To promote their latest album, Memento Mori, British superstars Depeche Mode appeared on the Radio 2 series Piano room with the BBC Concert Orchestra. As a part of the show, they performed a version of the Gordon Lightfoot song “Sundown,” modeled after the Scott Walker version.
“I just really love the song” said frontman Dave Gahan on being asked why they chose the song. “I thought there was something about the song that was very Depeche Mode-y in the lyric it’s got this dark content to it… There’s definitely some dodgy stuff going on.”
While Gahan may think there’s something dodgy in the tone and lyric of the song, there is nothing dodgy about this cover. It’s a relatively straightforward take on the Walker version – the same melody is kept and the BBC Orchestra fills the ears at appropriate points to add to the melancholy of the track. The percussion elements are in more focus here, and it does give the song a sense of urgency and movement, while Gahan’s voice almost naturally sounds like Walker’s, adding a sense of gravity.
Check it out below.
