In Chains

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In Chains
Song	In Chains
By	Depeche Mode
Songwriter	Martin L. Gore
Produced by	Ben Hillier
Recorded at	Sound Design (Santa Barbara) Chung King (New York)
Length (mm:ss)	6:53
Tempo	90 BPM
Time signature	4 4
Key	A Major
Programmed by	Luke Smith
Engineered by	Ferg Peterkin
Engineering assistance	Josh Garcia Jesse Gladstone Anthony Palazzole
Pre-production assistance	Sie Medway-Smith
Mastered by	Stephen Marcussen
Art direction	Anton Corbijn
Design	ShaughnessyWorks Tea Design
Recorded	May - December, 2008
Originally released	17 April 2009
Live performances as Depeche Mode	103 times *
Total live performances	104 times *

"In Chains" is a song from the 2009 album Sounds Of The Universe by Depeche Mode.

Notes

Dave Gahan says in the Sounds Of The Universe EPK:

"'In Chains' is another [song off the album] which I really like which I think is a classic soul song, its got that kind of feel about it, that it could have been something that Marvin Gaye performed, that kind of soul-y song, its got beautiful lyrics and it was great to sing, it was one of the most challenging songs for me to get where I wanted it to be vocally with my voice but we got there in the end."

Martin Gore told Keyboard magazine:

"I think it's in my warped head, there's something Stevie Wonder-like about 'Little Soul', like there's something Marvin Gaye-like about 'In Chains'. [...] I had a dream about the tuning up of the synths, as an orchestra tunes up. It so happened that 'In Chains' starts in the key of A minor. So we were able to start the beginning of the album with the A440 tuning tone from the Minimoog, and just recorded, gradually tuning a load of synths to that A. We thought that only real keyboard aficionados would recognize that initial, little click of the Minimoog [powering up], then the A440 going on."

Gore told newspaper Ouest France (translated from French):

"I dreamt of starting the album with the sound of an orchestra of synthesizers tuning up, like a classical orchestra before a concert. We translated this idea with an old Mini Moog. But the rest of the song is more inspired by soul. It's as if Marvin Gaye was singing with an electro band."

In 2011, former member Alan Wilder was asked to remix a Depeche Mode song the then upcoming Remixes 2: 81–11 release. Wilder recalls the experience of remixing a post-Wilder Depeche Mode song in a news post on Shunt, the official Recoil website:

I have to say it was a tempting proposition to try and remix something for Depeche Mode after all these years, and I appreciated the gesture of being asked. It was requested that I choose something post-Songs Of Faith And Devotion which proved an interesting experience, trying to choose a track from their more recent material, and a particular challenge since I had very little time to do the mix given I was stuck in technological limbo somewhere in the French [countryside]!

To help me decide, I asked Mute to provide stems from several short-listed songs, so that I could listen to component parts and make a more informed decision. In the end I decided that "In Chains" could maybe benefit most from the Wilder treatment, hopefully expanding the dynamics and overall power. I thought the song and the existing vocal performance was strong (even though Dave’s voice arrived with all its effects bounced together, so I was stuck with those).

The general experience was a bit weird and took me back to particular recording periods we spent together years before. I could imagine, through this process of listening to individual parts, how the original recording of "In Chains" might have come together.

We ended up with two quite different versions of "In Chains" and I’m happy with the results. I hope the fans will like them too.

Lyrics

In Chains

The way you move

Has got me yearning

The way you move

Has left me burning

I know you know what you're doing to me

I know my hands will never be free

I know what it's like to be

In chains

The way you move

Is meant to haunt me

The way you move

To tempt and taunt me

I know you knew on the day you were born

I know somehow I should have been warned

I know I walk every midnight till dawn

In chains

You've got me dying for you

It's you that I'm living through

You've got me praying to you

Saying to you

Anything you want me to

You've got me reaching for you

My soul's beseeching me to

You've got me singing to you

Bringing to you

Anything you ask me to

The way you move

Is mesmerising

The way you move

Is hypnotising

I know I crumble when you are around

Stutter, mumble, a pitiful sound

Stagger, stumble, shackled and bound

In chains

You've got me dying for you

It's you that I'm living through

You've got me praying to you

Saying to you

Anything you want me to

You've got me reaching for you

My soul's beseeching me too

You've got me singing to you

Bringing to you

Anything you ask me to

I'm in chains

In chains

Songwriter: Martin L. Gore
Publishing Information: ©2009 EMI Music Publishing Ltd licensed by Grabbing Hands Music Ltd All rights reserved.

Live performances

Main article: Available recordings of "In Chains"

Main article: List of dates where "In Chains" was played