Exciter is Depeche Mode

Depeche Mode

Depeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in 1980 in Basildon, Essex. The group's original line-up consisted of Dave Gahan , Martin Gore , Andy Fletcher and Vince Clarke...

's tenth studio album, which was released on 14 May 2001 in the UK and May 15 in the US. It uses more digital music technology compared to their other albums. It was produced by Mark Bell of Björk

Björk

Björk Guðmundsdóttir , known as Björk , is an Icelandic singer-songwriter. Her eclectic musical style has achieved popular acknowledgement and popularity within many musical genres, such as rock, jazz, electronic dance music, classical and folk...

 and LFO fame. The album also launched the Exciter Tour

Exciter Tour

Exciter Tour was a 2001 concert tour by English electronic band Depeche Mode in support of the group's 10th studio album, Exciter, which was released in May 2001....

, which was one of the band's most successful tours.

Exciter debuted at #9 in the UK Albums Chart

UK Albums Chart

The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...

 and debuted at #8 in the Billboard 200

Billboard 200

The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...

 with sales of 115,000 copies in its first week of release. It is the only Depeche Mode album to debut higher in the US than in the UK. As of April 2006, Exciter has sold more than 426,000 units in the United States and was certified Gold

Music recording sales certification

Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...

 by the RIAA

Recording Industry Association of America

The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...

. The album was also certified Gold in Canada (50,000 units) in 2001. The remastered album was released on "deluxe" vinyl 30 March 2007 in Germany and 1 October 2007 internationally.

The plant that appears on the cover of the album, is part of the genus called Agave

Agave

Agave is a genus of monocots. The plants are perennial, but each rosette flowers once and then dies ; they are commonly known as the century plant....

.

2007 re-release

On October 2, 2007 (October 3 in North America) Exciter was re-released in a two-disc set, along with Ultra, in the fourth and final set of Depeche Mode reissues. The first disc was a remastered version of the original, on an SACD/CD hybrid (only a CD in the US). The second disc is a DVD which features the album in DTS 5.1, Dolby Digital 5.1 and PCM Stereo. The B-sides from Exciter as well as the single version of "Freelove" are included. There are also audio versions of all the live Exciter tracks played during the One Night in Paris

One Night in Paris

One Night in Paris - The Exciter Tour - A Live DVD by Anton Corbijn is a video release by Depeche Mode, featuring an entire concert from their 2001 Exciter Tour, shot at the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy on October 9 and 10, 2001...

 movie.

Like the other reissues, there is a documentary on the making of Exciter titled "Depeche Mode 1999–2001 (Presenting the intimate and delicate side of Depeche Mode)". The documentary begins with the talks of Martin Gore's writer's block and what they did about it. It also discusses the first three singles, the recording, the cover art and the Exciter tour (including one of the opening acts, Fad Gadget

Fad Gadget

Fad Gadget is the stage name of Francis John Tovey , a British avant-garde electronic musician and vocalist. He was a proponent of both New Wave and early Industrial music....

). The documentary is around 30 minutes long. The three members of the band are interviewed along with Daniel Miller, Christian Eigner

Christian Eigner

Christian Eigner is an Austrian drummer, composer, live and session musician.- Depeche Mode & Christian Eigner :...

, Peter Gordeno, Anton Corbijn

Anton Corbijn

Anton Corbijn is a Dutch photographer, music video and film director. He is the creative director behind the visual output of Depeche Mode and U2, having handled the principal promotion and sleeve photography for both for more than a decade...

, and Mute label representatives. The documentary ends with a "To Be Continued..."

Producer Mark Bell does not appear, and although they discuss the fact that the band decided not to have Corbijn direct Exciters music videos, they do not mention or interview the two who did direct them.

Critical response

Track listing

All songs written by Martin L Gore

Martin Gore

Martin Lee Gore is an English songwriter, lyricist, singer, guitarist, keyboardist, remixer and DJ. He is a founding member of Depeche Mode and has written the vast majority of their songs...

, unless otherwise noted.

1. "Dream On
   Dream On (Depeche Mode song)
   "Dream On" is Depeche Mode's thirty-sixth UK single, released on April 23, 2001 in the UK and April 24 in the U.S. It was the first single from the album Exciter."Dream On" is an electronic based song mixed in with acoustic guitar and rough vocals...
   
   " – 4:19
2. "Shine" – 5:32
3. "The Sweetest Condition" – 3:42
4. "When the Body Speaks" – 6:01
5. "The Dead of Night" – 4:50
6. "Lovetheme" – 2:02
7. "Freelove
   Freelove
   "Freelove" is Depeche Mode's thirty-eighth UK single, released on November 5 2001 in the UK and December 11 in the U.S. It is the third single for the album Exciter....
   
   " – 6:10
8. "Comatose" – 3:24
9. "I Feel Loved
   I Feel Loved
   "I Feel Loved" is Depeche Mode's thirty-seventh UK single, released on 30 July 2001 in the UK and 31 July in the US. It is the second single for the album Exciter....
   
   " – 4:20
10. "Breathe" – 5:17
11. "Easy Tiger" – 2:05
12. "I Am You" – 5:10
13. "Goodnight Lovers
    Goodnight Lovers
    "Goodnight Lovers" is Depeche Mode's thirty-ninth UK single, released on 11 February 2002. It is the fourth and final single for the album Exciter....
    
    " – 3:48

2007 re-release

Mute: DMCD10 (CD/SACD + DVD)

• Disc 1 is a hybrid SACD/CD with a multi-channel SACD layer.
• Disc 2 is a DVD which includes "Exciter" in DTS 5.1, Dolby Digital 5.1 and PCM Stereo plus bonus material

1. "Dream On" – 4:19
2. "Shine" – 5:32
3. "The Sweetest Condition" – 3:42
4. "When the Body Speaks" – 6:01
5. "The Dead of Night" – 4:50
6. "Lovetheme" – 2:02
7. "Freelove" – 6:10
8. "Comatose" – 3:24
9. "I Feel Loved" – 4:20
10. "Breathe" – 5:17
11. "Easy Tiger" – 2:05
12. "I Am You" – 5:10
13. "Goodnight Lovers" – 3:48

Live in Paris, October 2001 (in DTS 5.1, Dolby Digital 5.1, PCM Stereo):

1. "The Dead of Night"
2. "The Sweetest Condition"
3. "Dream On"
4. "When the Body Speaks"
5. "Breathe"
6. "Freelove"

Bonus Tracks (in DTS 5.1, Dolby Digital 5.1, PCM Stereo):

1. "Easy Tiger (Full Version)"
2. "Dirt" (cover of a song written and performed by The Stooges
   The Stooges
   The Stooges are an American rock band from Ann Arbor, Michigan first active from 1967 to 1974, and later reformed in 2003...
   
   )
3. "Freelove (Flood Mix)" [not listed on back-cover]
4. "Zenstation"
5. "When the Body Speaks (Acoustic)"

Additional Material:

1. "Depeche Mode 1999–2001 (Presenting the intimate and delicate side of Depeche Mode)" - 30:00
2. End Credits - 2:23

Chart positions

Chart (2001)	Peak position	Certification	Sales
Austrian Albums Chart	2	Gold	25,000+
Canada	3	Gold	75,000+
Finland	2	Gold	16,500+
France Albums Chart	1	Gold	235,000+
German Albums Chart Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie...	1	Platinum	300,000+
Italy	2	Platinum	165,000+
Netherlands Albums Chart	15		25,000+
Spanish Albums Chart	1	Platinum	125,000+
Swedish Albums Chart	1	Gold	60,000+
Swiss Albums Chart	2	2x Platinum	40,000+
UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...	9		90,000+
US Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...	8	Gold	600,000+
Europe Sales	1	Platinum	1,400,000+
Worldwide Sales		Platinum+Gold	3,400,000+

Personnel

• Depeche Mode is:
  • Dave Gahan - lead vocals
  • Martin Gore
    Martin Gore
    Martin Lee Gore is an English songwriter, lyricist, singer, guitarist, keyboardist, remixer and DJ. He is a founding member of Depeche Mode and has written the vast majority of their songs...
    
     - guitar, keyboards, backing vocals, lead vocals ("Breathe", "Comatose"), songwriting
  • Andrew Fletcher
    Andrew Fletcher (musician)
    Andy Fletcher , known as "Fletch", is a co-founder and member of the English synth band Depeche Mode.-Depeche Mode:...
    
     - keyboards, backing vocals

• Guest musicians:
  • Knox Chandler
    Knox Chandler
    Knox Chandler is mostly known as a session guitarist and cellist, he has worked with such acts as Depeche Mode , Lori Carson, The Golden Palominos, The Psychedelic Furs, Ultra Vivid Scene, The Creatures and R.E.M....
    
     - cello and string arrangements ("When the Body Speaks")
  • Todd C. Reynolds, Joyce Hammann, Natalie Cenovia Cummins, Ralph H. Harris, Leo Grinhauz - string instruments ("When the Body Speaks")
  • Airto Moreira
    Airto Moreira
    Airto Moreira is a Brazilian jazz drummer and percussionist. Airto is married to jazz singer Flora Purim, and their daughter Diana Moreira is also a singer. He currently resides in Los Angeles.-Biography:...
    
     - percussion ("Freelove", "I Feel Loved")
  • Christian Eigner
    Christian Eigner
    Christian Eigner is an Austrian drummer, composer, live and session musician.- Depeche Mode & Christian Eigner :...
    
     - drums ("I Am You")

Production

• • Mark Bell - keyboards, programming
  • Paul Freegard - keyboards, programming

• Produced by Mark Bell
• Engineered by Gareth Jones
  Gareth Jones (music producer)
  Gareth Jones is an English music producer and engineer notable for working with Depeche Mode, Einstürzende Neubauten, Wire and Erasure.-Background:Gareth Jones is married and currently living in North London....
  
  
• Pre-production and additional production: Gareth Jones and Paul Freegard
• Mixed by Steve Fitzmaurice
  Steve Fitzmaurice
  Steven Fitzmaurice is a Grammy Award-winning mixer and producer based in London, UK. His credits include albums for Craig David, Depeche Mode, Kate Nash, Seal, and U2.Born in Ireland, Fitzmaurice moved to London in 1987 to carve out a career in music...
  
  

• Recorded at:
  • London
    London
    London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
    
    : RAK
    RAK studios
    RAK Studios are located near Regents Park in central London. The Studios were created by Mickie Most in late 1976 and they have been host to the recording of a number of artists for over three decades.- Artists recorded at RAK :All info from artist list....
    
     and Sarm West
    • Assisted by Boris Aldridge, Andrew Davies, Andrew Griffiths.
  • Santa Barbara
    Santa Barbara, California
    Santa Barbara is the county seat of Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Situated on an east-west trending section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States, the city lies between the steeply-rising Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean...
    
    : Sound Design
    • Assisted by Nick Sevilla, Lisa Butterworth, Aaron Tressel.
  • New York
    New York
    New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
    
    : Electric Lady
    Electric Lady Studios
    Electric Lady Studios, at 52 West 8th Street, in New York City's Greenwich Village, is a recording studio originally built by Jimi Hendrix and designed by John Storyk in 1970...
    
     and Sony
    • Assisted by Jonathan Adler, Allissa Myhowich, James Chang.
• Master at The Exchange by Mike Marsh.

• Photography, cover-art and art direction: Anton Corbijn
  Anton Corbijn
  Anton Corbijn is a Dutch photographer, music video and film director. He is the creative director behind the visual output of Depeche Mode and U2, having handled the principal promotion and sleeve photography for both for more than a decade...
  
  . The cover art is a photograph of an agave
  Agave
  Agave is a genus of monocots. The plants are perennial, but each rosette flowers once and then dies ; they are commonly known as the century plant....
  
  plant
• Design: Form.
• Management: Jonathan Kessler for Baron Inc.
• Depeche Mode Office: JD Fanger.