Depeche Mode sample sources

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In music, sampling is the reuse of a portion (or sample) of a sound recording within another recording. As pioneers of the developing electronic music genre in the early 1980s, Depeche Mode were among the first acts to make common use of new sampling technology in a traditional pop music format, bringing the technique to the forefront of the music industry.

Among the thousands of original samples recorded and utilized by Depeche Mode to enhance the atmosphere of their musical output are many that originated elsewhere, including brief passages of musical recordings by other artists, snippets of audio from television shows, radio broadcasts, films, environmental sounds, and more. Analysis of these sample sources and how they are manipulated is a common topic of discussion among fans of the group.

Information

Within reason, this page aims to document all verifiable sound sources for many of the musical parts used by Depeche Mode in the production of their studio albums, official remixes, and live performances, as well as the samples used in the production of former Depeche Mode member Alan Wilder's Recoil studio albums, official remixes, live performances, and other works. It is worth noting that, due to the nature of many samples, which are often transposed, reversed, tweaked, and otherwise manipulated almost beyond recognition, this article will only differentiate samples by their origin: Self-made samples, which describes any material originally recorded by Depeche Mode or Recoil, and Sourced samples, which describe samples which were not originally recorded by either group. In addition to confirmed samples, this article also covers samples that are commonly misreported as being used but have been directly refuted by a member or associate of Depeche Mode or Recoil. As ever, if you see any errors, please feel free to contact us.

The confirmation status of each sample is measured by the following standard:

Key
Official	The sample is confirmed to have been used in the specified song by a past/present member of Depeche Mode, an individual involved in its production, or band archivist Daniel "BRAT" Barassi.
Confirmed	The sample is independently confirmed to have been used in the specified song.
Likely	The sample is likely to have been used in the specified song but has not yet been confirmed.
Unconfirmed	The sample is not yet confirmed to have been used in the specified song.
Disproven	The sample is confirmed to not have been used in the specified song.
Unknown	It is unclear if the sample was used in the specified song.

Depeche Mode

Speak And Spell

Speak And Spell does not contain samples from any identifiable sources.

A Broken Frame

A Broken Frame does not contain samples from any identifiable sources.

Construction Time Again

Sourced samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
Everything Counts (Tim Simenon/Mark Saunders Remix)	1989	Breathing sound	Kraftwerk - Tour de France	1983	Unconfirmed
		Intro sweep	Kraftwerk - Die Roboter	1978	Unconfirmed
The Landscape Is Changing	1983	Spoken word in German	Einstürzende Neubauten - Merle (Die Elektrik)	1983	Unconfirmed

Some Great Reward

Self-made samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Notes
Blasphemous Rumours	1984	Metallic snare	The heavy snare used throughout the song is produced by recording the sound of a hammer smashing against a concrete floor. Wilder recalled in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site: It was a hammer on a concrete floor if I recall correctly.

Sourced samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
Master And Servant (Slavery Whip Mix/12" Version)	1984	Drum elements	Frankie Goes To Hollywood - Relax	1983	Disproven	The Face magazine reported in February 1985: [...] One of the most popular drum sounds on the Fairlight computer, for instance - the machine used by Trevor Horn to create many of Frankie's sounds - is that of Led Zeppelin... Alan Wilder: "No, I don't mind admitting it. We nicked a beat off one of Frankie's records and stuck it on our 12-inch. But I mean the actual sound, not the idea. It's not a drum sound that sells a record anyway, it's the whole song and the musical ideas. [...]" Electronics & Music Maker magazine then reported in 1986: In response to a complaint that Depeche Mode stole a Frankie Goes To Hollywood drum sound, Frankie's engineers replied that the Frankie drum sound was actually a Linn - itself a recording! Wilder directly refutes this claim in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site in response to a fan question regarding the authenticity of the story as reported in an unofficial 1986 biography Depeche Mode: Some Great Reward by Dave Thompson: Surprisingly, no truth whatsoever.
People Are People (Are People People? Mix)	1984	Doo-wop vocal sample	The Citadels - When I Woke Up This Morning	1964	Confirmed	Credit to Brat/Daniel Barassi for this discovery.

Black Celebration

1985 photograph of Martin Gore with the EMU Emulator II sampler keyboard during the recording of Shake The Disease. Photo by eBay seller magicmomentsug4u, retrieved via Facebook group “Depeche Mode Classic Photos And Videos”.

Self-made samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Notes
Fly On The Windscreen	1986	"Over and done with" Daniel Miller vocal sample	Wilder confirms the origin of this vocal sample in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site: "Over and done with" courtesy of Daniel Miller if memory serves correct.
		"Horse" Daniel Miller vocal sample	Wilder confirms the origin of this vocal sample in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site: Dan Miller saying 'Horse' repeatedly very fast (as used in Fly On The Windscreen').

Sourced samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
A Question Of Time	1986	Moan vocal sample	The Chanters - She Wants To Mambo	1954? (Re-release by Jazzman Records in 2014)	Officially confirmed	The second feminine moan in the song is sampled and played in a descending two note passage with EQ for added top-end during the chorus sections of A Question Of Time. Martin Gore confirmed the use of the sample in the August 1986 issue of Electronics & Music Maker: 'It's not that audible, though. It's a sample from a record called 'She Wants to Mambo', an old doo-wop disc. At the end of each verse, the woman who sings sort of moans. We sampled this moan and played it up a few notes, which made it sound like a girl moaning. We used it on the chorus section of 'A Question of Time'.'
Fly On The Windscreen	1986	"Their living hell" vocal sample	Peter Jennings, ABC News (Television News Report, unidentified date)	?	Likely	Jennings was an active news anchor from 2/1/1965 to 4/1/2005. It is likely the exact date of the report sampled by Depeche Mode occurred sometime before or between approx. November 1985 and December 1985 at the latest.
Fly On The Windscreen (Death Mix)	1986	"I don't care how you feel!" vocal sample	Richard Pryor - Unidentified film	?	Unconfirmed
		"Help the dying" vocal sample	Steve Kroft, CBS News (Television News Report, unidentified date)	?	Likely	Kroft was an active television news anchor with CBS news starting in 1980. It is likely the exact date of the report sampled by Depeche Mode occurred sometime before or between approx. November 1985 and December 1985 at the latest.
Sometimes	1986	"Sometimes" vocal sample	Louis Armstrong - Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child	1958	Likely	Credit to Home user 'personal cheese' for this discovery.

Music For The Masses

Self-made samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Notes
Never Let Me Down Again	1987	Processed guitar riff	In a July 4, 2019 interview with Super Deluxe Edition, Dave Bascombe recalls the production of the guitar riff: ...I remember Martin had his guitar, and it’s used quite a bit… the beginning of ‘Never Let Me Down’ for example…. what a wonderful, happy accident that was. It was supposed to start with the snare drum and then go straight in, but because of the nature of technology at the time, the guitar rift[sic] was played, then we sampled it into the Synclavier [early digital synthesizer/digital sampling system] and it just kicked off as soon as it got code at the beginning of the track and we all went ‘wow, that’s great’, so that was an accident.
I Want You Now	1987	Female 'ah' vocal samples / Sample of multiple laughing girls	Two girls described by Wilder as "hanging around" the studio during the recording of Music For The Masses were utilized during the production of I Want You Now. The women were recorded performing distinct 'ah' vocal "utterances" that act in place of snares alongside comparable vocals provided by Martin Gore throughout the song. Wilder recalled in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site: ...I think it was a couple of girls who were hanging around the studio - thought we'd make use of them ;-) In a July 4, 2019 interview with Super Deluxe Edition, Dave Bascombe recalls the vocals were recorded at Guillaume Tell studio by models in the area during Paris Fashion Week: ...It was Fashion Week when we were in Paris which terrible, you know [laughs] so models turned up at the studio and we got them to do the samples, just to get it a bit more hi-fi!
		'Breathing' accordion loop	The "breathing" effect heard throughout I Want You Now is produced by an accordion being inflated and deflated without depressing a key.
Nothing	1987	Hi-hat derived from the sound of a pneumatic coach door shutting	In a July 4, 2019 interview with Super Deluxe Edition, Dave Bascombe recalls the unique production of a hi-hat as used in Nothing and other album songs: We dug out a few of their old samples and I brought a lot of mine as well, which were more in the vein of just regular snare drums and kicks, although I did use, there’s one interesting sound which is used as a high hat on, I think ‘Nothing’, or maybe a few things, which is a pneumatic coach door shutting. Anyway, we did swap a few things around like that. I had an Emulator II [sampler/keyboard], we’d swap discs and so on.

Sourced samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
Never Let Me Down Again	1987	Classic John Bonham drum one-shots	Beastie Boys - Rhymin' And Stealin'	1982	Officially confirmed	The heavy drums of Led Zeppelin's When The Levee Breaks sampled on the Beastie Boys song Rhymin And Stealin were subsequently sampled by Depeche Mode. One-shot samples of the bass drum and snare drum are sampled and sequenced to form the primary drum pattern of Never Let Me Down Again. Wilder confirmed in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site that Never Let Me Down Again employs some drum elements originally from Led Zeppelin's When The Levee Breaks which were sampled second-hand from a rap record. The sampled parts would later be re-purposed for Halo and Get Right With Me. From memory, the drums were sampled from LED ZEPPELIN's When the Levee Breaks (but secondhand from a rap record). It is one of the most commonly used drum samples – for obvious reasons as it has that very special Bonham sound. The same snare drum sound appears on DM's Get Right With Me. I've also heard that snare on a MASSIVE ATTACK record and many others. I think Violator was the first album that we used whole performance drum loops to create rhythm tracks, as opposed to programmed single drum sounds, and Halo was one of the first tracks we recorded for Violator in fact. Flood and I were listening to quite a lot of hip hop and rap records at the time – those artists were the forerunners when sampling larger sections of rhythms and grooves. And the unusual feels that were created on those albums really influenced Violator and Songs of Faith and Devotion. In a July 4, 2019 interview with Super Deluxe Edition, Dave Bascombe recalls how the sampled percussion came to be used in Never Let Me Down Again: [Never Let Me Down Again is the one] that hit me when I first heard that demo, I thought that’s just fantastic. My sole contribution, well not my sole contribution – this is before we got to Paris, we were round at Alan’s house – and I said ‘right, I want to use ‘When The Levee Breaks’ [Led Zeppelin] drums on this.’ I know that it’s been used 10 billion times now, but they were still quite new then and I’d always loved those drum sounds and as I say they weren’t a cliched thing then, so I suggested using them for the main kick and snare. But I actually loved that track, still do.
		Classic John Bonham drum one-shots	Led Zeppelin - When The Levee Breaks	1971	Officially confirmed	Wilder confirmed in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site that Never Let Me Down Again employs some drum elements originally from Led Zeppelin's When The Levee Breaks which were sampled second-hand from a rap record. (Beastie Boys - Rhymin And Stealin).
		N/A	Gary Wright - Love Is Alive	1976	Unconfirmed
		Guitar riff and drum elements	3rd Bass - Wordz Of Wisdom, Pt. 2	1989	Officially confirmed	American hip-hop group 3rd Bass employed an uncredited sample of the opening guitar riff from Depeche Mode's Never Let Me Down Again for their 1989 track Wordz Of Wisdom, Pt. 2. Depeche Mode were fond of their use of the sample, and would later sample it back from Wordz Of Wisdom, Pt. 2 and employ it during the live interlude of Never Let Me Down Again as performed on the 1990 World Violation Tour. Former Depeche Mode member Alan Wilder would use this sample and other elements from Wordz Of Wisdom, Pt. 2 in the live production of In Your Room as part of Recoil's 2010-2011 Selected Events tour.
I Want You Now	1987	Female orgasm vocal samples (x2)	Unidentified pornographic film'	?	Confirmed	The pornographic film sampled by Depeche Mode for use in the production of I Want You Now is likely to have enjoyed an official release on VHS or Betamax cassette and would have been in widespread circulation by July 1987.
Nothing	1987	Classic John Bonham drum one-shots	Beastie Boys - Rhymin' And Stealin'	1982	Confirmed	Wilder confirmed in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site that Never Let Me Down Again employs some drum elements originally from Led Zeppelin's When The Levee Breaks which were sampled second-hand from a rap record. (Beastie Boys - Rhymin And Stealin). The Bonham snare drum sample is processed and re-purposed for the snare sequence of Nothing. The primary fill sequence features the snare playing a descending "melody" of 3-3-2, where each number corresponds to the number of snare hits and the key of the snare descends by one note from its root key every three hits.
		Classic John Bonham drum one-shots	Led Zeppelin - When The Levee Breaks	1971	Confirmed	Wilder confirmed in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site that Never Let Me Down Again employs some drum elements originally from Led Zeppelin's When The Levee Breaks which were sampled second-hand from a rap record. (Beastie Boys - Rhymin And Stealin). The Bonham snare drum sample is processed and re-purposed for the snare sequence of Nothing. The primary fill sequence features the snare playing a descending "melody" of 3-3-2, where each number corresponds to the number of snare hits and the key of the snare descends by one note from its root key every three hits.
Strangelove (The Fresh Ground Mix)	1987	N/A	Cameo - Word Up	1986	Unconfirmed
Route 66 (Beatmasters Mix)	1987	"They come from everywhere to take the challenge", "If they can name it they can claim it", "It's big money, high hopes, near misses, and love and kisses", "So, join host Tom Kennedy, tonight at 7:30, and 'Name That Tune!'" vocal samples from a television promotion for the television game show Name That Tune	Unspecified television advertisement for Name That Tune (game show)	?	Confirmed

Violator

Self-made samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Notes
World In My Eyes	1990	Primary snare	The origin of the primary snare sound used throughout the production of World In My Eyes (and, relatedly, its similar-but-different counterpart audible during the electronic interlude during the album version outro of Personal Jesus) is unclear. Wilder posits in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site: Can't remember exactly. I think we made it from scratch or it could be a combination of analogue and a sample.
		Minimoog/ARP 2600 bass	The origin of the bass is a combination of a series of unique synthesized parts, including a frequentially 'dark' synth bass with a heavy low frequency Moog-like quality, a velocity-sensitive synthesized bass part with a high resonance and slight filter cutoff settings, and a potentially ring-modulated velocity-sensitive synthesized bass part with a subtle filtered white noise setting (likely produced by the ARP 2600, though this is not confirmed). Wilder summarizes its production in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site: Again, can't remember exactly -most likely a combination of moog and Flood's Arp.
Personal Jesus	1989	'Stomp' drum elements	Wilder recalls in separate Q&A and Editorial features on the official Recoil project site: The main stomps... [were] a recording of 2 or 3 people jumping up and down on flight cases.
Halo	1990	Minimoog/ARP 2600 bass	The origin of the bass is a combination of likely two or more unique synthesized parts, including a frequentially 'dark' synth bass with a heavy low frequency Moog-like quality performed with a sensitive velocity setting for dynamic sonic changes per note, with an additional velocity-sensitive bass part produced with an identifiable square oscillator modulated in the synthesizer pipeline (likely produced by the ARP 2600, though this is not confirmed). Wilder summarizes its production in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site: I think [it was] created using a combination of the Minimoog and Flood's ARP.
		Various drum loops
Waiting For The Night	1990	ARP 2600 bass sequence with multiple delays	Wilder describes the production of this bass part in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site: Flood and I had been listening to Tangerine Dream and decided to try and create a similar atmosphere for this track. The main sequence was put together using his ARP and the sequencer that accompanies the synth. Due to its many velocity and filtering possibilities, this unit has a unique quality which is difficult to replicate using a modern-day sequencer triggered by MIDI. Once it has been set-up, in order for the sequence to be transposed to follow the chord structure of the song, I needed to play in each chord change from an external keyboard. A similar principal was applied to achieve the bubbling bass part which, together with the main sequence, forms the backbone of the track. The charm of the ARP sequencer stems from the slight tuning and timing variations that occur each time the part is played. This gives a sense of fluidity and continual change which seems to suit the song.
Policy Of Truth	1990	Main guitar rhythm	The primary guitar rhythm used prominently during the first two verses is produced by a single note played from a guitar, which is processed and looped to provide a built-in vibrato effect. The sample is then allocated across the keyboard for playback. Though not directly confirmed, it is likely a second sample is used to produce the faux guitar 'lick' present in the rhythm part in every other bar. Wilder recalled in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site: It's a single note sampled from a guitar and then looped and played from a keyboard. The loop is what gives it the vibrato effect.
		Hi-hat loops	Policy Of Truth employs sampled hi-hat rhythms sequenced as dynamic alternating loops, introducing an evolving rhythm to the song. Wilder explains the benefits of using loops over one-shot samples in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site: ...No two snare beats sound the same when played by a drummer - I like that. That's why I prefer to use lots of drum loops with all the feel (and flaws) of the original performance. Most of the drum sounds on 'Violator' were sampled (apart from obvious electro sounds) but the rhythms were still programmed. Some hi-hat patterns ('Policy' for example) were played and sampled as loops and in the case of 'Halo' and 'Clean' it's all loops. Again, I prefer the looped parts because of the performance element.
Clean	1990	Female 'ah' vocal sample	Clean employs a re-purposed female 'ah' vocal part originally recorded for use in Depeche Mode's I Want You Now. The part is performed in chorus with the snare starting from the second verse. Wilder recalled the recording of this vocal part in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site: ...I think it was a couple of girls who were hanging around the studio - thought we'd make use of them ;-)
		Various drum loops
Memphisto	1990	Vocal 'ahs'	Seemingly unlooped versions of the samples comprising the vocal 'ah' melody heard in the outro of Enjoy The Silence are re-used to dramatic effect in Memphisto
		Resonant bass stabs	Reverberated resonant bass stabs heard throughout Clean are layered in as bass elements in Memphisto

Sourced samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
World In My Eyes	1990	Bell tree sample	Fleetwood Mac - Black Magic Woman	1982	Confirmed	This sample is used for two distinct sounds in the production of World In My Eyes: One version of the sample features oscillating pitch with added reverb that is reversed and played in chorus with a separate sample, producing an exciting "whirl" effect that occurs during the verses and throughout the song. A second version of the sample appears on the first bar following the end of the first chorus, with added reverb to create a distancing effect. This sample is used to dramatic effect during the outro to the 1993 Devotional Tour version of World In My Eyes.
Sweetest Perfection	1990	Bell tree sample	Fleetwood Mac - Black Magic Woman	1982	Confirmed	This sample is looped and manipulated to produce a ghostly pad with oscillating pitch and creative panning effects during the verses.
Personal Jesus	1989	Vocal huffing rhythm	Kate Bush - The Dreaming	1982	Likely
		'Preacher' vocal sample "I'm not crazy anymore!"	A Cry In The Wilderness (film)	1974	Likely
Halo	1990	Classic John Bonham drum loop	Beastie Boys - Rhymin' And Stealin'	1982	Officially confirmed	Wilder confirmed in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site that Never Let Me Down Again employs some drum elements originally from Led Zeppelin's When The Levee Breaks which were sampled second-hand from a rap record. The sampled parts would later be re-purposed for Halo: From memory, the drums were sampled from LED ZEPPELIN's When the Levee Breaks (but secondhand from a rap record). It is one of the most commonly used drum samples – for obvious reasons as it has that very special Bonham sound. The same snare drum sound appears on DM's Get Right With Me. I've also heard that snare on a MASSIVE ATTACK record and many others. I think Violator was the first album that we used whole performance drum loops to create rhythm tracks, as opposed to programmed single drum sounds, and Halo was one of the first tracks we recorded for Violator in fact. Flood and I were listening to quite a lot of hip hop and rap records at the time – those artists were the forerunners when sampling larger sections of rhythms and grooves. And the unusual feels that were created on those albums really influenced Violator and Songs of Faith and Devotion.
		Classic John Bonham drum break	Led Zeppelin - When The Levee Breaks	1971	Officially confirmed	Wilder confirmed in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site that Never Let Me Down Again employs some drum elements originally from Led Zeppelin's When The Levee Breaks which were sampled second-hand from a rap record (Beastie Boys - Rhymin And Stealin). These samples were later re-purposed for use in Halo and Get Right With Me.
		Orchestral string samples, including one-shots and looped elements	Edward Elgar - Unidentified composition	?	Confirmed	Wilder confirmed in a July 27, 2011 interview with electricityclub.co.uk that Halo employs orchestral string elements sampled from an unidentified recording(s) of music composed by celebrated English composer Edward Elgar. The sampled recording would have been released prior to May 1989. The nature of the samples vary, including two one-shot string staccato parts and sampled chords stretched and mixed with additional strings: For the end choruses, there are some string samples which I think were derived from Elgar. One of my techniques is to find sections of classical strings and transpose / stretch these, then add my own samples, in order to formulate new and unusual arrangements. This was a case in point. The DM track ‘Clean’ utilised classical strings in a similar way. Notably, one of two sampled string loops as heard in the ending of Clean are re-purposed for use as orchestral stabs employed for the verse and chorus sections of Halo.
Policy Of Truth	1990	Delayed, sampled, and looped guitar and/or synthesized part	Tony Halliday - Time Turns Around	March 1989	Likely	The looped part appears sporadically throughout Toni Halliday's Time Turns Around, and is re-purposed for use during the bridge sections of Policy Of Truth. Notably, this song enjoyed a remix by Wilder in the form of the Euro-Tech Mix. Credit to Home user 'Alex' for this discovery.
Clean	1990	Bass guitar	Pink Floyd - One Of These Days	1971	Disproven	Wilder confirmed in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site that Clean does not employ a sample from Pink Floyd: I recognise the similarity but It's not a Floyd sample. It was programmed using a combination of analogue synth and sampled bass gtr.[sic]
		Orchestral string elements	Unidentified classical music recording, possibly Edward Elgar	?	Confirmed	Notably, one of two sampled string loops as heard in the ending of Clean are re-purposed for use as orchestral stabs employed for the verse and chorus sections of Halo.
Memphisto	1990	Orchestral string elements	Unidentified origin; possibly classical music recording, possibly Edward Elgar	?	Confirmed	An orchestral string staccato (one of two) originally heard during the choruses of Halo is re-purposed as a looped bass element with a slow attack throughout Memphisto. It is unclear if this musical part is original or sampled from a third-party source.
		Orchestral string elements	Unidentified classical music recording, possibly Edward Elgar	?	Confirmed	Similar to their use in Halo, both sampled string loops best heard in the outro of Clean are also used throughout Memphisto, notably during the second chorus section onward.
Happiest Girl (Pulsating Orbital Mix)	1990	Engine idling/orchestral hit sample	The Tornadoes- Telstar	1962	Confirmed	Credit to Brat/Daniel Barassi for this discovery.
Sea Of Sin (Sensoria Mix)	1990	N/A	Madonna - Vogue	1990	Unconfirmed
Policy Of Truth (Trancentral Mix)	1990	"I'm not a politician, I'm a businessman" Robert Hoskins vocal sample	The Long Good Friday (film)	1980	Likely
		N/A	My Side of the Story - The "Checkers" Speech, Richard M. Nixon speech broadcast, 1952	1952	Uncomfirmed
World In My Eyes (Oil Tank Mix)	1990	N/A	Kraftwerk - Musique Non-Stop	1986	Unconfirmed

Songs of Faith and Devotion

Self-made samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Notes
I Feel You	1993	Introductory distorted noise loop	Wilder confirms this particular part is a processed sound that originated from a non-described synthesizer in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site: You'd better be prepared to part with some cash - the noise actually comes from a synth. Part of the initial transient of the distorted noise loop present in the album version of I Feel You is removed so that the part begins on a brief moment of elevated pitch. This subtle edit produces an exciting result that would see use in all live performances of I Feel You from the 1993 Devotional Tour onward.
Walking In My Shoes	1993	Processed piano/harpsichord main riff	The main riff is a combination of piano and harpsichord processed with liberal amounts of compression and guitar amplifier tremolo. Wilder confirms the composition of this sound in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site: From that point onwards, Flood and I began to construct the various drum loops, the string arrangements, the main riff (which combined a piano and harpsichord through a distorted guitar amp) and all the other bits and pieces.
Condemnation	1993	Improvised flight case bass drum	Wilder describes the recording of various elementary elements of Condemnation in an editorial on the official Recoil project site: With experimentation still prevalent, the elementary sounds for the 3rd single, 'Condemnation' were recorded in the basement of the Madrid villa with one person banging a flight case, another clapping and a third scraping the wall with a tambourine. The vocals - which were to have a 'barbershop choir meets gospel Elvis Presley' flavour - proved that Depeche Mode had not abandoned their desire to find different and exciting ways of producing music. Built up track by track, individual takes were sung by (mainly) Martin and (sometimes) Alan and then manipulated using vari-speed to produce very low and very high pitches. Once added to Dave's lead vocal, the resulting close harmonies provided the barbershop body of the track.
		Tambourine	The tambourine fill present at the end of each bar repeating throughout the piece is produced by scraping the tambourine against a wall.
Judas	1993	"If you want my love" choir	This vocal performance is comprised of a large number of individual vocal recordings of individuals employed during the recording of Judas, the final album track to be recorded at Chateau du Pape Studio, with each individual's vocal performance multitracked six times each for a total of ninety indiidual voices, with additional delay, reverb, and EQ to introduce an intimate southern church-like quality to the vocals. Wilder describes the recording of this particular part in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site: 15 people (tape op's, studio secretaries, the cook etc...) multitracked 6 times making a total of 90 voices + delays and reverbs. Then we eq'ed the sound to make it seem like it was sung in a deep southern church hall in the 1960's, rather than Wembley stadium.
In Your Room	1993	Textured variphone pad	This textured pad is derived from the variphone and is used to atmospheric effect during the first verse and the outro of In Your Room. A 'fuller' variation of this pad with added distortion is used during the build-up to the outro of Mercy In You.
		Processed and double-tracked guitar "splang" chord samples	Wilder describes the recording of this particular part in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site: Affectionately known (to me anyway) as 'Splang' rather than 'twoo, twaa and twee', the sound is derived from a guitar. Each chord was sampled individually and then double-tracked with a second but different guitar sound. There is also a string/choir pad (another backwards sound) playing the same chords in the background.
		Orchestral tremolo string pads	A series of sustained orchestral tremolo string parts are employed throughout the track. The strings play in alternating chords to enhance the atmosphere of the choruses and build tension during the third verse's instrumental crescendo.
		Processed choir pads (reversed)

Sourced samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
Walking In My Shoes	1993	Drum loop	Funkadelic - Nappy Dugout	1973	Unconfirmed
Mercy In You	1993	Drum loop	The Headhunters - God Make Me Funky	1975	Unconfirmed
In Your Room	1993	Drum loop	Rusty Bryant - Fire Eater	1971	Confirmed
		Drum loop	Simtec & Wylie - Bootleggin'	1971	Unconfirmed
		Drum loop	Melvin Bliss - Synthetic Substitution	1973	Unconfirmed
Get Right With Me	1993	Classic John Bonham drum one-shots	Beastie Boys - Rhymin' And Stealin'	1982	Officially confirmed	Wilder confirmed in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site that Never Let Me Down Again employs some drum elements originally from Led Zeppelin's When The Levee Breaks which were sampled second-hand from a rap record (Beastie Boys - Rhymin And Stealin). These samples were later re-purposed for use in Halo and Get Right With Me.
		Classic John Bonham drum one-shots	Led Zeppelin - When The Levee Breaks	1971	Officially confirmed	Wilder confirmed in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site that Never Let Me Down Again employs some drum elements originally from Led Zeppelin's When The Levee Breaks which were sampled second-hand from a rap record (Beastie Boys - Rhymin And Stealin). These samples were later re-purposed for use in Halo and Get Right With Me.
		N/A	N.W.A. - Unspecified song	N/A	Unconfirmed
Higher Love	1993	Drum loop	U2 - So Cruel	1991	Officially confirmed	Wilder indirectly confirmed in a response to a question regarding the sonic similarity between the drums of Depeche Mode's Higher Love and U2's So Cruel in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site that a drum loop from U2's So Cruel was utilised by affirming producer Flood assisted in the production of both records (Depeche Mode would later cover this song, see So Cruel): Didn't Flood work on both LP's?..... The loop is produced by sampling various parts from the introduction of the U2 original, where the piano and vocals are not present and the drum rhythm is most exposed. The sample is stretched to match Higher Love's tempo of approx. 98 and subsequently sliced into separate parts for the bass drum and snares, which are sequenced accordingly. The piano remains audible in the final result, adding a sense of space to the loop. A separate slicing process and treatment of this loop is performed for drum fills, where the loop is reversed and repeated every two beats.
My Joy	1993	'Rolling' percussion fill	Beastie Boys - Funky Boss	1992	Confirmed	The 'rolling' percussion fill audible in the intro of the Beastie Boys' Funky Boss is sampled and stretched via resampling to match My Joy's approx. 101 BPM tempo, with light distortion/saturation added to introduce a 'dirty' quality to the part. As it was in the Beastie Boys original, this sample remains in use as a drum fill, appearing sporadically throughout the song.
		Heavy drum loop with built-in bass drum, snare, and programmed hi-hat sequence	Beastie Boys - Pass The Mic	1992	Confirmed	The heavy drum loop present in the brief instrumental break of the Beastie Boys' song Pass The Mic is sampled and streched via resampling to match My Joy's slightly faster BPM. Once matched for tempo, the sample is sliced into two bars, placing the part that originally plays in the second bar (which features a "slurred" quality on the first snare hit) into the first bar, and the remaining content is placed into the second bar. The results are then looped with some light processing added, creating the main drum bed of My Joy. For drum fills, the final beat of the first bar containing a snare hit is sliced and placed prior to the start of the loop. The drums were originally performed by Mike D. (Michael Diamond) during the recording of Check Your Head at G-Son Studios, Atwater Village, CA. According to the late MCA (Adam Yauch) in 1999: One memorable thing about recording "Pass The Mic" was the drums. We had heard that [Led Zeppelin drummer] John Bonham had used a really long kick drum on something and thought it would be interesting to put his technique to the test. Taking full advantage of the size of the G-Son live room/basketball court, we wrapped a long piece of cardboard from a refrigerator box around the kick drum and then put a mic at the far end of it. Mike played the beat, and we looped it.
My Joy (Slow Slide Mix)	1993	Drum loop	James Brown - Funky Drummer	1970	Confirmed
		Drum loop	Dexter Wansel - Theme From The Planets	1976	Confirmed
In Your Room (Jeep Rock Mix)	1993	Drum loop	Skull Snaps - It's A New Day	1973	Confirmed
Walking In My Shoes (Extended Twelve Inch Mix)	1993	N/A	The Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy - Language Of Violence	1992	Confirmed
Walking In My Shoes (Grungy Gonads Mix)	1993	Drum loop	Mountain - Long Red	1972	Confirmed
		Orchestral string passage	Ennio Morricone - In Chiesa, from the Ad Ogni Costo (film) soundtrack	1967	Officially confirmed	The string passage in the introduction to this orchestral piece was sampled by the late trip-hop pioneer Jonny Dollar and Portishead member Geoff Barrow for use in the Grungy Gonads Mix. The sample is stretched to match the tempo of Walking In My Shoes, with sixteen manual scratches on the third bar producing an exciting scratch effect. The sample appears in multiple Walking In My Shoes remixes from the period, and has commonly been employed in many performances of this song since its live introduction on the 1993 Devotional Tour. Credit to Christopher Baird for this discovery.
Walking In My Shoes (Random Carpet Mix)	1993	Orchestral string samples	Doctor Zhivago (film)	1965	Unconfirmed

Ultra

Self-made samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
Useless (The Kruder & Dorfmeister Session)	1997	Slide guitar stab	Depeche Mode - Policy Of Truth	1990	Confirmed	The Useless (Kruder & Dortmeister Session) includes a sample of a slide guitar stab from Depeche Mode's Policy Of Truth time-stretched to a slightly faster tempo.

Sourced samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
Painkiller	1997	N/A	Vanessa Paradis - The Future Song	1992	Unconfirmed
It's No Good (Hardfloor Mix)	1997	Drum elements	Fat Larry's Band - Down In The Avenue	1976	Confirmed	Credit to Christopher Baird for this discovery.
Useless (Cosmic Blues Mix)	1997	"I want to hear you play some bass" vocal sample	National Lampoon's That's Not Funny, That's Sick (Sketch comedy album)	1977	Likely

Exciter

Sourced samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
Dream On (Remix)	2001	N/A	Kraftwerk - The Robots	1978	Unconfirmed
The Sweetest Condition	2001	N/A	Kraftwerk - Musique Non-Stop	1986	Unconfirmed

Playing The Angel

Playing The Angel does not contain samples from any identifiable sources.

Sounds Of The Universe

Sounds Of The Universe does not contain samples from any identifiable sources.

Delta Machine

Delta Machine does not contain samples from any identifiable sources.

Spirit

Spirit does not contain samples from any identifiable sources.

Recoil

Upon his departure from the group in 1995, Alan Wilder would expand upon the creative sampling techniques he developed through the years as a member of Depeche Mode for his Recoil music project, utilising samples from contemporary music, films, film soundtracks, and samples from his own past work with Depeche Mode.

1 + 2

Self-made samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
1 & 2	1986	N/A	Depeche Mode – Any Second Now (Altered)	1981	Confirmed
		N/A	Depeche Mode – If You Want	1984	Confirmed
		N/A	Depeche Mode – The Sun & The Rainfall	1982	Confirmed
		N/A	Depeche Mode – "Oberkorn (It's A Small Town)	1982	Confirmed
		N/A	Depeche Mode – The Great Outdoors	1983	Confirmed
		N/A	Depeche Mode – Shouldn't Have Done That	1982	Confirmed
		N/A	Depeche Mode – Tora! Tora! Tora!	1981	Confirmed
		N/A	Depeche Mode – Shake The Disease (Edit the Shake)	1985	Confirmed
		N/A	Depeche Mode – Pipeline	1983	Confirmed
		N/A	Depeche Mode – Blasphemous Rumours	1984	Confirmed

Sourced samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
1 & 2	1986	N/A	Kraftwerk – Radioaktivität	1975	Unconfirmed
		N/A	Kraftwerk – Uran	1975	Unconfirmed
		N/A	Kraftwerk – Radioland	1975	Unconfirmed
		N/A	Duet Emmo – Or So It Seems	1983	Unconfirmed
		N/A	Duet Emmo – Heart of Hearts	1983	Unconfirmed
		N/A	The Hitmen – Shade in, fade out	1981	Unconfirmed
		N/A	Hard Corps - Je Suis Passée	1985	Unconfirmed

Hydrology

Sourced samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
Stone	1988	French vocal sample	French train announcer, unidentified source	?	Confirmed	Wilder confirmed in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site that Stone employs a vocal sample of a French train announcer, but is unsure of its origin.
Sermon	1988	Polish vocal sample	report about Pope John Paul II's sermon in Warsaw	9 June 1987	Confirmed	Alan Wilder: "I put the microphone on the shortwave radio, I tried to catch some climatic samples and that was the first thing that happened. I had no idea what they were saying! I liked the sound but it wasn't meant to be an integral part of the track, just atmosphere." The two fragments state the following: "[...] radcy nuncjatury w Lizbonie, którego Ojciec Święty mianował Pronuncjuszem Apostolskim w Tajla[-ndii...]" "[...] wzgórze wypełniło się młodzieżą maturalną… oprócz indywidualnych [inaudible] grup kraj przebyły też dwie pielgrzymki diecezjalne. Pierwsza z Archidiecezji Warszawskiej w liczbie około 8 tysięcy młodzieży [...]"

Bloodline

Self-made samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
Faith Healer	1992	Bell tree sample	Depeche Mode - World In My Eyes	1990	Confirmed	This sample was originally sampled for use in Depeche Mode's World In My Eyes, and is re-used to atmospheric effect in Faith Healer.
		Snare	Depeche Mode - World In My Eyes	1990	Confirmed
		Drum fill elements	Depeche Mode - Personal Jesus	1989	Unconfirmed
		Combination of Xpander 'zap' and Pro One bass sweep	Depeche Mode - Enjoy The Silence	1990	Confirmed
		"Eyes" vocoder sample	Depeche Mode - World In My Eyes (Dub In My Eyes Mix)	1990	Confirmed
		Looped 'ahh' vocal/choir sample (one of two)	Depeche Mode - Clean	1990	Confirmed	Credit to Christopher Baird for this discovery.

Sourced samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
Faith Healer	1992	Bell tree sample	Fleetwood Mac - Black Magic Woman	1982	Confirmed	This sample was originally sampled for use in Depeche Mode's World In My Eyes, and is re-used to atmospheric effect in Faith Healer.
Electro Blues for Bukka White	1992	N/A	David Bowie - Aladdin Sane	1973	Likely
		Bukka White vocal performance	Bukka White - Shake 'Em On Down	1937	Confirmed
Curse	1992	Diamanda Galás vocal sample	Diamanda Galás - Unidentified source	?	Unconfirmed
		Snare	Digital Underground - The Humpty Dance	1990	Confirmed
The Defector	1992	Anthony Hopkins "Closer...", "That is his nature", "No, no, no, no, no" vocal samples	Silence Of The Lambs (film)	1991	Likely
The Defector	1992	N/A	LFO - El Ef Oh	1991	Unconfirmed

Ebbhead (Nitzer Ebb album)

May 29th, 1991 Ebbhead interview with Depeche Mode member Alan Wilder

During the downtime between the conclusion of the 1990 World Violation Tour and the recording of Songs of Faith and Devotion, Alan Wilder would step into London's KONK Studios to record Recoil's Bloodline between January and March 1991. A month later, he would return to the studio to produce Depeche Mode support act Nitzer Ebb's Ebbhead record in collaboration with producer Flood and mix engineer Steve Lyon. As with his work in Depeche Mode and Recoil, Wilder would employ samples from a wide variety of sources in the production of this album.

Nitzer Ebb's Bon Harris on Wilder's musical prowess in 1991: "Alan has a very musical ear. He's classically trained, so he knows what he's doing when it comes to melody, but has no tolerance for pop - that's quite a good combination."

Sourced samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
Unidentified song	1991	N/A	Prince - Kiss	1990	Unconfirmed	In 1991, a fan contest was held where the winner would have the chance to spend a day in the studio with the members of Nitzer Ebb and Wilder during the recording of Ebbhead. During their time in the studio, the contest winner was played back a variety of samples by the group to see if they were able to identify their origin. One sample played to the contest winner was from Prince's 1990 lead single "Kiss", which the fan had difficulty identifying. This sample may or may not have made it onto the completed album.

Unsound Methods

A still of a Pro Tools session during an interview with Alan Wilder in the Unsound Methods EPK

Self-made samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
Incubus	1997	Percussion elements	Depeche Mode - Clean	1990	Confirmed	This percussive loop was originally recorded for use in Depeche Mode's Clean, and is re-used among other percussive elements for a rhythmic, tribal atmosphere in Incubus.
Last Breath	1997	E-bow guitar sample	Depeche Mode - Walking In My Shoes	1993	Unconfirmed

Sourced samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
Incubus	1997	Shouting vocal sample	Peter Gabriel - Rhythm Of The Heat	1982	Likely
Last Breath	1997	Drum loop	The Incredible Bongo Band - Last Bongo in Belgium	1973	Likely
		N/A	Ernest Gold and Pat Boone - The Exodus Song (This Land Is Mine)	1960	Unconfirmed
Shunt	1997	Gated synth element	Piquet - Caress	1996	Confirmed
		Sub bass and bass drum element	Massive Attack - Better Things	1994	Likely
Drifting	1997	Gated synth element	Peter Gabriel - Slow Marimbas	1985	Confirmed
Stalker	1997	Ambient pads	Peter Gabriel - Birdy (film soundtrack) - Unidentified source song	1985	Unconfirmed
		N/A	The Last Seduction (film)	1994	Unconfirmed
Luscious Apparatus	1997	Introduction guitar chord	The Cure - Club America	1996	Likely
Control Freak	1997	N/A	Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell - You're All I Need To Get By	1968	Unconfirmed

Liquid

Sourced samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
Black Box (Full)	2000	Orchestral string part	Symphony No. 3 (Górecki)	1992	Unconfirmed
		N/A	Plastikman - Consumed	1998	Unconfirmed
Want	2000	Drum loop	PJ Harvey - Is This Desire?	1998	Likely

SubHuman

Self-made samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
Allelujah	2007	Processed and double-tracked guitar "splang" chord sample	Depeche Mode - In Your Room	1993	Confirmed	Wilder describes the recording of this particular part in a Q&A on the official Recoil project site: Affectionately known (to me anyway) as 'Splang' rather than 'twoo, twaa and twee', the sound is derived from a guitar. Each chord was sampled individually and then double-tracked with a second but different guitar sound. There is also a string/choir pad (another backwards sound) playing the same chords in the background.

Sourced samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
Allelujah	2007	N/A	Tangerine Dream - Rubycon	1975	Unconfirmed
		Drum loop	Elbow - Fugitive Motel	2003	Unconfirmed
The Killing Ground	2007	Harmonica and drum elements	Talk Talk - The Rainbow	1988	Likely
99 To Life	2007	N/A	Digital Intervention - La Louve	2003	Unconfirmed

Miscellaneous remixes

Self-made samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
In Chains (Alan Wilder Remix)	2011	Ambient pads	Depeche Mode - The Darkest Star	2005	Confirmed
		Orchestral string arrangement	Depeche Mode - I Am You	2001	Confirmed
Inheritance	2012	Percussion elements	Depeche Mode - Nothing's Impossible	2005	Unconfirmed
Dum Dum Girl feat. Shara Worden	2012	Percussion elements	Depeche Mode - Nothing's Impossible	2005	Confirmed

Sourced samples

Song	Song release year	Sample Description	Source of sample	Source release year	Status	Notes
I Am Undone (Alan Wilder Remix)	2011	Percussion elements	Scott Walker - Manhattan	1995	Unconfirmed