Inspired by our intense Construction phase beginning in Design Studio, I bought Construction Time Again, the 1983 album by Depeche Mode. I think that was a mistake.

My only prior exposure to the album, as is probably the case for most, was through the ironically upbeat Everything Counts, which is a bit industrial but still not off-the-charts weird.

Unfortunately, the rest of the album is totally off the wall. I guess there’s a reason for its lack of general popularity. While it’s interesting, it’s almost surreal (Told You So), and if there was such a thing as being darker than Black Celebration, I think this hits it. It’s not like the messages contained within (The Landscape is Changing) are any less valid – it’s just a really odd delivery. There are some moments that, to me at least, are just terrible musically (Shame), though there are some moments that lend redemption (And Then…). Finding out what those messages are is left as an exercise to the reader.

A comment on this album said it was a “period piece”… I think that’s an understatement.