C/D: The "ENJOY THE SILENCE!!!!!!" at the end of "Enjoy the Silence"

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Torn on this one. I have a sort of history of this--I heard Violator once when I was pretty young and loved the song, and the part at the end sorta freaked me out. Then I saw the video a few times, and whenever I saw it, it was without the part at the end. I started thinking maybe I had imagined it out of frustration that they never say the title during the song. But, listen to Violator recently and saw the vid a few times (and just now on the Anton Corbijn director's DVD), and lo and behold, there it is.

I dunno. I really like the title of the song (very New Order, actually), and I'm starting to think that this boisterous exclamation of it at the end of the song sort of cheapens the song's effect. The first time you hear it it's very disquieting, but afterwards it sounds disruptive and irritating, and almost ruins the appeal of the title as well.

Thoughts?

― The Good Dr. Bill (The Good Dr. Bill), Thursday, 15 September 2005 20:04 (twenty years ago)

i have never actively thought about it before. but now you mention it: it's a bit shit, isn't it? especially the way it goes "piiiiiiing!!!!" too.

― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Thursday, 15 September 2005 20:08 (twenty years ago)

isn't the "piiiiiing" at the end of "Personal Jesus"?

― The Good Dr. Bill (The Good Dr. Bill), Thursday, 15 September 2005 20:09 (twenty years ago)

i don't think so. is it? on "violator", doesn't it go "ping!" and then into the "CRUU-CII-FIEED" untitled track thingy?

(nb: i'm not getting off this cosy sofa to investigate, that's for sure.)

― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Thursday, 15 September 2005 20:13 (twenty years ago)

we might be thinking of two different "piiiiiing" sounds (wow).

― The Good Dr. Bill (The Good Dr. Bill), Thursday, 15 September 2005 20:14 (twenty years ago)

so not only do they do unnecessary exclamations, they do unnecessary ping-ing too! i'm going off this band ;)

― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Thursday, 15 September 2005 20:17 (twenty years ago)

nah, they're still pretty cool

― The Good Dr. Bill (The Good Dr. Bill), Thursday, 15 September 2005 20:19 (twenty years ago)

on "violator", doesn't it go "ping!" and then into the "CRUU-CII-FIEED" untitled track thingy

Grimly is right and Dr. Bill is on drugs. (I might lie.)

As it happens, said use of title/ping/CRUCIFIED bit is one of my all-time favorite Depeche moments ever. Go figure.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 15 September 2005 20:20 (twenty years ago)

There IS a ping sound at the end of "Personal Jesus". On the video anyway, I'm not positive about the album version. Let me find my mp3 version.

― The Good Dr. Bill (The Good Dr. Bill), Thursday, 15 September 2005 20:21 (twenty years ago)

Dud. The breathing at the end of Blasphemous Rumours is classic though. So is the little weird ascending breathing sound at the end of Master & Servant.

― walter kranz (walterkranz), Thursday, 15 September 2005 20:24 (twenty years ago)

The *ping* is indeed at the end of Enjoy the Silence. Then there's nearly 2 minutes of noodly stuff before Policy of Truth kicks in.

― Billy Pilgrim (Billy Pilgrim), Thursday, 15 September 2005 20:24 (twenty years ago)

OK, so after leafing through my mp3s, I've found that the album version of PJ (which has that extended instrumental outro and ends on an echoed drumbeat) does not have any sort of "ping" after it.

However, the single version (or at least the one that appeared on the '86-'98 singles comp), which lacks the instrumental outro and ends on Gahan's near-whispered "Reach out, touch faith," has an extremely distinctive "ping" sound after it.

I'm currently downloading the album version of "Enjoy the Silence".

― The Good Dr. Bill (The Good Dr. Bill), Thursday, 15 September 2005 20:27 (twenty years ago)

It's a little over the top, but they've done much weirder things before (like "Blasphemous Rumouors" as Walter mentioned).

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 15 September 2005 20:27 (twenty years ago)

Yeah, the "Enjoy the Silence" bit is too over-the-top for me, I always skip ahead to the next track before it gets there.

― Jessie the Monster (scarymonsterrr), Thursday, 15 September 2005 22:38 (twenty years ago)

The 7" version on my CD single doesn't have the ping, but the video retains it? I guess Much Music always cut away before the ping came in.

Anyhow, the entire premise is a bit silly because Enjoy the Silence is one of the greatest songs ever and I'm hard-pressed to think of a coda that could sully it.

― MindInRewind (Barry Bruner), Thursday, 15 September 2005 22:41 (twenty years ago)

On that album, I prefer "Policy of Truth," if....er...truth be told.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 15 September 2005 22:42 (twenty years ago)

Me too.

Also, I always found the whole idea of that "ping" silly, because it kind of negates the silence we are invited to enjoy.

― joseph cotten (joseph cotten), Thursday, 15 September 2005 22:47 (twenty years ago)

The whole POINT of the song as finally mixed and released is that it's a huge, monstrous, arena-scaled miniepic that is in utter opposition to the sentiments in the lyrics! (Compare to Gore's original demo, which is a B-side on the single and is much more serene -- then Flood and Alan Wilder said, "Let's take it to the stage...")

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 15 September 2005 22:54 (twenty years ago)

Heh, don't I feel silly. I never thought of it like that!

― joseph cotten (joseph cotten), Thursday, 15 September 2005 22:57 (twenty years ago)

TS: Enjoy the Silence vs. More than Words vs. Don't Talk (Put Your Head on my Shoulder).

― walter kranz (walterkranz), Thursday, 15 September 2005 23:29 (twenty years ago)

As it happens, said use of title/ping/CRUCIFIED bit is one of my all-time favorite Depeche moments ever. Go figure.

Me too. My brother didn't believe me that it was there, though. Now I can prove him wrong -- I told him it was on the album version!

― Ian Riese-Moraine: Let this bastard out, and you'll get whiplash! (Eastern Mantr, Friday, 16 September 2005 00:14 (twenty years ago)

Classic.

And the best / creepiest part of Blasphemous Rumours is the chimy part in the middle that plays the old "so high / you can't get over it" bit from Sunday school.

― Tantrum The Cat (Tantrum The Cat), Friday, 16 September 2005 00:32 (twenty years ago)

"Policy Of Truth" is far and away the best song of the Violator singles but the best song on the album will always be "Waiting For The Night".

― The Ghost of Black Elegance (Dan Perry), Friday, 16 September 2005 01:31 (twenty years ago)

I'm quite fond of "Halo" as well, but "Policy of Truth" reigns.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 16 September 2005 01:45 (twenty years ago)

the best song on the album will always be "Waiting For The Night"

Reviving that for the 2001 tour was a wise, wise move. Wonder if they'll bring it out again...

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Friday, 16 September 2005 01:46 (twenty years ago)

I absolutely prefer this ending, not so much for the ping, but just because it's a much better ending, and whenever I hear the instrumental part in the album version I'm always waiting for the final "reach out touch faith," but it never comes!!

― billstevejim (billstevejim), Friday, 16 September 2005 02:01 (twenty years ago)

"Policy Of Truth" is far and away the best song of the Violator singles but the best song on the album will always be "Waiting For The Night".
-- The Ghost of Black Elegance, September 15th, 2005 10:31 PM. (later)
I'm quite fond of "Halo" as well, but "Policy of Truth" reigns.

-- Alex in NYC, September 15th, 2005 10:45 PM

Science has already proven you wrong

― MindInRewind (Barry Bruner), Friday, 16 September 2005 02:35 (twenty years ago)

"Policy of Truth" is def. the best Violator single, but god they're all fantastic.

"Personal Jesus" w/ ping, it exists I swear

― The Good Dr. Bill (The Good Dr. Bill), Friday, 16 September 2005 04:27 (twenty years ago)

Like that bullshit means anything? Please.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 16 September 2005 05:17 (twenty years ago)

THE POLL WAS CONDUCTED AND THE PEOPLE OF ILM HAVE SPOKEN

― MindInRewind (Barry Bruner), Friday, 16 September 2005 05:45 (twenty years ago)

...AND I'M SPEAKING BACK!

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 16 September 2005 06:37 (twenty years ago)

I always thought the ping wasn't just any old ping, but a symbolic hare krishna/buddhist finger cymbal thing that invites the commencement of the meditation.

― StanM (StanM), Friday, 16 September 2005 07:44 (twenty years ago)

the best song on the album will always be "Waiting For The Night"

absolutely.

i was 15 when "violator" came out: i remember trying to use that song, and its blood-chilling brilliance, to "prove" to my dad that everything i liked pwned everything he liked. it didn't really work.

and i still think "enjoy the silence" is the best single they ever did, ping or no ping.

― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Friday, 16 September 2005 08:58 (twenty years ago)

Thirded. "Clean" ain't bad either...

― Baaderonixx and the choco-pop babies (baaderonixx), Friday, 16 September 2005 09:08 (twenty years ago)

Enjoy The Silence >>>>>> Policy Of Truth for crying out loud...

To answer the thread question tho: Dud.

― Sociah T Azzahole (blueski), Friday, 16 September 2005 09:34 (twenty years ago)

Enjoy The Silence >>>>>> Policy Of Truth for crying out loud...

Err, no.

― Baaderonixx and the choco-pop babies (baaderonixx), Friday, 16 September 2005 09:37 (twenty years ago)

Err, opinion not fact. I always preferred 'World In My Eyes' to 'Policy Of Truth' too.

― Sociah T Azzahole (blueski), Friday, 16 September 2005 09:56 (twenty years ago)

To be honest, I think my problem with ETS is that I really OD'ed on it at some point and that I always felt that Policy of Truth worked better on a dancefloor.

― Baaderonixx and the choco-pop babies (baaderonixx), Friday, 16 September 2005 09:58 (twenty years ago)

IT'S ALL GOLD, PEOPLE.

― ledge (ledge), Friday, 16 September 2005 12:15 (twenty years ago)

Interesting: I just spoke with Anton Corbijn on Wednesday, and he told me WB banned him from directing any more Depeche Mode videos. He was pretty pissed about it.

― Josh in Chicago (Josh in Chicago), Friday, 16 September 2005 12:34 (twenty years ago)

Banned him??

― Baaderonixx and the hedonistic gluttons (baaderonixx), Friday, 16 September 2005 12:38 (twenty years ago)

The DMode selections on the DVD are sorta weird. I really wish they had "Never Let Me Down Again," "Personal Jesus" or "Policy of Truth" on there instead of either "Barrel of a Gun" or "Walking in My Shoes"

― The Good Dr. Bill (The Good Dr. Bill), Friday, 16 September 2005 12:41 (twenty years ago)

You'll see your problems multiplied
If you continually decide
To faithfully pursue
The policy of truth

NEVER AGAIN
Is what you swore
The time before

― The Ghost of So Much Pwnage (Dan Perry), Friday, 16 September 2005 13:11 (twenty years ago)

he told me WB banned him from directing any more Depeche Mode videos

DETAILS PLZ.

(Who needs the Corbijn DVD when the Depeche 86-98 *is* a Corbijn DVD aside from a couple of videos at either end?)

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Friday, 16 September 2005 13:17 (twenty years ago)

yeah, I thought his other stuff'd be better. "Liar," "Heart-Shaped Box," "Seven Seas" (but no LIPS LIKE SUGAR) and the Killers video are all great.

Corbijn + DMode -- best artist/director combo? Only others I can think of are Gondry/Bjork and Dayton/Farris/Pumpkins.

― The Good Dr. Bill (The Good Dr. Bill), Friday, 16 September 2005 16:44 (twenty years ago)

Are you kidding? Why would they not put "Never Let Me Down Again?" I wish these DVD's didn't have to be so exclusive.

― billstevejim (billstevejim), Friday, 16 September 2005 20:56 (twenty years ago)

No details beyond that, I'm afraid. He said WB records would not allow/approve/pay him to direct any of the band's new videos. I'd have to go back to the tape, but Corbijn groused that they (the label) wanted something more commercial. "Stupidest break-up ever!" he spat, in his thick Dutch accent.

Odd, because I think he did the album cover/art and maybe even came up with the title.

― Josh in Chicago (Josh in Chicago), Friday, 16 September 2005 22:17 (twenty years ago)

New Order/Saville vs. Depeche Mode/Corbijn.

(New Order)

― Josh in Chicago (Josh in Chicago), Friday, 16 September 2005 22:20 (twenty years ago)

Fuck Depeche Mode, man.

― Chris O., Friday, 16 September 2005 22:22 (twenty years ago)

You'd only wish you could.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Friday, 16 September 2005 22:42 (twenty years ago)

"waiting for the night to fall" is my favorite too, but it's by a very small margin over "policy of truth".

― tricky (disco stu), Friday, 16 September 2005 22:54 (twenty years ago)

answer to the question: classic.

― tricky (disco stu), Friday, 16 September 2005 22:54 (twenty years ago)

Really enjoying the Richard X mix of this.

― Spencer Chow (spencermfi), Friday, 16 September 2005 22:56 (twenty years ago)

yeah that richard x mix is fanstastic!

― tricky (disco stu), Friday, 16 September 2005 22:57 (twenty years ago)

fantastic, even.

― tricky (disco stu), Friday, 16 September 2005 22:57 (twenty years ago)

Ah good, that's leaked? The whole collection looks a treat.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Friday, 16 September 2005 22:59 (twenty years ago)

Oh wait, hold on, you're talking about the mix from last year -- I'm thinking of the Tiga Depeche mix that's due out...

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Friday, 16 September 2005 23:00 (twenty years ago)

There's a Richard X mix of Yaz(oo)'s "Situation" coming soon!

― Spencer Chow (spencermfi), Friday, 16 September 2005 23:02 (twenty years ago)

Hm? What's Tiga remixing?

― Telephonething (Telephonething), Friday, 16 September 2005 23:11 (twenty years ago)

Future Retro -- for some reason I thought it was out sooner:

FUTURE RETRO (CD version)
"The Walk" -- The Cure (Infusion Remix)
"Situation" -- Yaz (Richard X Remix)
"Lips Like Sugar" -- Echo & The Bunnymen (Way Out West Remix Edit)
"Need You Tonight" -- INXS (Static Revenger Mix Edit)
"Shake The Disease" -- Depeche Mode (Tiga Remix)
"A Little Respect" -- Erasure (Jaded Alliance 'Electrospect' Remix)
"New Song" -- Howard Jones (Peter Black and Hardrock Striker Mix Edit)
"Forever Young" -- Alphaville (Hamel Album Mix)
"Bizarre Love Triangle" -- New Order (The Crystal Method Extended Mix)
"White Lines (Don't Don't Do It) -- Grandmaster Flash and Melle Mel (Elite Force Mix)
"Girl U Want" -- Devo (Black Light Odyssey Mix)
"Nowhere Girl" -- B-Movie (Adam Freeland Remix)
"Boy" -- Book Of Love (DJ Irene Rockstar Mix)
"Suedehead" -- Morrissey (Sparks Mix)

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Friday, 16 September 2005 23:18 (twenty years ago)

Needless to say I want this, like, yesterday.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Friday, 16 September 2005 23:19 (twenty years ago)

Hahah, I just noted that donut's and my old KUCI cohort Craig deGraff is behind the comp! God bless 'im.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Friday, 16 September 2005 23:20 (twenty years ago)

Not bad, except for letting Crystal Method shit all over "Bizarre Love Triangle." Eeurgh.

― Telephonething (Telephonething), Friday, 16 September 2005 23:24 (twenty years ago)

i have the tiga mix...it's okay. do you guys want to hear it? it's a pretty good quality extract from a dj set.

― tricky (disco stu), Friday, 16 September 2005 23:24 (twenty years ago)

YES PLEASE

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Friday, 16 September 2005 23:31 (twenty years ago)

ok here it is, and i was wrong above. the remix is more than ok, it's just very tiga-esque and 2005 electro-house whereas i have a soft spot for the original. there's some good crowd noise in the background.

― tricky (disco stu), Friday, 16 September 2005 23:40 (twenty years ago)

Hm, not bad, will enjoy hearing a proper version.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Friday, 16 September 2005 23:54 (twenty years ago)

The vinyl release of Future Retro will have the Richard X mix of "Bizarre Love Triangle" along with a few other goodies.

― Spencer Chow (spencermfi), Saturday, 17 September 2005 00:30 (twenty years ago)

six months pass...

who the hell did this breathy female vocal version of enjoy the silence playing on the smooth jazz station right now??? not bad!

― ++++++, Wednesday, 5 April 2006 18:39 (nineteen years ago)

One of those female fronted goth metal bands have covered it. Lacuna Coil I think.

― Brigadier Lethbridge-Pfunkboy (Kerr), Wednesday, 5 April 2006 18:41 (nineteen years ago)

uh yeah this sounds more like norah jones or something

― +++++, Wednesday, 5 April 2006 18:42 (nineteen years ago)

ok its by a girl named janita - i recommend this!

― ++++, Wednesday, 5 April 2006 18:45 (nineteen years ago)

Well I haven't heard their version.... but yet It's probably not them.
According to AMG, Tori Amos has covered it.
xpost.
Ok it's not her.

― Brigadier Lethbridge-Pfunkboy (Kerr), Wednesday, 5 April 2006 18:48 (nineteen years ago)

The more of these kind of covers the better (if they're good).

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Wednesday, 5 April 2006 18:50 (nineteen years ago)

http://myspace.com/janitaartist

Influences Marvin Gaye, Bill Withers, Astrud Gilberto, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Meshell Ndegeocello, Michael Jackson, Sade, Prince, Mr.Fingers, love, longing...

^^^ fuck yeah

― ++++, Wednesday, 5 April 2006 18:51 (nineteen years ago)

unfortunately im at work so i dont know if the songs on that page are shitty or not

― ++++, Wednesday, 5 April 2006 18:51 (nineteen years ago)

but anybody influenced by mr fingers, prince & sade is cool w/ me

― +++++, Wednesday, 5 April 2006 18:52 (nineteen years ago)

I was about to say, that's a good combo.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Wednesday, 5 April 2006 18:52 (nineteen years ago)

haha we sound like jaxon

― ++++, Wednesday, 5 April 2006 18:54 (nineteen years ago)

and vahid

― ++++, Wednesday, 5 April 2006 18:54 (nineteen years ago)

Corbijn + DMode -- best artist/director combo?

NO WHEY. That grainy sepia tone shit took all the POP out of "Strangelove" and others

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Wednesday, 5 April 2006 19:04 (nineteen years ago)

haha we sound like jaxon and vahid

Hahahaha. We'd make the most useless buddy cop film, Ethan. (Or maybe the best, I dunno.)

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Wednesday, 5 April 2006 19:12 (nineteen years ago)

i'm listening to "violator" right now ... in fact, i went to get the laptop specifically to say this ... I WAS WRONG ABOUT THE PING. it's actually rather wonderful. and "waiting for the night" isn't as good as "enjoy the silence" any more. "sweetest perfection" has suddenly become a standout.

o, how my 15-year-old self would boggle. several hundred listens and suddenly i like the fucking ping.

― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Sunday, 9 April 2006 21:39 (nineteen years ago)

all this way down be4 someone mentions the ERASERHEAD baby cackling sample just before CLEAN?

― piscesboy, Monday, 10 April 2006 15:10 (nineteen years ago)

This is why we have threads like this, Piscesboy.

Ah, to have these reissues...soon, soon.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 10 April 2006 15:11 (nineteen years ago)

depeche mode!

― +++++, Monday, 10 April 2006 15:12 (nineteen years ago)

:-D

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 10 April 2006 15:13 (nineteen years ago)

DM @}---^-----

― ++++++, Monday, 10 April 2006 15:16 (nineteen years ago)

Scarily accurate.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 10 April 2006 15:17 (nineteen years ago)

that rose has a boner

― Kim (Kim), Monday, 10 April 2006 16:30 (nineteen years ago)

sorry

― Kim (Kim), Monday, 10 April 2006 16:30 (nineteen years ago)

two years pass...

"the sweetest perfection" is absolutely the highlight of this album for me at the moment. that string/horn breakdown in the middle is sublime, perhaps dm's most grandiose moment. the whole song has got that ridiculous perverse adolescent feeling of being desperate and depressed but kinda enjoying it that we all get sometimes, especially where the drums kick in at the end, and gahan's brilliant backing vocal heralds this huge swirling whirl pool of noise. it is so perfect.

― rio (r1o natsume), Monday, 13 October 2008 13:28 (seventeen years ago)

In retrospect, I think this is the last album they released that didn't have a lull.

― Like sicking a little bit of water into my mouth (HI DERE), Monday, 13 October 2008 14:10 (seventeen years ago)

Hmm, I can see that. But I tend to like the lulls because they're usually so pretty.

― Ned Raggett, Monday, 13 October 2008 14:19 (seventeen years ago)

Eh, I don't mean the languid instrumentals as much as I mean some unspecified dip-in-quality song that I almost always skip over whenever I play the album (for example, "Suffer Well" is my lull on Playing The Angel).

― Like sicking a little bit of water into my mouth (HI DERE), Monday, 13 October 2008 14:26 (seventeen years ago)

Rio so OTFM here.

― Telephone thing, Monday, 13 October 2008 14:34 (seventeen years ago)

eleven years pass...

Listening to violator w the S/O and she asked why isn't enjoy the silence the end of the side of the album?? And I was like good question so I googled "why isn't enjoy the silence the last track on violator" and this thread was the third hit AND I STILL DON'T HAVE ANSWERS. WHY ARE THERE SONGS AFTER IT ON A SIDE OF THE ALBUM. missed opportunity imo

― Campaign to move el0n mu5k thread to ILM (Will M.), Saturday, 15 February 2020 01:46 (five years ago)

I seem to remember hearing some sort of thing on the radio when I was really young where it was just Gahan singing 'Enjoy the Silence' over and over again with his voice being processed in all these different t ways, and being very freaked out by it. This must have been 1990 before I heard the actual song. I'd like to know what the hell it was, maybe some sort of promo?

― doorstep jetski (dog latin), Saturday, 15 February 2020 13:49 (five years ago)

Shot-in-the-dark question for dog latin: Was this a radio station in the process of changing ownership or changing formats? (For that matter: was it an American radio station?)

― SlimAndSlam, Saturday, 15 February 2020 14:07 (five years ago)

^ I like this hypothesis

― uncrut gems (crüt), Saturday, 15 February 2020 14:11 (five years ago)

I mean, I was 9 years old but I'm pretty sure it was a UK Station, probably our local one

― doorstep jetski (dog latin), Saturday, 15 February 2020 16:19 (five years ago)

I think it may be the Quad mix, or one of the others, but there is a mix that has the title repeated using different effects.

― brotherlovesdub, Saturday, 15 February 2020 18:24 (five years ago)

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