Shout! is another underrated early-era Depeche Mode song. Much of it is in a major key, sounds kind of distant and positive – but it’s bordered by a mildly dissonant header and footer. It makes for a nice complement. Who knows what they are talking about. “Break away tonight / I wanna hold your hand / We gotta get it right / We’ve got to understand” Vince Clarke says those early lyrics are throwaway.
I didn’t quite realize how that dissonance affected the mood until I watched a live performance online recently. A tritone was the focal point for the first minute or so. Overshadowed by the triad harmonies, which are almost cheesy.
I remember buying the 12″ for this – from Wow records at Hudson Mall. “New Life” b/w “Shout.” I did like the b-side back then but it felt a little empty. It’s an echoey, cavernous song with lots of space. And then it goes on forever at the end, and lightens up with this cheery keyboard melody.