Martin Gore Quotations

When I write a song, I always start on acoustic guitar, because that's a good test of a song, when it's really open and bare. You can often mislead yourself if you start with computers and samples and programming because you can disguise a bad song.

It was so exciting to go to the record shop and buy a piece of vinyl and hold it, read the liner notes, look at the pictures. Even the smell of the vinyl.

I don't think I've ever tried to be anything other than a weirdo.

I find it odd seeing a DJ playing to huge audiences. I know that people have been doing it for a while, but the fact that it's been embraced so much in America now and it's become like this new, big thing, I find it slightly odd.

I lead two totally separate lives. There are times when I have to slip into rock star mode.

Songwriting is a mysterious art. When I sit down to write a song, the end result should be mysterious and have this dark quality.

Technology is a bit of a double-edged sword. Used right, it's a wonderful tool, but unfortunately, it makes it easier for a lot of mediocre people to get really crappy ideas out.

Music is really all about experimentation and lots of trial and error. It's just mind-numbingly boring until you hit on something that works well.

I knew at quite a young age that I had an issue with drinking.

God knows why - no pun intended - but every time I write a song, I feel a need to touch on religion.

I always hate explaining away songs, because for me they mean something, and for other people, they'll mean something absolutely different.

I like their darkness but I also like the pop-side of the Velvet Underground.

Kids today don't know that much about vinyl.

I even have nephews who make music, my daughter makes music. I don't know what advice to give them these days. It's really a tough industry to break into.

I studied German at school. I lived in Berlin for two years and had a German girlfriend for five years, so I don't find speaking German particularly difficult. Singing was slightly more difficult.

I've not worn a dress since about 1985. It always amazes me how there is still a fascination for it in England. The rest of the world doesn't seem to care. I'm not sure whether they don't remember or whether they've just moved on from it. I was brought up in the glam era.

I do a cover of a Velvet Underground song, and they were one of the most important bands, for me.

It creates a conflict of interest - what songs would I use for me, and what would I use for the band.

I started getting back into buying old analog gear while we were recording. Lots of old drum machines and synths. It wasn't a conscious thing. I didn't consider myself a collector, but boxes of vintage gear would turn up virtually every day.

I loathe the idea of going onstage in a T-shirt and jeans.

I tend to like songs that are very emotional, that strike a chord with me emotionally.

I wasn't ever a massive David Essex fan, but I liked a few of his tracks, and Stardust was one of them.

More than accepted, it's encouraged for rock stars to be out of control.

Our music over the years has been very cinematic. It's surprising we never really got into film soundtracks.

When people meet me I think they're surprised to find out I'm not always angst-ridden.

There are definite reference points to older Depeche Mode records.

I find songwriting a really personal process, so I don't know if I would actually like to sit in a room with somebody else and write songs.

I feel like I'm making myself a lot more vulnerable when I'm writing songs. Doing cover versions is almost like being able to hide behind things.

I've got a really small studio set up at home. It's not like a big, old fashioned recording studio, it's just like a home set-up.

I like the idea of doing cover versions. I think it's always interesting when people from bands because it shows people some of their influences.

If I had spent seven or eight months of last year in a studio working stupid studio hours, I wouldn't have seen my family for that whole period.

I don't think I ever worry too much about what our target audience is, what we should be releasing. I just write naturally and organically and try to write from the heart.

The majority of the time I'm at home with my family, I play football three times a week.

The only things we have to worry about are really stupid things...

I'm not particularly prolific.

All of my kids are into music. My older daughter plays guitar, piano, sings. My young son, he sings.

I will be the focal point for however long I decide to play. Half of me likes that idea and half of me doesn't, but once the adrenaline kicks in, I'll probably really enjoy it.

When I write love songs, people think they're really soppy - but I see love as a consolation for the boredom of life.

I think being in a band is probably the only job when you're actively encouraged to be out of it most of the time.

You make one solo album, and some people swear you're about to leave the band or there are creative differences.

I wanted to keep the music very electronic, very filmic, and give it an almost sci-fi like quality. Music is a necessity for me. I go into the studio at least five days a week, every week, so once I had the idea and the template, the process was quick and fun.

I don't like to think 10 years down the road.

If you took music out of my life, I don't know what I'd do. It's the one thing that I have a real passion for.

I don't write poems and put them to music. Just let things flow.

I try to get a degree of realism in my music.

As part of Depeche Mode, I don't think it's right for me to be using my own songs for a solo project. I'm not a very prolific songwriter, so I keep those for Depeche Mode.

I sit down and create atmospheres, start playing guitar or piano and just sing whatever comes out of my mouth.

I love being in the studio. If I'm at home, I will go to the studio pretty much every day anyway. It's just something that I like to do.

I didn't write songs for a very long time.

Record covers helped me discover a lot of music that I wasn't aware of.

People are People still gets played to death on '80s stations. It was our first big break in America. It's not exactly my favorite song.

There's something insane about this business - about the cycle of making albums and going on tour to promote them.

There are Depeche Mode parties around the world where people listen to our music all night long. The more remixes we can give them, the more interesting those nights have got to be.

If you repeat yourself, then I think you're in danger of losing that fan base, because if you're not interesting yourselves, you're not interesting your audience.

I didn't expect us to be around after 25 years.

There haven't been many credible electronic covers records.

When you first sit down to write the first song, until you've maybe got three or four under your belt, it's always, to me, like a mountain to climb. You look at that one blank piece of paper and you think, `God, how many songs do I have to write here?' It always feels like pressure.

I want people to feel good about listening to this record, to get some kind of peace. It's just got something magical about it.

I live in Santa Barbara. My wife's American, and she lived in England for 11 years and then told me she'd had enough.

Once I'd chosen the songs, it seemed like it would just be a question then of recording them. But it's a case of trying to re-invent the songs; taking them in different directions.

I don't know if it's cool to say this anymore, but I grew up listening to Gary Glitter. A majority of his songs were in that shuffle-blues beat, and I think that's probably why I tend to write like that.

For years, I was stuck behind a keyboard rig. When I started playing guitar onstage, it was a bit of a release - not to be stuck in one spot the whole night. It's really enjoyable having the freedom to move around. You just have to remember to end up somewhere near a microphone.

I'm not advocating violence but I think somebody should shoot Simon Cowell.

Anything that I write comes from the soul.