To the rather unfortunate ignorance of many within their homeland, Depeche Mode are one of the biggest bands in the world.

Having sold over 100 million albums worldwide, with all seventeen reaching the top ten of the UK singles chart, Depeche Mode deserve to be held in similar esteem to the most revered British acts of all time, from The Beatles to David Bowie. Sadly, somehow, they are not.

And that's despite the fact that the current world tour is reported as being the most lucrative of the summer, raking in nearly 50 million dollars from the first seventeen dates.

Over the course of nearly forty years, the band have cultivated a vast and diverse back catalogue. After beginning their career as front runners in the synth-pop movement of the early eighties, they have matured through phrases of brooding industrial electronica and grunge influenced rock to the all-encompassing behemoth they are today. They have evolved, and lost nothing of their impact.

As testament to their broad ranging genius, the band's best songs read like a wildly different collection, hugely creative and always relevant, and they really deserve more attention.