot in the grave" at some point but the Depeche Mode frontman escapes self parody with the slow-burn seduction of his voice and Soulsavers’ serious-minded dedication to crafting widescreen gospel-infused rock.
Gahan’s funereal baritone is at its very best on Don’t Cry and One Thing, all elegiac strings and piano and playful lyrical references to David Sylvian’s Japan and Bowie, but towering above it all is the genuine ache of the quietly-powerful Lately.
This’ll doomy nicely.
Alan Corr
Click on the audio link to hear the review of Angels & Ghosts on Arena on RTÉ Radio 1
