Violator
by Depeche Mode
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Depeche Mode bestography
Violator is ranked as the best album by Depeche Mode.
(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).
Listen to Violator on YouTube
Violator track list
The tracks on this album have an average rating of 85 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).
Top-rated track as rated by BestEverAlbums.com members.
Violator rankings
Calculated from aggregate positions across 60,000 charts (2 million album rankings). Click to see how the rankings are calculated (Last updated: 1 hour ago)
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Violator ratings
Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AVwhere:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.
Showing latest 5 ratings for this album. | Show all 1,411 ratings for this album.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Album ratings | Avg. album rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 4 hours ago | JoshN125 | 35 | 69/100 |
| ! | 08/13/2026 11:20 | TitoVampir | 193 | 76/100 |
| ! | 07/27/2026 15:54 |  Tamthebam | 23,243 | 69/100 |
| ! | 06/22/2026 22:20 | bjorndedrij | 178 | 57/100 |
| ! | 06/21/2026 12:09 | Neil_71 | 133 | 77/100 |
Rating metrics:
Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)
This album is rated in the top 1% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 83.5/100, a mean average of 82.4/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 83.5/100. The standard deviation for this album is 14.8.
Violator favourites
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Violator comments
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If more of the album had edgy synth like on "Halo" this could have been a lot better. For me this is not essential listening, as I found Music for the Masses much more interesting musically. "Enjoy the Silence" is nice though. (Edited)
Nice dark wave album, impressive album production, very 80's, probably one of the best Dark wave albums. (Edited)
EXCELLENT...BUT STILL...!! (Edited)
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Peak Depeche Mode and peak darkwave, feels like their whole career was building up to that album, it is quite consistent with huge hits that are also finest works on album - Enjoy The Silence, Personal Jesus, Policy Of Truth. I feel like Halo is pretty underrated too. I also feel that Dangerous would fit perfectly on that album, it is a shame it's only a bonus track. (Edited)
A fantastic album and the best of their career. A great end and ribbon on top to the New Wave era. (Edited)
Solid album
It feels like a homage to the decade before and completely puts it to bed by being the best version of all of the albums that preceded it of the same ilk. It's cool, it's fun and leaves a long lasting impression by still being incredibly impressive to listen to today. (Edited)
Jboy56 02/13/2022 15:07 | #281254
A Great album opening for the new Decade.
This is one of the few electronic records that still holds up well today. My only complaint is the singer referring to himself as a "thug." Puh-lease!
A Side: Enjoy the Silence
B Side: Policy of Truth
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