A lot more than Depeche Mode's career depends on the success of the veteran British techno band's 12th studio album, in stores Tuesday, given lead singer Dave Gahan's lingering deathwish. Last year, he almost fatally overdosed on cocaine and heroin -- Gahan actually flatlined for two minutes -- while the year before he was hospitalized briefly after slashing his wrist in a suicide attempt.

It certainly seems morbid that the first single off the new album was Barrel Of A Gun, with lyrics like: "Everything that I've done is leading me to conclude I'm not the only one. Whatever I've done I've been staring down the barrel of a gun." Yikes.

Whatever the reason, the band -- rounded out by songwriter Martin Gore and Andy "Fletch" Fletcher -- decided to regroup with Gahan (just recently out of rehab) and share their collective pain.

Let's face it, misery often makes for good songwriting and good company.

In this case though, the material, surprise, surprise, is gloomier and duller than usual. Check out The Love Thieves, It's No Good (the next single), Useless, Sister Of Night, Freestate and the cold instrumentals Uselink, Jazz Thieves and Insight.

Better bets are the elegant, Erasure-sounding Home and It's No Good, the latter of which harkens back to the great Depeche Mode of old. Ultra is certainly a comedown from Songs Of Faith And Devotion, the band's last album from 1993, which optimistically hit No. 1 in America and sold four-and-a-half-million copies.

Could it be that longtime member Alan Wilder, who left the band after 13 years following the last tour, is the missing glue?

Toronto Sun, April 14th 1997