Depeche Mode, an English electronic band formed in Basildon, Essex in 1980, will headline the Saturday night at this year’s Isle of Wight Festival.
Consisting of founders Dave Gahan (lead vocals, co-songwriter), Martin Gore (keyboards, guitar, chief songwriter) and Andy Fletcher (keyboards), Depeche Mode released their debut album Speak & Spell in 1981, bringing the band onto the British new wave scene.
Original band member Vince Clarke left the band after the release of the album, leaving the band as a trio to record A Broken Frame, released the following year. Martin Gore took over the lead song-writing duties and, later in 1982, Alan Wilder officially joined the band to fill Clarke’s spot, establishing a line- up that would continue for the next 13 years.
The band’s last albums of the 1980s, Black Celebration and Music for the Masses, established them as a dominant force within the electronic music scene. A highlight of this era was the band’s June 1988 concert at the Pasadena Rose Bowl, where there was a crowd of 60,000+ people. In the new decade, Depeche Mode released Violator, an international mainstream success.
Depeche Mode have had 50 songs in the UK Singles Chart and seventeen top 10 albums in the UK chart; they have sold over 100 million records worldwide. They are included in the list of the “50 Bands That Changed the World!” and are ranked number 98 on VH1’s “100 Greatest Artistes of All Time”. In December 2016, Billboard magazine named Depeche Mode the 10th most successful dance club artistes of all time.
Now comprising Gahan, Gore, Fletcher and other musicians the band will be touring North America with performances in some major cities such as Chicago, Boston and Toronto prior to their Isle of Wight appearance. These additional dates follow a successful tour in 2017. Called the Global Sprint Tour it was estimated that Depeche Mode played to 3 million people during the course of the tour.
Their Isle of Wight appearance forms part of their Euro Tour and following on from Seaclose Park they will be on stage at the Volt Festival, Hungary on the 26th June, Tinderbox Festival in Denmark on the 28th and St, Gallon Festival, Switzerland on the 30th June.
The Isle of Wight Festival takes place from 21st-24th June at Seaclose Park, Newport. This year will also mark the 50th Anniversary of the Isle of Wight Festival. The first event in 1968 put the festival on the map as it then grew to become world renowned for iconic performances from artists such as The Doors, The Who and Jimi Hendrix in his last ever UK show.
