A few months ago the unthinkable happened when Depeche Mode founders Martin Gore and Vince Clarke announced they had put aside their differences and decided to work on a techno album together. The pair haven’t worked together since Depeche Mode’s debut album ‘Speak and Spell’ when Clarke left citing creative differences.
Speaking to Billboard at the time, Gore said “Out of the blue I got an e-mail from (Clarke) just saying, ‘I’m interested in making a techno album. Are you interested in collaborating?,’ ” Gore recalls. “This was maybe nine months, a year ago. He said, ‘No pressure, no deadlines,’ so I said, ‘OK,’ and that’s what we’ve been doing the last six months.”
It was something different, and we didn’t have conversations about it. It was more just like e-mails and file-sharing. It was something completely different — no vocals, all instrumental stuff.”
Now their collaboration is almost ready to be released and the duo have officially announced they are starting a new band together called VCMG. Their debut EP, titled ‘Spook’, is due out on 12th December 2011, and the group have already started work on their debut LP which is expected sometime in 2012. ‘Spook’ will mark the first time the duo have recorded together since their split.
Vince found success after leaving Depeche Mode with pop act Yazoo, and later Erasure with vocalist Andy Bell, scoring ten top five hits. In his absence Depeche Mode replaced Vince with Alan Wilder and went on to have huge worldwide success, with albums including ‘Music for the Masses’, ‘Violator’ and ‘Songs of Faith and Devotion’.
