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: 7 hours ago)
| Year | Source | Chart | Rank | Rank Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | VanillaBean | Top 66 Music Albums of the 1990s | 13/66 | 16 |
| 2026 | araidernomore | Top 67 Music Albums of the 1990s | 34/67 | 10 |
| 2026 | fabm0 | List Zone 12 Europe British Isles 2 | 3/100 | - |
| 2026 |  ObsoleteEntity | Top 99 Music Albums of the 1990s | 2/99 | 20 |
| 2026 |  meccalecca | Top 43 Music Albums of 1990 | 6/43 | 4 |
| 2026 | stanchoiaz | Top 65 Music Albums of the 1990s | 4/65 | 19 |
| 2026 | chavaloricardin | Top 100 Greatest Music Albums | 80/100 | 20 |
| 2026 | gregthealien | Top 79 Music Albums of the 1990s | 64/79 | 4 |
| 2026 | jdizzle123456 | Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s | 38/100 | 13 |
| 2026 |  paladisiac | #1 albums per year since 1960 | 31/66 | - |
| Total Charts: The total number of charts that this album has appeared in. | 1,223 | |||
| Total Rank Score: The total rank score. | 12,081 | |||
Violator collection
Showing latest 20 members who have this album in their collection | Show all 661 members
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 3 ratings for this album. | Show all 1,413 ratings for this album.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Album ratings | Avg. album rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 47 hours ago | Exist-en-ciel | 16,075 | 70/100 |
| ! | 5 days ago | Siromynian | 1,773 | 74/100 |
| ! | 09/25/2026 13:39 |  Leonard | 6,624 | 70/100 |
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 83.4/100, 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
Showing latest 10 members who have added this album as a favourite | Show all 335 members
Violator forum mentions
BestEverAlbums 10/02/2026 08:18 in Monthly overall chart movements - September 2026 BestEverAlbums 10/02/2026 08:00 in Chart of the day (#5453): By Bach BestEverAlbums 09/25/2026 08:00 in Chart of the day (#5446): By RasmVViolator comments
Top Comments First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
(Showing comments with any number of votes. Manage Profile)
This is an album that really takes a few listens for you to realise how great it truly is. It was on the 3rd or 4th listen where I just sat there and was like this is incredible. The rich soundscape created throughout the whole record is phenomenal and you really feel engrossed in the atmosphere. Vocally the album is amazing and when you pair that with the infectious choruses you have a formula for a brilliance that they put to use on every track. The production and mixing as well is just something to marvel at with the whole record sounding so smooth and clean. Overall, this album is amazing from start to finish and deserves its place among the greatest records ever made. (Edited)
Dark Synthpop music at it's best. World In My Eyes, Personal Jesus, Halo, Enjoy The Silence, and Policy of Truth are my favorites.
mayonaise93 11/18/2009 06:33 | #7225 | TOP COMMENT
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This album will blow your mind! This is the definition of a timeless masterpiece. WOW.
RockyRaccoon TOP 100 COMMENTER 07/17/2013 03:58 | #81701 | TOP COMMENT
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Depeche Mode's best album for sure, though "Music For The Masses" is a close second.
Violator is the most popular album of Depeche Mode. It’s overall a great album, a classic regularly ranked among the greatest albums of all time.
World In My Eyes is a good opener (sounds even better live), Sweetest Perfection is great the intro is what I love the most about that song, Personal Jesus is a classic huge hit easily among the greatest songs of all time, Halo is kinda good not a standout but still consistant, Waiting for the Night really is a special song with a special atmosphere I love it, Enjoy the Silence is the 2nd huge hit from the album, probably the biggest hit of the band, it’s a masterpiece, Policy of Truth is great the chorus is very catchy, Blue Dress could be the first negative point of the album it’s a bit annoying, Clean is average not great but not bad.
9/10
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