Counterfeit 2
Counterfeit 2 (stylized as Counterfeit²) is the first full-length studio album by Martin L. Gore, the primary songwriter for the band Depeche Mode, and his second release (his first being the Counterfeit EP in 1989). Released April 28, 2003 in Europe and April 29, 2003 in the US, Counterfeit² is an album featuring 11 covers of songs that Gore considered influential to his own compositions for Depeche Mode. He recorded this album around the same time as Dave Gahan recorded his first solo album Paper Monsters, after the Exciter Tour ended, and around the same time Andy Fletcher produced Client's self-titled debut album. Counterfeit² is a very synth heavy album compared to Depeche Mode's prior two albums, Exciter and Ultra, and includes a song sung completely in German ("Das Lied vom einsamen Mädchen"). Gore also went on a brief tour consisting of a few concerts in Europe and Los Angeles.
| Counterfeit² | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | April 28, 2003 | |||
| Recorded | Electric Ladyboy (Santa Barbara) | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 42:59 | |||
| Label | Mute | |||
| Producer |
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| Martin L. Gore chronology | ||||
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| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 59/100[2] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Blender | [3] |
| The Guardian | [4] |
| Mojo | [5] |
| Pitchfork | 6.9/10[6] |
| Q | [7] |
| Release Magazine | 8/10[8] |
| Uncut | 6/10[9] |
Counterfeit 2 (stylized as Counterfeit²) is the first full-length studio album by Martin L. Gore, the primary songwriter for the band Depeche Mode, and his second release (his first being the Counterfeit EP in 1989).
Released April 28, 2003 in Europe and April 29, 2003 in the US, Counterfeit² is an album featuring 11 covers of songs that Gore considered influential to his own compositions for Depeche Mode. He recorded this album around the same time as Dave Gahan recorded his first solo album Paper Monsters, after the Exciter Tour ended, and around the same time Andy Fletcher produced Client's self-titled debut album. Counterfeit² is a very synth heavy album compared to Depeche Mode's prior two albums, Exciter and Ultra, and includes a song sung completely in German ("Das Lied vom einsamen Mädchen").
Gore also went on a brief tour consisting of a few concerts in Europe and Los Angeles.
Track listing
[edit]CD: Mute / CDSTUMM214 (UK)
[edit]| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original artist | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "In My Time of Dying" | Blind Willie Johnson | Blind Willie Johnson | 4:24 |
| 2. | "Stardust" | David Essex | David Essex | 3:08 |
| 3. | "I Cast a Lonesome Shadow" | Hank Thompson | 4:51 | |
| 4. | "In My Other World" |
| Julee Cruise | 3:53 |
| 5. | "Loverman" | Nick Cave | Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds | 7:02 |
| 6. | "By This River" | Brian Eno | 4:01 | |
| 7. | "Lost in the Stars" | From the musical Lost in the Stars | 2:52 | |
| 8. | "Oh My Love" | John Lennon | 3:33 | |
| 9. | "Das Lied vom einsamen Mädchen" | Hildegard Knef | 5:25 | |
| 10. | "Tiny Girls" | Iggy Pop | 3:20 | |
| 11. | "Candy Says" | Lou Reed | The Velvet Underground | 4:35 |
| Total length: | 42:59 | |||
Personnel
[edit]- Andrew Phillpott – producer
- Paul Freegard – producer
- Anton Corbijn – art direction, sleeve photo
- Jennifer Secord – supplementary photos
- Peter Gordeno – piano on "Lost in the Stars", Fender Rhodes on "Das Lied Von Einsamen Mädchen" and backward solo on "Tiny Girls"
- Martin L. Gore – vocals, synthesizer, guitar, arranger
- Kris Solem – mastering
Singles
[edit]"Stardust"
[edit]- A single for the track "Stardust" was released two weeks prior to the release of Counterfeit². It included the B-sides "Life Is Strange" and a video of "Left Hand Luke and the Beggar Boys" (both are two soul songs written by Marc Bolan from the 1973 T. Rex album Tanx), along with various remixes of "Stardust" and "I Cast a Lonesome Shadow".
Loverman EP²
[edit]- After Counterfeit², saw the release of Loverman EP² which included mixes of "Loverman" and "Das Lied vom einsamen Mädchen". There was also a version with a DVD which included footage of Gore's Milan show on April 30, 2003, and an interview. It was released in November in the UK and was not released in the US.
References
[edit]- ^ a b Kellman, Andy. "Martin Gore – Counterfeit²". AllMusic. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
- ^ "COUNTERFEIT 2 by Martin L. Gore". Metacritic. Retrieved 18 June 2018.
- ^ The musical treatment is Depeche Mode-lite, setting generally passionate songs in an antiseptic electronic context, and Gore's over-earnest voice lacks the presence to reinvigorate them. [May 2003, p.120]
- ^ Lynskey, Dorian (25 April 2003). "CD: Martin L Gore: Counterfeit 2". The Guardian. Retrieved 10 March 2021.
- ^ In part gripping.... But Gore doesn't always push his voice to its brilliantly effete/effeminate extremes. [May 2003, p.104]
- ^ Pitchfork Media review
- ^ While his taste is textbook classic, his arrangements are not. [May 2003, p.104]
- ^ Huss, Mattias (17 March 2003). "Martin Gore: Counterfeit 2". releasemagazine.net. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
- ^ Gore's brittle choirboy voice lacks the depth and grandeur of Gahan's, but he still gamely takes on some adventurous choices. [Jun 2003, p.108]
