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Title: Dawn of a new synthpop
Review: Maybe it's because drum machine and sampler technology caught up with them...or maybe that Martin was in an especially sultry mood. Masses marks the moment Depeche Mode really find their second incarnation, consolidating the successes of Black Celebration, moving from industrial clang to sultry slink. Thank god for the Emulator and digital synths, because the boys put them to very good effect here. And David Bascombe's production rounds out a great collection of thematically connected songs. (They're all about the sex drive and its dull motivations, boys and girls). The only thing more impressive would be what follows: an astonishingly perfect synthpop album...or is it rock album?...called Violator.
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