 |
| Depeche Mode's David Gahan @ the SAP Center (Photo: Kevin Keating) |
Dealing with death often forces those in mourning to reflect on their own lives, and yes, everyone deals with loss in their own way, but in some cases, the act of mourning allows us to refocus on different priorities faced in daily life. 'Carpe diem', a Latin term meaning 'seize the day', is a phrase that I've tried to embrace throughout the years after learning about it from another Keating portrayed by Robin Williams in the 1989 movie Dead Poets Society. You may be asking yourself why am I starting off a review of the Depeche Mode concert at the SAP Center in San Jose last night with ideas of death and Latin phrases?? If you are, you may have missed the news of the passing of founding member Andy Fletcher nearly a year ago last spring, along with the release of the band's new album Momento Mori just a day before the show. The album's Latin title means 'remember that you [have to] die' and was written and recorded throughout the pandemic and completed after Fletch's passing.
 |
| Martin Gore of Depeche Mode @ the SAP Center (Photo: Kevin Keating) |
With that, Depeche Mode's return to the Bay Area was not only to promote the release of their new album, but in a way, a moment for all of the collective masses huddled in the sold out SAP Center last night to reflect on the music that we've been listening to over the past 40 years, and to celebrate the life of Andy Fletcher with his band mates while not taking any moment of the show for granted.
The band opened with three songs from the new album; the instrumental "Speak to Me" that led into "My Cosmos Is Mine" and then "Wagging Tongue". Looking around the crowd, you'd be sure that everyone had been listening to the new album on repeat since its launch just 24 hours prior, but I'd assume that the vast majority of the audience were simply showing their excitement that their favorite band was back performing live here in San Jose.
 |
| David Gahan of Depeche Mode @ the SAP Center (Photo: Kevin Keating) |
The stage set-up was fairly sparse with Martin Gore on the front left side of the stage with essentially two positions -- one for his keyboard/synth rig, and another just slightly more to the center of the stage for when he was playing guitar. Keyboardist Peter Gordeno was set-up just behind Martin on a bit of a raised platform and then on the right side of the stage, Christian Eigner surrounded by his drum kit, was on another riser. The most mobile performer of the night was Dave Gahan who used the spaciousness of the wide open stage to dance, spin, strut, and deliver those vocals that only Depeche Mode are known for. A relatively short outcrop from the stage allowed Dave (and on a few instances Martin) to walk out towards the center of the arena, but most of the time Dave & co were performing from the main stage. Besides the location of the members, the set design was also relatively sparse. A giant "M" was positioned just in front of a large video screen that was draped along the back of the stage, and the lighting was varied, but relatively trimmed down by comparison to other large scale arena shows.
After those opening songs, the band performed "Walking in My Shoes" from 1993's Songs of Faith and Devotion which was arguably the first song to really resonate with the crowd given its age and popularity. Gahan & Martin's paired vocals sounded fantastic with Martin taking all the harmonies in his trademark falsetto voice over the next 2 hours as the band wove their way through material that spanned 10 albums.
 |
| Depeche Mode's Martin Gore @ the SAP Center (Photo: Kevin Keating) |
Gore did give David a break when he took lead vocal duty on "A Question of Lust" and "Soul with Me" -- the latter featured only Martin backed by Peter on piano and was absolutely beautiful. The lighting during that song also deviated from the lighting we'd seen up to that point in the night. A single vertical column of about 10 white spot lights backlit Peter and his keyboard rig from the back left corner of the stage, all while a single white spotlight shown down from above onto Martin at centerstage -- creating an atmosphere of haunting beauty against Martin's fragile vocals.
 |
| David Gahan of Depeche Mode @ the SAP Center (Photo: Kevin Keating) |
When Dave returned to the stage for their latest single, "Ghosts Again", you could feel the energy begin to build within the arena, and that came to a crescendo with "I Feel You" that had everyone on their feet and with Dave running and dancing around throughout the stage to whip everyone up into even more of a frenzy.
Just over halfway through the set, the band launched into "World In My Eyes" and in a matter of just a few bars of the song, a picture of Andy Fletcher appeared on the giant screens behind the stage. This was Andy's favorite DM song and while the band performed, the picture of Fletch slowly morphed to add glasses, close his eyes, and then finally add one hand over one of his closed eyes. I'll be honest, I'm really not sure what the metaphor was meant to signify, but it was certainly thought provoking and a heartfelt dedication to their late bandmate.
 |
| David Gahan of Depeche Mode @ the SAP Center (Photo: Kevin Keating) |
The band closed their main set with the classic "Enjoy the Silence" and instead of playing the music video to accompany the song on the giant screens behind them, instead the song opened with a giant human skull with the word 'Enjoy' scrawled across its' forehead. One skull turned into multiple skulls throughout the song and I'd like to think it was a way to connect the new album to the start and end of the bands's set. You see, the Latin term 'momento mori' is also closely associated with skull artwork in its relation to death.
After a short break, the band came back out for a 4-song encore that featured a few of my personal favorites including "Waiting for the Night" and "Never Let Me Down Again". Those in particular sounded amazing and it was an incredible way to end the show. I'd also mention that throughout the night, the band wasn't all that talkative with the crowd. A part of me thought we might get a bit of a chat from Dave and Martin about the loss of Fletch, but at most, all I remember hearing were thank you's from Dave that sounded like 'thank you San JoseFrisco'. Ultimately, as I walked back to my car, it wasn't what was said by the band throughout the night, but what was sang. Depeche Mode delivered through all the death that's surrounded all of us over the past few years of the pandemic, and those of us there in the audience of the SAP Center certainly seized the moment and appreciated every single minute of the show. If you missed it, don't forget that they'll be back in December for a show at the Chase Center in San Francisco!
 |
| Kelly Lee Owens @ the SAP Center (Photo: Kevin Keating) |
I'd be remise not to mention the show opener Kelly Lee Owens who's dancy yet dark synth soundscapes were a great way to warm-up the audience. Kelly stood alone at center stage surrounded on either side by multiple touchpads and synths that supported her soaring vocals through her 30-minute set. She's definitely one I'd catch if/when she comes back on her own!
Thanks for reading and while you're at it, you can follow us as well here: Instagram | Facebook.
