Ultra (Depeche Mode album)

Ultra
Studio album by Depeche Mode
Released 14 April 1997 (1997-04-14)
Recorded January 1996 – February 1997
Studio
Length 60:04
Label Mute
Producer Tim Simenon
Depeche Mode chronology
Songs of Faith and Devotion
(1993)Songs of Faith and Devotion1993		 Ultra
(1997)		 Exciter
(2001)Exciter2001
Singles from Ultra
  1. "Barrel of a Gun"
    Released: 3 February 1997
  2. "It's No Good"
    Released: 31 March 1997
  3. "Home"
    Released: 16 June 1997
  4. "Useless"
    Released: 20 October 1997
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Chicago Sun-Times[2]
Chicago Tribune[3]
Entertainment WeeklyB+[4]
The Guardian[5]
Los Angeles Times[6]
NME6/10[7]
Q[8]
Rolling Stone[9]
Spin6/10[10]

Ultra is the ninth studio album by English electronic music band Depeche Mode, released on 14 April 1997 by Mute Records. It was their first album since the departure of Alan Wilder in 1995; he had become disillusioned with life in the band. Wilder's departure and lead singer Dave Gahan's drug problems, which culminated in a near-fatal overdose, had caused many people to speculate that Depeche Mode was finished.[11] Ultra is the first album the band recorded as a trio since A Broken Frame in 1982; it is also their first where the band members were not involved with production.

The album debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart and at number five on the Billboard 200. By April 2006, it had sold 584,000 copies in the United States.[12] The project was initially conceived as an EP.

In 1999, Ned Raggett ranked the album at number 50 on his list of "The Top 136 or so Albums of the Nineties".[13] That same year, the annual Ultra Music Festival in Miami was named after the album by its co-founder Russell Faibisch,[14] and acknowledging its influence on the Polish rock scene, Tylko Rock ranked it at number 71 in its list of "100 Albums That Shook Polish Rock".[15]

Ultra Parties
Tour by Depeche Mode
Associated album Ultra
No. of shows
  • 1 in Europe
  • 1 in North America
  • 2 in total
Box office N/A
Depeche Mode concert chronology

Promotion

They didn’t go on a promotional tour for the album, but they held 2 mini shows known as Ultra Parties, one held at the Adrenalin Village in London, England on April 10th, 1997, and the other held at the Shrine Exposition Hall in Los Angeles, California, on April 21st, 1997.

Setlist

  • Junior Painkiller (Intro) [In London]
  • Uselink (Instrumental intro) (In Los Angeles)
  1. "Barrel of a Gun"
  2. "Useless"
  3. "It's No Good"
  4. Song performed by Martin Gore
  5. "Never Let Me Down Again"

Musicians

Depeche Mode

Backup musicians

  • Dave Clayton – synthesizers, piano, backing vocals
  • Christian Eigner – drums, synthesizers

2007 re-release

On 2 October 2007 (3 October in North America), Ultra was re-released in a two-disc set, along with Exciter, completing the Depeche Mode Collectors Edition catalog. The first disc is a remastered version of the original album, on a SACD/CD hybrid (except for in the U.S., where it's a CD only). The second disc is a DVD which features the album in DTS 5.1, Dolby Digital 5.1 and PCM Stereo. The B-sides from the album's singles can be listened to as well, including the standalone single "Only When I Lose Myself" and its B-sides.

Finally, like the other albums, there is a documentary on the making of Ultra titled Depeche Mode 95–98 (Oh well, that's the end of the band...), the subtitle of which comes from Gore's thoughts about Wilder's departure. The documentary begins with discussion from all parties of Wilder's departure before moving on to early album sessions despite Dave Gahan's drug issues present. Eventually, it moves on to Gahan's "death" and rehab. The documentary then covers the recording of Ultra and ends with a discussion on The Singles 86>98 and its corresponding singles tour. The whole band is interviewed, along with Alan Wilder, Daniel Miller, producer Tim Simenon, Mute executives, touring keyboardist Peter Gordeno, touring drummer Christian Eigner, Anton Corbijn and others.

The remastered version of the album was released on "deluxe" vinyl 30 March 2007 in Germany and 1 October 2007 internationally.

Track listing

All songs written by Martin L. Gore.

No.TitleLength
1."Barrel of a Gun"5:35
2."The Love Thieves"6:34
3."Home"5:42
4."It's No Good"5:58
5."Uselink"2:21
6."Useless"5:12
7."Sister of Night"6:04
8."Jazz Thieves"2:54
9."Freestate"6:44
10."The Bottom Line"4:26
11."Insight" (includes hidden track "Junior Painkiller" at 6:40)8:37

2007 re-release (CD/SACD)

  • Disc 1 is a hybrid SACD/CD with a multi-channel SACD layer.
  • Disc 2 is a DVD which includes "Ultra" in DTS 5.1, Dolby Digital 5.1 and PCM Stereo plus the following bonus material:
Live tracks in London, April 1997 (in DTS 5.1, Dolby Digital 5.1, PCM Stereo)
  1. "Barrel of a Gun"
  2. "It's No Good"
  3. "Useless"
Bonus tracks (in PCM Stereo)
  1. "Painkiller"
  2. "Slowblow"
  3. "Only When I Lose Myself"
  4. "Surrender"
  5. "Headstar"
Additional material
  • Depeche Mode 95–98 (Oh well, that's the end of the band...) (50-minute documentary)

Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Ultra.[16]

Charts

Certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/Sales
Belgium (BEA)[45] Gold 25,000*
France (SNEP)[46] Gold 175,200[47]
Germany (BVMI)[48] Gold 250,000^
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[49] Gold 50,000^
Sweden (GLF)[50] Gold 40,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[51] Gold 25,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[52] Gold 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[53] Gold 584,000[12]
Summaries
Europe (IFPI)[54] Platinum 1,000,000*

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

See also

References

  1. ↑ Raggett, Ned. "Ultra – Depeche Mode". AllMusic. Retrieved 25 June 2011.
  2. ↑ Kim, Jae-Ha (13 April 1997). "Depeche Mode, 'Ultra' (Mute/Reprise)". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 28 March 2017. (Subscription required (help)).
  3. ↑ Kot, Greg (18 April 1997). "Depeche Mode: Ultra (Mute)". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 10 September 2016.
  4. ↑ Farber, Jim (18 April 1997). "Ultra". Entertainment Weekly. No. 375. New York. Retrieved 25 June 2011.
  5. ↑ Sullivan, Caroline (11 April 1997). "The Mode test". The Guardian. London.
  6. ↑ Scribner, Sara (13 April 1997). "That Same Gloom and Doom Mode". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 8 March 2013.
  7. ↑ Oldham, James (4 April 1997). "Common Synths". NME. London. Archived from the original on 17 August 2000. Retrieved 10 September 2016.
  8. ↑ Malins, Steve (May 1997). "Downbeat". Q. No. 128. London. p. 118. ISSN 0955-4955.
  9. ↑ Gardner, Elysa (10 April 1997). "Depeche Mode: Ultra". Rolling Stone. New York. Retrieved 25 June 2011.
  10. ↑ Weisbard, Eric (May 1997). "Spins: Platter du Jour". Spin. Vol. 13 no. 2. New York. pp. 110–11. ISSN 0886-3032. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  11. ↑ "Especial Depeche Mode: Ultra" (in Spanish). Hipersonica. Archived from the original on 6 August 2012. Retrieved 5 May 2009.
  12. 1 2 Caulfield, Keith (5 April 2006). "Ask Billboard: New Depeche Order Mode". Billboard. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  13. ↑ Breathe internet Archived 20 January 2000 at the Wayback Machine.
  14. ↑ Duran, Jose D. (2013-03-14). "How Russell Faibisch Built Ultra Music Festival -- and Whom He's Battled Along the Way". Miami New Times. Retrieved 2016-08-08.
  15. ↑ Acclaimed Music - Ultra
  16. ↑ Ultra (CD liner notes). Depeche Mode. Mute Records. 1997. CDSTUMM148.
  17. ↑ "Australiancharts.com – Depeche Mode – Ultra". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  18. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Depeche Mode – Ultra" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  19. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Depeche Mode – Ultra" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  20. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Depeche Mode – Ultra" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  21. ↑ "Depeche Mode Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  22. ↑ "Depeche Mode / Ultra". TOP20.dk. Archived from the original on 2 March 2014. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  23. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Depeche Mode – Ultra" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  24. 1 2 "Hits of the World". Billboard. Vol. 109 no. 18. 3 May 1997. p. 49. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  25. ↑ "Depeche Mode: Ultra" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  26. ↑ "Lescharts.com – Depeche Mode – Ultra". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  27. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Depeche Mode – Ultra" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  28. ↑ "Top 40 album DVD és válogatáslemez-lista – 1997. 17. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  29. ↑ "Hits of the World". Billboard. Vol. 109 no. 18. 3 May 1997. p. 48. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  30. ↑ デペッシュ・モードのアルバム売り上げランキング [Depeche Mode album sales ranking] (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on 7 December 2013. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  31. ↑ "Charts.org.nz – Depeche Mode – Ultra". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  32. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Depeche Mode – Ultra". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  33. 1 2 "Hits of the World". Billboard. Vol. 109 no. 19. 10 May 1997. p. 49. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  34. ↑ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  35. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Depeche Mode – Ultra". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  36. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Depeche Mode – Ultra". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  37. ↑ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  38. ↑ "Depeche Mode Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  39. ↑ "Jahreshitparade Alben 1997" (in German). austriancharts.at. Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  40. ↑ "Rapports Annuels 1997 – Albums" (in French). Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  41. ↑ "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts – 1997" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  42. ↑ "Gli album più venduti del 1997" (in Italian). Hit Parade Italia. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  43. ↑ "Årslista Album (inkl samlingar) – År 1997" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Archived from the original on June 14, 2015. Retrieved 8 January 2012.
  44. ↑ "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1997". Billboard. Retrieved 8 January 2012.
  45. ↑ "Ultratop − Goud en Platina – albums 1997". Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  46. ↑ "French album certifications – Depeche Mode – Ultra" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique.
  47. ↑ "Les Albums Or". infodisc.fr. SNEP. Archived from the original on 18 October 2011. Retrieved 31 August 2011.
  48. ↑ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Depeche Mode; 'Ultra')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
  49. ↑ Salaverrie, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (PDF) (1st ed.). Madrid: Fundación Autor/SGAE. p. 944. ISBN 84-8048-639-2. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  50. ↑ "Guld- och Platinacertifikat − År 1987−1998" (PDF) (in Swedish). IFPI Sweden. 9 April 1997. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  51. ↑ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Depeche Mode; 'Ultra')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien.
  52. ↑ "British album certifications – Depeche Mode – Ultra". British Phonographic Industry. 1 April 1997. Select albums in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type Ultra in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  53. ↑ "American album certifications – Depeche Mode – Ultra". Recording Industry Association of America. 7 August 1997. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
  54. ↑ "IFPI Platinum Europe Awards – 1998". International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 27 February 2014.
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