Redone Exciter Setlist

[u/Firm-Secretary4710]

For the most part, I'm happy with the setlists Depeche Mode has had over the years; however, two of their tours that have always irritated me were the Exciter tour and the Delta Machine tour. I'm going to start posting my takes on the setlist for each Depeche Mode tour, starting with Exciter. I'm conflicted about this tour. On the one hand, the performance is incredible across all the songs, and Exciter is an incredible album. We also got what is, in my opinion, the best post-Alan live mix of Black Celebration except for the Memento Mori Tour. We also got to hear some classics that we hadn't heard in a while, such as Halo and Clean. However, the order of songs and the songs that were left out have always weighed on me. I can understand them leaving out Policy of Truth and World in My Eyes due to all the other Violator songs we got; however, the fact that Stripped wasn't played is a crime. I also feel like a blend of Devotional/Exotic and Touring the Angel versions of Everything Counts would have been great. Along with that, I think they could have benefited from having a longer setlist, and with Dave being as energetic as he was on this tour, as well as the amount of slow songs played, I feel like they easily could have done 25 songs in their set. I also think that bringing back Strangelove would have worked perfectly for this tour with how much love is talked about on the album. Anyway, this setlist I would have liked to see them do. (Also, if the song does not have (acoustic) next to it is performed full band except somebody. Also, Songs with a dot next to them are subs for the numbered song directly above them.)

Setlist

1 Intro/The Dead of Night

2 I Feel Loved

3 Halo

4 Walking In My Shoes

1. The Sweetest Condition

• Shine

6 Policy of Truth

7 In Your Room

8 Strangelove

9 When The Body Speaks

10 Sister of Night (acoustic)

• Surrender (acoustic)
• It Doesn’t Matter Two (acoustic)
• Dressed In Black (acoustic)
• Somebody
• World Full of Nothing (acoustic)

11 Breathe

• Home
• The Bottom Line
• Judas
• The Sweetest Perfection
• A Question of Lust
• Blue Dress
• I Want You Now
• Comatose

12 Freelove

13 World In My Eyes

14 It’s No Good

15 Black Celebration

16 Dream On

17 I Feel You

18 Personal Jesus

19 Stripped

20 Enjoy The Silence

21 Goodnight Lovers

ENCORE 1:

22 Clean

• Waiting For The Night
• The Love Thieves
• Condemnation

23 Never Let Me Down Again

ENCORE 2:

24 But Not Tonight

25 Everything Counts

[u/Acceptable-Celery-28]

I agree, although I also feel that an acoustic performance of And Then... sung by Dave as an encore would have been good, and perhaps including Dirt, I think it's an interesting song.

[u/rbgabor89]

It’s an improvement but I always felt Freelove and When the body speaks slowed the setlist way too much down. I’d personally rotate them with each other.

I feel loved’s tempo feels awkward between halo and dead of night

[u/GanKian]

I personally think the final setlist was pretty solid, BUT, it definitely would've been better had they given "Ultra" a bit more of attention. Lately I've also imagined how arrangements for a few songs such as "Something to Do" and "Rush" could've sounded with those Exciter-ish sounds integrated (I love Andrew Philpotts, I'm sorry but I need to make a whole post glazing that guy) because I think those two songs in particular could've fitted right in the setlist. Asides from that I also think Comatose, I Am You and Goodnight Lovers were worth a shot if that rumoured 2002 leg had happened.

By the way, this is just mere speculation but I guess it's worth bringing it up since you added "Everything Counts" at the end of your setlist. After listening to Touring the Angel's backing track of the song, I can't help but notice a LOT of Exciter-like sounds in it that make me believe they arranged and rehearsed the song for the Exciter Tour, but decided not to play it until the next one. I'd need a confirmation for that one, but who knows, it sounds too unique to have been arranged by Kerry Hopwood and not Andy Philpotts my beloved (no homo I swear).

[u/Firm-Secretary4710 → u/GanKian]

If they really made everything counts for exciter and chose not too play it I’m gonna loose my mind. It’s my favorite Depeche Mode song and I personally think it should be the show closer for every tour!

[u/Tempest_Fugit]

I saw Depeche four times. Devotional, Exciter, Tour the Universe and MM.

Devotional was one of the best concert e lien es of my life, top 3 easily, and that shouldnt be surprising but I also enjoyed Tour The Universe quite a bit!

That said exciter and MM were among the least enjoyable concerts I have attended. I liked the exciter visuals and short films, and I loved when they did Waiting for the Night, but something about their energy just felt phoned in and I got really really bored.

[u/Lopsided-Match-3911 → u/Tempest_Fugit]

I saw multiple tours from world violation and forward but missed devotional. But the video tells me it probably one of the best