Depeche Mode talk ahead of Sunday's gig at Arena Birmingham

Since 1993’s Songs of Faith and Devotion, Dave Gahan, Martin Gore and Andy Fletcher have released a new album every four years. And the James Ford-produced Spirit returned them to the top tier of charts around the world.

Fans have delighted in exceptional gigs at stadia and arenas around the world where they’ve enjoyed a carnival of greatest hits. This summer, they headlined a 66,000-capacity gig at the London Arena and they’ve been on the road since then.

A typical set list has featured Going Backwards, So Much Love, Barrel of a Gun, A Pain That I’m Used To, Corrupt, In Your Room, World in My Eyes, Cover Me, Strangelove, Home, Policy of Truth, Where’s the Revolution, Wrong, Everything Counts, Stripped, Enjoy the Silence and Never Let Me Down Again followed by an encore of Judas, Walking in My Shoes, David Bowie’s Heroes, I Feel You and Personal Jesus.

And on Sunday, Birmingham fans get to enjoy the action when the band roll into the city for a headline at the Arena.

The band have a vast catalogue filled with plenty of live favourites and they’ve been able to play arenas around the world for several decades. They have, however, avoided becoming one of rock music’s biggest bands, staying just below the level of U2, Coldplay, Oasis and others.

In a recent interview, Martin Gore said the band have enjoyed being outsiders. “We’ve always remained sort of a cult thing, although that’s changed a bit. Violator was one of those moments too, but I think it’s because it was the country where Just Can’t Get Enough and those songs first made a dent. And Brits are weird, they don’t really forgive you for those early shortcomings.”

Personal Jesus was released around the same time, having been inspired by a line that Dave Gahan read in a book by Priscilla Presley. Martin adds: “I do think that particular phrase was inspired by something Martin read in her book, where she talked about Elvis being [Southern-belle accent] ‘her own personal Jesus’, and I think that struck a chord with him. It’s a great line! It’s got Rock legena humour in it too as well, and there’s always this weird dark humour within a lot of Depeche Mode songs that people miss, tongue-in-cheek and also very British, but it was in that song for sure.”

But Depeche Mode have remained relevant into the new millennium with hits like Dream On in 2001, Heaven in 2013 and Where’s the Revolution in 2016. The track, from Spirit, was written against the back drop and Brexit and Donald Trump’s election.

Dave adds: “We live very wonderful, privileged lives, and we’re very lucky and fortunate, but it doesn’t mean we stop caring. With Brexit and everything, and then Donald Trump running for president, of course, we were like, “Is this really happening? No, of course not, it’s never gonna happen.” These songs were written a while ago, but they were written with the backdrop of all this stuff going on, and it’s impossible to not affected by the craziness of the world.”

The band’s recent run of success follows their decision to work with new producer James Ford, who hails from Leek, in Staffordshire, and gave Depeche their 17th top 10 UK album. James is best known for producing Arctic Monkeys and Klaxons and is also a member of electronica duo Simian Mobile Disco. He’s also worked with Foals, Mumford & Sons and Mystery Jets. And his love of electronica meant he made an instant connection with synth player Fletch.

“The fact he’s in an electronic duo, as well, was very appealing. He turned out to be a fantastic instrumentalist and plays drums and bass. We got on very well. What was amazing was that he really works fast. We actually finished the album in three sessions, so we had a couple of months off, which is normally not the case.

“This album’s a bit more minimal than recent stuff. Every sound is a key sound. It’s not cluttered. You have to remember we’ve heard each track a thousand times, so to be honest, you’re not sure if you made a good album or not, it’s normally six months on that you know.”

It’ll be a little while before Depeche re-emerge after their present tour. The band are unlikely to release a new album until 2020 – with more time on the road, followed by a break and the opportunity to write their next record.

Birmingham fans, therefore, should enjoy a rare chance to enjoy one of Britain’s greatest rock bands.