Music for the Masses (Deluxe Edition)

Music for the Masses was meant to be an ironic title, but there’s a tangible increase in grandeur in these songs. Opener “Never Let Me Down Again” anticipates the stadiums they’d soon be playing by welcoming in guitars and Led Zeppelin-sampling beats. “Nothing” and “Behind the Wheel” offer similarly widescreen synth-pop, but it’s not all swinging for the arena rafters: “Little 15” almost tips into chamber music and “The Things You Said” is one of Martin Gore’s most graceful and haunted ballads.