Depeche Mode will release a new album next year, called Memento Mori.
The band’s Dave Gahan and Martin Gore revealed early details about the record during a press conference in Berlin earlier today (October 4) where they played a piece of music from it. They also revealed that they’d been working on it in Santa Barbara, California over the summer having begun to write material for the album a couple of years ago. The pair added that were due to head to New York to finish the record, which has been produced by James Ford, after the press conference.
"We’re quite far into it now, the actual recording process," Gore said of the new album. "We’ve got all of the tracks finished for the album, without them being mixed."
The album, which will be their first studio effort since 2017’s Spirit, is scheduled for release sometime in spring 2023. It will be followed by the band’s first live shows in five years, kicking off with a small run of shows in North America in late March. Following that, the band will tour stadiums around Europe – including the Stade de France in Paris, Berlin’s Olympic Stadium, the San Siro in Milan, and London’s Twickenham Stadium – and headline Barcelona’s Primavera Sound. Find the full list of dates here.
Speaking further about the new record, Gore said: "We started work on this project early in the pandemic, and its themes were directly inspired by that time. After [Andy Fletcher’s] passing, we decided to continue as we’re sure this is what he would have wanted, and that has really given the project an extra level of meaning."
Gahan added: "Fletch would have loved this album. We’re really looking forward to sharing it with you soon, and we can’t wait to present it to you live at the shows next year."
Columbia will release Memento Mori in spring 2023.
