don't listen to the naysayers. the U.S. reisssue of 'speak and spell' is a more than worthy addition to the dm reissue canon. chances are you already own 'speak and spell,' as well as it's great b-sides, 'ice machine,' 'i sometimes wish i was dead,' and 'shout,' so i won't get into the album itself.

the accompanying dvd is a veritable treasure trove for mode-a-philes, the most shiniest diamond being the interviews with vince clarke. i don't know much about vince's personal feelings about dm, but if he harbors any grudge, it certainly doesn't show. and it was nice to hear the man actually speak. it's a nice treat. it was also so great to hear the stories behind the early mode gigs, how daniel miller first decided to sign the band, how seymour stein flew to basildon to see them live, how they recorded the album, the genesis of the hideous album cover, and the truly embarrassing, but endearing and charming, early live performances on TOTP and other british tv shows. dave looks like he's about 14 years old. he comes of as shy and naive--a far cry from the dave we'd see but 10 years later. vince seemed in command from the beginning, martin seems confused and fletch, well, he's fletch.

as with the violator and masses reissues, the mixing sounds great. i picked up a lot of bells and whistles in the songs i'd previously missed. i only wish they would've included the b-sides on the cd, or as a bonus cd.

of course 'speak and spell' sounds cheesy in 2005. it's 25 years old and any fair assestment/critique of 'speak and spell' needs to examine when it was recorded and released. in 1981 synthesizer music technology was still very much in its embryonic state. Very few bands (kraftwerk, human league, OMD, depeche mode, among other) used synths and even fewer knew how to harness the technology. i imagine programming synths was a lot like building rocket ships -- lots of trial and error, some hits, some misses.

it should come as little suprise, then, that 'speak and spell' is a bit simplistic and cheesy. what's impressive about 'speak and spell,' however, are the absolutely phenomenal melodies vince clark composed. one listen to 'just can't get enough' and its permanently engravaed into your brain. and since it was vince clarke's album, it bears hardly and resemblence to the latter martin gore dm albums (the exception being 'photographic' and 'puppets' -- both a bit darken in tone). its easy to forgive vince for 'what's your name?' when he wrote such classic dm songs as 'new life,' 'dreaming of me,' and the aforementioned 'photographic' and 'just can't get enough.'

what's special about 'speak and spell' are the classic dm synth intros--most of the songs have a synth intro. 'just can't get enough' and 'new life' are prime examples of a new style of songwriting. vince didn't waste time with the hook coming in the middle of the song or the verse or a bridge. the hooks were front and center, immediate attention grabbers. in that way, vince single-handedly changed pop songwriting.

if you do invest in 'speak and spell,' be sure to get the import version. several essential dm cuts aren't found on the US release, namely: 'i sometimes wish i was dead,' 'shout,' and 'ice machine.' of the three, 'shout' is a standout. i sure wannabe synthlords scratched their collective heads wondering how in the world vince got that sort of sound out of a keyboard. it's an amazing song and worth the heavy asking price.

in the end, does 'speak and spell' hold up 25 years on? no, not really. but that's hardly the point. to listen to an album released in 1981, you sort of have to listen to it with 1981 ears. to do anything else does you, the album and the band a huge disservice because underneath the fluff lay some of the greatest synth songs ever penned by synth music's uberoverlord, vince clarke.

First of all, I have been a fan of this album since the 80's, and this is definitely the version to own. The only problem is this is NOT remastered. It is the same import disc that has been available since 1988. I re-purchased it thinking it was an improved version, but it is only a re-release.

The bonus tracks are great, and one of them is only available on this edition ("I Sometimes Wish I Was Dead"). The other four are available on three American CD singles (Dreaming of Me, New Life, and I Just Can't Get Enough). If you don't own the album, buy this disc. If you own the American version but want the bonus tracks, buy this disc. But if you have imported this disc in the past DO NOT re-buy it. You are getting nothing new for your money.

Speak & Spell, the work of keyboardist, Vincent Clarke (who I've followed throughout his 20 year career with Depeche Mode, Yaz, and Erasure) is oddly cheesy, yet cool at the same time. It's obvious when listening to the music that the Depeche Mode band members were just beginning their careers -the lyrics are pretty cheesy and the songs are kind of weird and silly- but notwithstanding, the melodies, though generally simple, are funky and cool as are the synthesizer tones that Clarke employs. In fact, for a number of reasons, this is one of my favorite Depeche Mode albums. Although, Clarke has come a LONG ways since Speak & Spell (in the right direction), I still consider this album one of the cooler 80's synthesizer pop albums to have ever been developed.

The Package.

Double digipack containing a remastered Audio CD, and a DVD with remastered stereo, 5.1, and DTS versions of the album. The DVD also contains the extra tracks and a half-hour "documentary".

The Good.

The documentary is a great bonus.

The remastered CD is better than the original CD release, albeit only marginally.

It is very interesting to hear the DTS versions because you can pick up a lot you never heard in the original stereo versions. Tracks are nice and crystal clear, and also slightly different from the originals, and not just because of the DTS. The vocals are very clear and for once it is easy to understand the lyrics.

The Bad.

Why does the CD not contain the extra tracks? This is completely bizarre!

The DTS versions are not very well done. The drums sound puny compared to the originals and are very watered-down on several tracks. New Life is particularly weak. It's difficult to describe but you will hear it instantly - the "clap" sound present in most of the original snares is very distant or non-existant, so it's quite strange to hear this. Some FX seem to have been stripped from or modified in certain sounds and, while interesting, detracts from the enjoyment - I find myself thinking "it's not supposed to sound like that". This is especially true in sounds where reverb seems to have been lowered considerably.

If I had the choice over again, I'm not sure I would have paid the $23 for this package. The Audio CD could have been remastered a lot better and should have included all the b-sides and extra tracks - try getting them from the DVD onto your iPod!! Also, how about some other studio tracks from around the same time as extras - Television Set, Reason Man, I Like It ... etc. This alone would make it worthy of being called a "Deluxe" edition.