Depeche Mode, "Violator," 1990 Sire, SRC 1st Press, Plays NM, Ultrasonic Clean

$

145

Dr. John's Spin Factory is super proud to offer one of the best popular albums of 1990.  Up for sale is Depeche Mode's Violator.  The disc is the rare, highly desirable, and tremendous sounding first pressing manufactured by SRC (Specialty Records Corporation), as verified by the matrix numbers in the dead wax and the Hype sticker on the shrink wrap.  Like the music pressed into its grooves, the disc plays and sounds dynamite, NM to M throughout, and that was before ultrasonic cleaning, which enhanced sound quality even further!  Visually, it's not quite as perfect.  There are three very light, surface scratches toward the end of side one that you are highly unlikely to see holding the disc at arm's length under everyday lighting. (You have to look pretty closely.)  Rest assured: I guarantee they will not sound!  (Hence, the visual rating of EX.) If those scratches do sound, you may return the album to me at my expense for a full refund.  Meaning, I am confident you will love how this record looks, plays, and sounds.  While the shrink wrap makes the jacket look somewhat unhappy at first glance, do not worry, the cardboard underneath is in Excellent shape. (There is a small bit of wear on the lower, right corner--see photo.)  Plus, it's good to remember just how cheap shrink wrap often is.  Over the past 26 years the stuff on this jacket has morphed and shrunk from nearly perfectly fitting and smooth to wavy, weird, crinkly and uneven.  Oh well, if that's a problem for you, just stop reading now!  Oh, but wait!!  The music on this LP is truly freakin' awesome!  To support this bold claim, I invite you to listen to the video clips included above, or better yet, here's AllMusic's Ned Raggett: 

In a word, stunning. Perhaps an odd word to use given that Violator continued in the general vein of the previous two studio efforts by Depeche Mode: Martin Gore's upfront lyrical emotional extremism and knack for a catchy hook filtered through Alan Wilder's ear for perfect arrangements, ably assisted by top English producer Flood. Yet the idea that this record would both dominate worldwide charts, while song for song being simply the best, most consistent effort yet from the band could only have been the wildest fantasy before its release. The opening two singles from the album, however, signaled something was up. First was "Personal Jesus," at once perversely simplistic, with a stiff, arcane funk/hip-hop beat and basic blues guitar chords, and tremendous, thanks to sharp production touches and David Gahan's echoed, snaky vocals. Then "Enjoy the Silence," a nothing-else-remains-but-us ballad pumped up into a huge, dramatic romance/dance number, commanding in its mock orchestral/choir scope. Follow-up single "Policy of Truth" did just fine as well, a low-key Motown funk number for the modern day with a sharp love/hate lyric to boot. To top it all off, the album itself scored on song after song, from the shuffling beat of "Sweetest Perfection" (well sung by Gore) and the ethereal "Waiting for the Night" to the guilt-ridden-and-loving-it "Halo" building into a string-swept pounder. "Clean" wraps up Violator on an eerie note, all ominous bass notes and odd atmospherics carrying the song. Goth without ever being stupidly hammy, synth without sounding like the clinical stereotype of synth music, rock without ever sounding like a "rock" band, Depeche here reach astounding heights indeed.