Yeah, I always think about this. The best example of this kind of thing (although the genre is totally different) is "Painkiller" by Judas Priest, their 10th album, released in their 21st year of career. The true epitome of heavy metal, at least for me.
While they haven’t had much great stuff in a long while, like them or hate them, you also have to marvel at U2 releasing Joshua tree as their 5th album and Achtung Baby as their 7th. Both those albums are insane and totally different.
@ Taylor Swift is mainstream but I don’t see that as inherently genius. You think the genius of producing a song is more ingenious than the genius of writing it?
@@GodsRockstarMusic Oh I totally agree. It took both or even all of them to create genius which is why I just don't understand (and frankly grow a little tired of) all this Alan Wilder fanboying that's going on everywhere.
This is splendid. I do all the programming for Depeche Mode Tribute The Devout. This bass line is a massively iconic part of Depeche’s legacy and the right filter behaviour makes it or breaks it. To show this technique applied on other modular / semi modular synths is a very clever idea. A joy to watch.
I have so much emotional baggage tied up with Depeche Mode's music that even hearing this baseline makes me anxious. You just cant credit how good it really is. Was a very big part of my life. Cheers Alex
That whole album is a Masterpiece! My daughter who is 16, just got me a t-shirt with that album logo for my birthday, she knows I like this album so much.
I really love how you demonstrated the patch on multiple synthesizers. It really highlights how unique each one is. Would be interested in that as a recurring series of videos. Cheers
Alan Wilder was such a huge part of Depeche Mode's distinctive sound - he would spend hours in the studio essentially co-producing their albums while the other three were off elsewhere. They've had a few tracks I like since he left, but he definitely added a lot to the basic demos that Martin Gore would present the band with. That's not to lessen the importance of Martin, as he clearly was the most important in creating the foundations of the songs.
I miss his Recoil music. I was great, hearing his sound and production, but applied in such a different style and technique. He really made almost cinematic music, if that makes any sense.
I guess it's a love song? I've always found it to be more of a song about returning to what's essential and beyond the endless chatter that we feel compelled to fill the "dead air" that is actually fully alive with potential
Nailed the guitar part too, love that 80s chorus! What was that? Great job anyway. Having had a crack at making (very amateur) modular tutorials myself, I really appreciate the amount of work and attention to detail that's gone into this video. Cheers for making such educational and inspiring content 👌
This song (and album) has been a staple for me and I have never even considered how the sound of the iconic bass line was created. I shared it with my old band mates and friends from that great time in DM music. Thanks for all you do!
i will never forget when my dad first played this record for me. my head just about exploded during the intro of world in my eyes. talk about kicking off an album! still my favorite song and favorite record of all time
There are a million cover versions out there. But this one just made me smile from start to end. And thanks for the rundown of the bass - it's so simple and yet so spectacularly effective!
Fantastic video sir. As a synth-noob I get a lot of value out of this type of video. As you said, I don't really care about recreating this song, but learning the techniques and theories of how to arrive at this sound is super beneficial to me at this point. Thank you Alex, top shelf fren. BTW, your cover is amazing.
Yeah that's a great trick. Mixing different CV sources is one of the best things about modular, and multiple envelopes/LFOs etc can really make sounds come alive. Amazing work here! 👌
Sometimes, from listening to a song so many times, you suddenly stop really listening to it. That's what happened to me with Enjoy the Silence. But when, for some reason, you pay attention to it, you realize that it's a great song that has even made me shed a few tears.
All your videos show the quality of the work you put into each release. You articulate and present the subject and the technical background well, but I also really like your humour! I really respect and appreciate your channel! Thank you!
The thing which surprises me the most is that it's a System 700! I honestly didn't know that. Given how many modern (for the time) instruments they were using, to have something kicking around from 1976 feels almost anachronistic. Also, yay Clemens Wenners! Been following him for years :D
Yeah, I guess they'd become affordable by then and people who were into modular were snapping them up. Flood described it as a "real boys toy" in one of his breakdown videos on UA-cam, so he was obviously excited about it despite it being old even then. He's used it on all sorts of stuff, Nitzer Ebb obviously, but also some more recent Foals records have got audio processed through it. Seems he still likes it to this day.
I remember when this was released and holy fuck from the first second of listening to the album me and my mate were just absolutely stunned with how brilliant it was - and still is.
Love these deconstruction type uploads. It kinda reminds me of "Jim Pavloff's Making of "The Prodigy - Smack My Bitch Up" in Ableton", showing where Liam got his samples from and how he used them for the final mix. Brilliant stuff!
I was 6 or 7 years old when the big brother of my neighbour , buy this album on his brand new Phillips CD player and hifi system and jesus , i love every track of this album it was a huge sonic shock when i listen to this almost day one of the release, it became a massive hit !
a) my favourite Depeche track, hands down b) a 1000% fascinating bassline in the original - I could listen to just that by itself, endlessly (and why am I not surprised it was done on a 700m >.< HA! Of course it bloody was...lol) c) my favourite musical youtuber doing a breakdown on how to get to that sound...and a lovely cover of the original?? d) well, I guess today is done...nothing else is going to be better than that, might as well go to bed now, yeah?
yeah... i use 2x sequencers w/ my modular. Always use one to CV modulate the filter. Then use div/mult on the modulator to get 'swing' or just more randomness. Excellent video to explain this.
Just goes to show what absolute masters of the artform they are and were even in the early days. You don't last 40 years as a band if you aren't doing something very very right 👍
The bass / filter sequencing on Violator is absolutely fab. My favourites: the intro sequences to „Halo“ and „World in my eyes“, which I made my ringtone decades ago.
I recorded a cover of this song as my final project in audio engineering college. It's always been one of my favorite songs. Every element is distinctive and fits perfectly. So wonderful to watch one of my favorite synth channels pay homage to it. Neat trick with the 'zero envelope' for the snap!
Absolute respect mate. I’ve done a handful of unofficial/private project remixes of Enjoy The Silence over the years, the first of which was a painfully rudimentary and Heath Robinson affair from the same time the song was first released. Your work on this bass line is pretty much flawless, and having heard/employed the original multitrack on one of my own more recent remixes, I can attest to the almost perfect results you’ve achieved here. I was a lazy git and just chopped up the original synth bass from the multitrack and simply reprogrammed it to follow the original arrangement, only using the round Robins I cooked up myself from the necessary sections I painstakingly hand filleted. Obviously once buried within the mix, my technique more than sufficed, but obviously to the trained ear doing it with chops/multi samples means you don’t get as much richness and subtle variety across the whole arrangement as you do doing it your way. Obviously I prefer, when possible to do it this way, but without the same machine, or a close enough emulation, I’d rather do the next best thing and sample from the original, raw multitrack. Anyway, I’m waffling as per… I just wanted to send praise and respect for your commitment to recreating such a seared-into-the-memory bass sound. Good old Alan and Flood, the quiet geniuses behind the scenes.
Wow, this is an amazing and inspiring video. Really well done. No, I won't go into the rabbit hole of Eurorack, but I'm going to give this a bit of thought. Thanks, Alex.
Another great video Alex! :D This is one of the most well known DM songs as you mentioned- but it does feel weird without hearing the vocal stab samples overlayed ;P Would be amazing if you could go back in time a lil and do something on People are People- that is one of my all time fav songs from the group~ Hope you had a lovely new year btw! Welcome to 2025~
Yeah, hence I just had to cover the entire song at the end as I wanted to hear all the other parts. People are People - up for putting more Depeche Mode videos on the list. I'd have to borrow an Emulator again, but that might be doable.
Fabulous job on the cover! Loved all the layers. Really well done 👍 It’s also clear I really need a System 700 to join the other 12 Roland synths in my studio!
Brilliant video Alex and I envy you because the Roland System 700 is my all time favorite modular synth, sorry Moog, ARP but C'est La Vie. Also you show how to make similar bass line with different choices, that's very good. By the way Clemens did a great job on the vocals department, his 80'S recreations are excellent, I enjoy his channel too. 🎹 Cheers!
always a palisante moment with you and your works . and of course Depeche Mode , but defenetly the 80's been 2 decades of glory for the Synth and sampler .
Yeah, I said Ga-han instead of Gawn. I do apologise. You live and learn.
Anyway, hope you enjoy the video.
Think of the old joke:
What do you call a pop star whose friends keep disappearing?
Dave Gahan
Words are very unnecessary. They can only do harm.
Do never let me down again next
@@Jay.Ramone 😂
Funny that’s what everyone said here 🇸🇪 in the 80s until we understood differently much much later ☺️
imagine recording your 7th album and still having a banger like this up the sleeve
Right? When he said 7th I couldn’t believe it. Be digging through their records over the weekend!
Be quiet. I’ll be playing them on Spotify.
Yeah, I always think about this. The best example of this kind of thing (although the genre is totally different) is "Painkiller" by Judas Priest, their 10th album, released in their 21st year of career. The true epitome of heavy metal, at least for me.
While they haven’t had much great stuff in a long while, like them or hate them, you also have to marvel at U2 releasing Joshua tree as their 5th album and Achtung Baby as their 7th. Both those albums are insane and totally different.
They got better with each album.
The genius of Alan Wilder never disappoints
He was an absolutely awesome producer but let’s not forget that it was Martin Gore that wrote this masterpiece.
@@titovalasques wouldn't be a household name without Alan's insistence to give it a dance beat and bassline.
@ Taylor Swift is mainstream but I don’t see that as inherently genius. You think the genius of producing a song is more ingenious than the genius of writing it?
@@titovalasques It was a perfect marriage no need to argue jeez great writing AND great production.
@@GodsRockstarMusic Oh I totally agree. It took both or even all of them to create genius which is why I just don't understand (and frankly grow a little tired of) all this Alan Wilder fanboying that's going on everywhere.
This is splendid. I do all the programming for Depeche Mode Tribute The Devout. This bass line is a massively iconic part of Depeche’s legacy and the right filter behaviour makes it or breaks it. To show this technique applied on other modular / semi modular synths is a very clever idea. A joy to watch.
Mod the filter with a Random S/H wave as an alternative. 😆
Long Live The Devout. Cheers
Ive got to say, this cover is exquisitely done. Fantastic vocals. Absolutely well done all of you.
Brilliant as always Alex , one of my all time favourite DM tracks
I always love your vocals Alex, but Clemens is amazing on this cover!
I have so much emotional baggage tied up with Depeche Mode's music that even hearing this baseline makes me anxious. You just cant credit how good it really is. Was a very big part of my life. Cheers Alex
That whole album is a Masterpiece!
My daughter who is 16, just got me a t-shirt with that album logo for my birthday, she knows I like this album so much.
Many thanks from way over here in smoky California. Dark times over here, but an Alex Ball video is always a bright spot. Never stop!
My God this is great! ❤ love your version too! 😉 and yes, Violator is a very rare masteriece! I actually had NO idea that was a system 700. 😮
It's a special day whenever Alex releases a new video. Give this guy an Oscar already!
I really love how you demonstrated the patch on multiple synthesizers. It really highlights how unique each one is. Would be interested in that as a recurring series of videos. Cheers
Alan Wilder was such a huge part of Depeche Mode's distinctive sound - he would spend hours in the studio essentially co-producing their albums while the other three were off elsewhere. They've had a few tracks I like since he left, but he definitely added a lot to the basic demos that Martin Gore would present the band with. That's not to lessen the importance of Martin, as he clearly was the most important in creating the foundations of the songs.
Alan Wilder fan boy alert. Like me, too. 😊 But then again... who isn't?
To be fair, Mark Bell also did a fantastic job, just in a rather different style. RIP.
I miss his Recoil music. I was great, hearing his sound and production, but applied in such a different style and technique. He really made almost cinematic music, if that makes any sense.
I agree, I'd love to see him working on something with Atticus Ross & Trent Reznor. Alan & Atticus have much in common imo
"Enjoy the silence" is probably my favourite love song ever. Thank you and Clemens for that awesome cover! You've made my day.
I agree with you..
I have the 12 inches vinyl with the long version..✌🏻😅
I guess it's a love song? I've always found it to be more of a song about returning to what's essential and beyond the endless chatter that we feel compelled to fill the "dead air" that is actually fully alive with potential
This song. That bassline. Hell, this ALBUM. Absolute masterpiece!
Oh and also, GO CLEMENS!
Orgogliosamente prodotta in Italia 💙 !!
Great video & cover thank you !!
Nailed the guitar part too, love that 80s chorus! What was that? Great job anyway.
Having had a crack at making (very amateur) modular tutorials myself, I really appreciate the amount of work and attention to detail that's gone into this video. Cheers for making such educational and inspiring content 👌
"Enjoy the System" was almost worth it for the name alone.
This song (and album) has been a staple for me and I have never even considered how the sound of the iconic bass line was created. I shared it with my old band mates and friends from that great time in DM music. Thanks for all you do!
Awesome job recreating the bass man! Thanks for taking the time. Superb cover as well guys!
Thank you sir.
holy cow this is literally my favorite synth bassline of all time thank you so much
i will never forget when my dad first played this record for me. my head just about exploded during the intro of world in my eyes. talk about kicking off an album! still my favorite song and favorite record of all time
That comment makes me feel so old!
I always love videos showing how classic sounds like this one were made, and you make it very entertaining to watch.
Clemens is brilliant!
There are a million cover versions out there. But this one just made me smile from start to end. And thanks for the rundown of the bass - it's so simple and yet so spectacularly effective!
Ah thank you!
Yes, all the parts just work exactly as though they've always been together.
Excellent work by both of you and Clemens!
Fantastic video sir. As a synth-noob I get a lot of value out of this type of video. As you said, I don't really care about recreating this song, but learning the techniques and theories of how to arrive at this sound is super beneficial to me at this point. Thank you Alex, top shelf fren. BTW, your cover is amazing.
Another excellent cover and another excellent breakdown of the patch design.
Expertly described as usual, thanks and Happy New year. Brilliant cover at the end Clemens Wenners vocals spot on.
Cheers! And Happy New year to you too.
Great info! And really well done on the cover. Loved it.
Thanks a lot ! A pleasure to listen and understand.
Hello Alex: This bass line is amazing. You have shown what great ears you have. Thank you.
Nicely done sir, you and Clemens nailed it!
Thanks very much!
Never would have thought to add that flat-envelope filter mod for the click - brilliant!!
Yeah that's a great trick. Mixing different CV sources is one of the best things about modular, and multiple envelopes/LFOs etc can really make sounds come alive. Amazing work here! 👌
Another gem of a video.
Sometimes, from listening to a song so many times, you suddenly stop really listening to it. That's what happened to me with Enjoy the Silence. But when, for some reason, you pay attention to it, you realize that it's a great song that has even made me shed a few tears.
There is something deeply emotional in it isn't there, towards the end - especially live
I've always loved that bassline. just so deliciously synthy!
I'd say you bloody nailed it!
Great version guys!
As I am watching this video, I am thinking, "He better do a demo of this song".......needless to say, you didnt disappoint! You nailed it!
All your videos show the quality of the work you put into each release. You articulate and present the subject and the technical background well, but I also really like your humour! I really respect and appreciate your channel! Thank you!
This is amazing, Alex!
It's a glorious track. Your cover was great, and love the tutorial. Thank you!
The thing which surprises me the most is that it's a System 700! I honestly didn't know that. Given how many modern (for the time) instruments they were using, to have something kicking around from 1976 feels almost anachronistic.
Also, yay Clemens Wenners! Been following him for years :D
Yeah, I guess they'd become affordable by then and people who were into modular were snapping them up. Flood described it as a "real boys toy" in one of his breakdown videos on UA-cam, so he was obviously excited about it despite it being old even then.
He's used it on all sorts of stuff, Nitzer Ebb obviously, but also some more recent Foals records have got audio processed through it. Seems he still likes it to this day.
I remember when this was released and holy fuck from the first second of listening to the album me and my mate were just absolutely stunned with how brilliant it was - and still is.
Love these deconstruction type uploads.
It kinda reminds me of "Jim Pavloff's Making of "The Prodigy - Smack My Bitch Up" in Ableton", showing where Liam got his samples from and how he used them for the final mix.
Brilliant stuff!
I was 6 or 7 years old when the big brother of my neighbour , buy this album on his brand new Phillips CD player and hifi system and jesus , i love every track of this album it was a huge sonic shock when i listen to this almost day one of the release, it became a massive hit !
Thankyou Mr Ball and all who contributed. Love this song and really like your cover. I was trying to harmonize to it.
Brilliant cover! I'm sure DM would be impressed.
a) my favourite Depeche track, hands down
b) a 1000% fascinating bassline in the original - I could listen to just that by itself, endlessly
(and why am I not surprised it was done on a 700m >.< HA! Of course it bloody was...lol)
c) my favourite musical youtuber doing a breakdown on how to get to that sound...and a lovely cover of the original??
d) well, I guess today is done...nothing else is going to be better than that, might as well go to bed now, yeah?
My favorite album from them! Simply marvelous!
yeah... i use 2x sequencers w/ my modular. Always use one to CV modulate the filter. Then use div/mult on the modulator to get 'swing' or just more randomness. Excellent video to explain this.
Bravo for the cover! Great lead and backing vocals.
Lovely, chaps. That guitar sound is so evocative of that era. Mode, The Cure.
Clemens makes awesome covers and partnered with a synth god well that’s made the first week back to work a lot easier!
Very nice. My fav album, love it. Love this. Sounds great.
I love you, Alex! I really do!
Just goes to show what absolute masters of the artform they are and were even in the early days. You don't last 40 years as a band if you aren't doing something very very right 👍
The bass / filter sequencing on Violator is absolutely fab. My favourites: the intro sequences to „Halo“ and „World in my eyes“, which I made my ringtone decades ago.
Superb demo !! Well done !!
To hear Depeche Mode making this sound years after their first releases was amazing at the time. Still a favourite, still sounds new.
amazing. no other words... enjoy the silence
What a joy to see Clemens here. If you haven’t seen his channel it’s a must!
I understood about 1% of this video, but enjoyed it immensely.
Great job, Alex!
great cover, nicely done, its got its own flair, very enjoable
Sends a tingle down my spine, what a tune and an excellent cover
It's some achievement to do justice to such a wonderful classic song. Well done to both of you
Thank you very much!
Goosebumps on 6:38 Well done!
Abso flipping lutly marvellous cover!!
I recorded a cover of this song as my final project in audio engineering college. It's always been one of my favorite songs. Every element is distinctive and fits perfectly. So wonderful to watch one of my favorite synth channels pay homage to it. Neat trick with the 'zero envelope' for the snap!
Cheers. Yeah, the click had to come from somewhere. The devil is in the detail.
What did you use for your cover?
fantastic job again as always
What a great channel Alex. This was awesome!
Absolute respect mate. I’ve done a handful of unofficial/private project remixes of Enjoy The Silence over the years, the first of which was a painfully rudimentary and Heath Robinson affair from the same time the song was first released. Your work on this bass line is pretty much flawless, and having heard/employed the original multitrack on one of my own more recent remixes, I can attest to the almost perfect results you’ve achieved here. I was a lazy git and just chopped up the original synth bass from the multitrack and simply reprogrammed it to follow the original arrangement, only using the round Robins I cooked up myself from the necessary sections I painstakingly hand filleted. Obviously once buried within the mix, my technique more than sufficed, but obviously to the trained ear doing it with chops/multi samples means you don’t get as much richness and subtle variety across the whole arrangement as you do doing it your way. Obviously I prefer, when possible to do it this way, but without the same machine, or a close enough emulation, I’d rather do the next best thing and sample from the original, raw multitrack. Anyway, I’m waffling as per… I just wanted to send praise and respect for your commitment to recreating such a seared-into-the-memory bass sound. Good old Alan and Flood, the quiet geniuses behind the scenes.
Wow, this is an amazing and inspiring video. Really well done. No, I won't go into the rabbit hole of Eurorack, but I'm going to give this a bit of thought. Thanks, Alex.
Love it! Been excited for this since you first mentioned it. My own… personal… favorite on this basically perfect album is Policy of Truth. Cheers!
Cheers! Glad it delivered.
Everything has aligned. Wonderful.
Great cover!
Another great video Alex! :D
This is one of the most well known DM songs as you mentioned- but it does feel weird without hearing the vocal stab samples overlayed ;P
Would be amazing if you could go back in time a lil and do something on People are People- that is one of my all time fav songs from the group~
Hope you had a lovely new year btw! Welcome to 2025~
Yeah, hence I just had to cover the entire song at the end as I wanted to hear all the other parts.
People are People - up for putting more Depeche Mode videos on the list. I'd have to borrow an Emulator again, but that might be doable.
@@AlexBallMusic❤❤❤
Fabulous job on the cover! Loved all the layers. Really well done 👍
It’s also clear I really need a System 700 to join the other 12 Roland synths in my studio!
Lovely cover 🙌 love me some Depeche Mode
Brilliant video Alex and I envy you because the Roland System 700 is my all time favorite modular synth, sorry Moog, ARP but C'est La Vie.
Also you show how to make similar bass line with different choices, that's very good.
By the way Clemens did a great job on the vocals department, his 80'S recreations are excellent, I enjoy his channel too. 🎹
Cheers!
Lovely job! What a song! What a sound! What an album!
great video as always! thank you 🎵
Another gem of a video!!
this made my day
thank you peeps
Impressive interpretation of the base line! Wilder & Flood 🌹🖤
God status achieved 🎉
Seriously, the cover at the end is incredible, Alex! 🤘
Great stuff! Very interesting.
always a palisante moment with you and your works . and of course Depeche Mode , but defenetly the 80's been 2 decades of glory for the Synth and sampler .
That is a brilliant recreation .👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Simply great ! Congrats !
Fantastic stuff.. Love filter modulated bass synth lines 😎👌 prob when I first heard Heart of Glass in the 80s. Great job on the cover Alex.
I'm really big on bass triggering. Excellent video Alex loved it
❤ 'unnecessary' does a great job of having so many syllables is a full line of lyrics by itself
Good point! Yeah the lyrics have such a satisfying flow to them. Brilliantly written.
Great Delivery Alex!
So awesome, as always!
Your cover version is excellent, by the way.
Brilliant again. Great cover too.
I always called this the “bubble bass” and always wondered how it was created, thanks for this!
Enjoy the copyright strike....
Excellent job, as always!