Features
Depeche Mode Get Into Touring Spirit
Depeche Mode has announced a huge run of European dates, the first leg of a global tour to promote its forthcoming album.
The dates are all for the summer of 2017 and stretch across Europe. The opener is May 5 in Solna, Sweden, at
After that, the band is promising a run through North and South America, though dates are still being hammered out.
Depeche Mode is set to release its next album, Spirit, next spring. The band has maintained a remarkable level of consistency, releasing an album every 3-4 years for the past 25 years or so. In the ’80s Depeche Mode was truly prolific, with a run of seven full-length albums in seven years.
The group announced the tour via a press conference which was livestreamed on Facebook. The group was asked “Is rock dead?,” to which vocalist Dave Gahan responded, “[Well] we’re still making music together that we’re very proud of and we still want to perform that music for you …. Collectively, we think music is possibly one of the only forms that actually brings people together, into one place, and you’re all there for one reason and that is to experience something that is moving … I think there is great music out there, you really gotta just look for it.”
The group is partnering with Swedish watchmaker Hublot on the tour to donate to the nonprofit organization Charity: Water. Martin Gore told the audience during the press conference that the band and fans were able to raise over $1.4 million during the last tour, which funded clean drinking water for people in Kenya, Cambodia, Ethiopia and Rwanda. “If you don’t know charity water, you should,” he said. “There are still a lot of people in the world without clean drinking water.”
The mammoth routing is listed below:
May 5 – Solna, Sweden, Friends Arena
May 7 – Amsterdam, Netherlands, Ziggo Dome
May 9 – Antwerp, Belgium, Antwerps Sportpaleis
May 12 – Nice, France, Stade Charles Ehrmann
May 14 – Ljubljana, Slovenia, Arena Stozice
May 17 – Attica, Greece, Terra Vibe Park
May 20 – Bratislava, Slovak Republic, Sport Hall Pasienky
May 22 – Budapest, Hungary, Groupama Arena
May 24 – Prague, Czech Republic, Eden Arena
May 27 – Leipzig, Germany, Festweise
May 29 – Villenueve D’ascq, France, Stade Pierre-Mauroy
May 31 – Copenhagen, Denmark, Telia Parken
June 3 – London, United Kingdom, Olympic Stadium
June 5 – Cologne, Germany, Rhein Energie Stadion
June 9 – Munich, Germany, Olympic Stadium
June 11 – Hannover, Germany, HDI Arena
June 18 – Zurich, Switzerland, Stadion Letzigrund
June 20 – Frankfurt, Germany, Commerzbank Arena
June 22 – Berlin, Germany, Olympiastadion Berlin
June 25 – Rome, Italy, Curva Stadio Olimpico
June 27 – Milan, Italy, Stadio San Siro
June 29 – Bologna, Italy, Stadio Renato Dall’Ara
July 1 – Paris, France, Stade de France
July 6 – Bilbao, Spain, Kobetamendi (Bilbao BBK Live Festival)
July 8 – Lisbon, Portugal, Passeio Maritimo De Alges (NOS Alive Festival)
July 13 – St. Petersburg, Russia, SaskatchewanK Arena
July 15 – Moscow, Russia, Otkritie Arena
July 17 – Minsk, Belarus, Minsk Arena
July 19 – Kiev, Ukraine, National Sportkomplex
July 21 – Warsaw, Poland, PGE Narodowy
July 23 – Cluj Napoca, Romania, Cluj Arena
Tickets are going on sale at different days, but a few presales kick off today. Check with the venues for specific times.
DepecheMode.com is the band’s website.