Depeche Mode's Latest Album and its theme "Momento Mori"

I finally took the time to listen to Depeche Mode’s latest studio album which was released just this past year — Memento Mori.

Their new album focuses on the phrase “Momento Mori” and the concept of death and how it is inevitable.

Momento Mori, a Latin phrase, translates to “remember, you must die”. It is a reminder that one day death will come to all of us.

Depeche Mode’s new album, Momento Mori, is dark and mysterious as the concept of death itself yet energizing and refreshing, giving us a moving reminder that all things must come to an end and life will go on.

Every song on this album requires your full attention and reflection, as the lyrics contain a decent number of philosophical concepts.

This is an especially meaningful and emotional album, as its release happened after keyboardist Andy Fletcher’s passing.

My Cosmos is Mine

The first song on this album starts slow, dark, and intense. It also has electrifying undertones that provoke deep feelings of spirituality and purpose. At about the two-minute mark, the song shifts into a more gradual, intense tone before easing back into a slow, dark, and intense tone.

Wagging Tongue

This song starts out slow, but the tone picks up quickly. With its deep and meaningful lyrics, it has certainly captured my attention! Filled with power and emotion, this song has its highs and lows throughout.

Ghosts Again

This song, especially, focuses on the phrase “Momento Mori.” It is emotional but nonetheless reassuring and engaging. The lyrics serve as a soothing reminder that one day, for all of us, our time will come to an end.

Don’t Say You Love Me

This is another song on this album that’s not just dark but alluring. Upon my first listen, the tone of the song hooked me. The vocals are smooth and persuasive, with dark undertones.

My Favourite Stranger

With a dark and alluring sound, this song starts with an edge that stays with the song throughout. This is easily the heaviest song out of the whole album.

Soul With Me

This song is well worth listening to again. With lead vocals by Martin Gore this time, the tone is deep, soothing, and beautifully provocative. It offers a refreshing and balanced contrast to the other songs on this album.

Caroline’s Monkey

Many Depeche Mode’s songs are deep, not just on this album but in general.

This one is no exception. There’s a lot of meaning behind this dark-sounding song. Upon listening to it, I feel that Caroline’s Monkey represents our negative thoughts—the kind of thoughts that put a heavy weight on us—a persistent weight that relentlessly stays with us, symbolically hanging on like a monkey. The song gradually picks up, and as it does so, it reflects the reality of the existence of Caroline’s monkey—the symbolic example of negative thoughts.

Before We Drown

This has to be one of my favorite songs of Momento Mori. The tone and lyrics are both soothing and comforting. As the song proceeds, the message it is trying to convey becomes even more powerful. The more I listen to it, the more I feel that the message is about making the most of the life we’re living now. Most notably towards the last minute of this song, it’s easy to just get lost in it.

People Are Good

This song, full of edgy synth-pop, is one of the more upbeat songs on this album. The song offers a deep reflection on humanity and the pressing question many, if not all, of us have — are people generally good, or are we kidding ourselves?

As we go through our lives, maybe, deep down, we tell ourselves that everyone we encounter throughout our lives has good intentions. This song from Depeche Mode asks us if our assumption is nothing but a foolish one.

Always You

This song starts out slow and soothing before gradually picking up into a more energizing and edgy pace, only to fall back to its slow and soothing original tempo.

Shifting back from a tempo that’s soothing to one that’s edgy and back again to slow and soothing, this song has plenty of highs and lows.

Never Let Me Go

This song starts out with sharp, cutting edges that pierce through as it goes on. It has rock, synth, and goth vibes, which add to the vast variety of the songs on this album.

Speak to Me

The album concludes brilliantly with this soothing song about reassurance.

Slow and deeply meaningful, lead singer Dave Gahan's vocals offer reassurance from the uncertainty that can come with life and death.

Just after the three-minute mark, the song picks up more of an edge before slowing and fading out to a marching tempo. What a superb way to end this album!

I’m a huge fan of Depeche Mode, and like anyone who excitedly waits for the release of a favorite music artist’s new album, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I must say, it did not disappoint! While the album is dark, as its theme is death, it’s reassuring at the same time.

In conclusion, I found Memento Mori pleasantly and surprisingly engaging, with each track a reassuring reminder of the phrase itself. Every song requires you to reflect and do some deep thinking.

Momento Mori — “Remember, you must die.”

Momento Mori is Depeche Mode’s fifteenth studio album.