Issue 105 with Vince Clarke 7"

From his early days as a synthpop wunderkind in Depeche Mode, Yazoo and The Assembly, through to Erasure, VCMG (with Martin Gore) and a host of other collaborations, Vince Clarke has packed an awful lot into the last 40-odd years. And he has never been busier. Juggling countless projects and remixes, always tinkering in the studio, and as obsessed as ever with synths and modular kit – perhaps even more so – Clarke isn’t somebody who sits still for long. Almost permanently plugged into a sonic device of one sort or another, you’d imagine his mind to be a crazy interconnected hive of activity and ideas. As our features editor Velimir Ilic puts it in his exclusive interview with Clarke for this month’s cover story, “the electronic force isn’t so much strong as completely hard-wired”.

The interview took place at Clarke’s New York home studio and covers a lot of ground, including his formative pre-Depeche experiences in Basildon. And with the forthcoming release of what will be his debut solo album, Songs Of Silence, an exciting new chapter is about to unfold, as Clarke takes himself completely out of his usual comfort zone. Rather than the electropop earworms he’s known for, this is something quite different, but just as special. Composed entirely on Eurorack, and with nods to folk music and opera, the 10 expansive soundscapes on Songs Of Silence are possibly the most beautiful and moving tracks he has ever recorded.In the glare of the spotlight for the first time as a solo artist, and completely on his own terms, the self-confessed control freak discusses the album’s development and reflects on a remarkable career that has also recently seen him pivot into co-presenting his own radio show and even create a remarkably quirky animation channel. You can’t help wondering when this man finds time to sleep. 

You’re probably not going to have much time for sleeping this month either. As well as the Vince Clarke feature, there is a bumper selection of other interviews for you, including Belbury Poly, AR Kane, Beverly Glenn-Copeland, Das Koolies, Dot Allison, Delmer Darion and Frankie Rose. There's also have a piece on ‘The NID Tapes’, an intriguing compilation of Indian electronic music recorded between 1969 and 1972, while Ghost Box co-owner and sleeve designer Julian House talks us through some of his artwork for the label over the last two decades. 

This month’s Exclusive 7" features two superb Vince Clarke tracks – one of them taken from his debut solo album and the other previously unreleased.‘The Lamentations Of Jeremiah’ / ‘The Cave’ on a clear yellow vinyl seven-inch.