The 10 Gayest Moments in Depeche Mode Songs

Take two blokes, a sensual lyrics addressing someone of ambiguous gender, get the blokes to sing the song together in or out of unison (throw in an occasional falsetto) to create the call and response effect, and you’ve got it, the right stuff. Er, the wrong stuff. The right wrong stuff! You’ve got the idea. 

1. “Fly On The Windscreen – Final”. The “come here… touch me… kiss me now” part towards the end of the track. Whether they meant it or not, it sounds like the boys are beckoning no one but each other.* 

2. “Stripped”. The outro where Dave is manically asking, “Let me see you stripped down to the bone”, to which Martin’s response is “Let me hear you speaking/crying just for me”. A fair deal, isn’t it? The video by Anton Corbijn enhances the dialogue effect. 

3. “Master And Servant”. These two differently pitched sound effects that sound like two shrill paroxysmal cries of pain and pleasure. Complemented with “it’s a lot”s, they give the song a definite sadomasochistic gloss. 

4. “Never Let Me Down Again”. One of the song’s most popular interpretations claims it to be a gay anthem. What with lines like “He… promises me I’m as safe as houses as long as I remember who’s wearing the trousers”. The gayest part of it could be the very beginning where the boys sing “I’m taking a ride” in such naughty, narcissistic tones. Plus, of course, there are few things gayer than Gahan’s desperate “never let me doooown” plea backed by Gore’s soothing, lulling “see the stars, they’re shining bright, everything’s all right tonight”. 

5. “Behind The Wheel”. The way the two duet through the song, especially in cheeky lines like “I prefer you behind the wheel, and me the passenger… drive, I’m yours to keep”. 

6. “Photographic”. Again, the guys singing in unison, in scared and sensual voices. “Bright light… dark room”. Wimpy! What are you up to, in this dark room of yours, boys? 

7. “Shake The Disease”. Martin’s impassioned vocals in the intro. 

8. “Pleasure, Little Treasure”. The sampled and played backwards coda plus the inimitable falsetto of the chorus. 

9. “Lie To Me”. The ambiguity of “lay with me – lie to me” pun and the cool, sleek, detached and sensual vocals. 

10. “Boys Say Go!” / “What’s Your Name”. “P-R-E-DOUBLE-T-Y” is classic. The two openly gay songs in the band’s canon, though obviously they’re not supposed to be taken at face value. 

 * The call-and-response of “Soothe My Soul” and “Secret To The End” nearly rivaled that for me. 

Other assorted gay moments

“Here Is The House”, start to finish. 

“Damaged People”. Everything about this song – the arrangements, the lyrics, the singing – sounds like a rip-off off Erasure. 

“I Am You”. The final part with Martin’s angelic backup vocals insistently going, “I am you and you are me-e-e-e-e-e-e”.

“I Feel Loved”. Again, the mysterious “I feeeeel loved” in the bridge. 

“Insight”. “You’ve got to give love, give love, give love”. 

“It Doesn’t Matter”. Check out the fade-out – the song’s about to finish and Martin only just wakes up to deliver some of his finest vocal figurations ever. 

“In Chains” / “Peace”. The falsetto from both singers. Martin Gore intones the line “It’s an inevitability” like he's an Alison Goldfrapp. 

“World In My Eyes”. “Let my body do the moving, let my hands do the soothing”. 

“Goodnight Lovers”. “Like all soul sister and soul brothers”.