I lead two totally separate lives. There are times when I have to slip into rock star mode.

Record covers helped me discover a lot of music that I wasn't aware of.

I studied German at school. I lived in Berlin for two years and had a German girlfriend for five years, so I don't find speaking German particularly difficult. Singing was slightly more difficult.

I didn't expect us to be around after 25 years.

I'm not particularly prolific.

It creates a conflict of interest - what songs would I use for me, and what would I use for the band.

I will be the focal point for however long I decide to play. Half of me likes that idea and half of me doesn't, but once the adrenaline kicks in, I'll probably really enjoy it.

Anything that I write comes from the soul.

I sit down and create atmospheres, start playing guitar or piano and just sing whatever comes out of my mouth.

I lead two totally separate lives. There are times when I have to slip into rock star mode.

The majority of the time I'm at home with my family, I play football three times a week.

I don't write poems and put them to music. Just let things flow.

I tend to like songs that are very emotional, that strike a chord with me emotionally.

There are definite reference points to older Depeche Mode records.

I like their darkness but I also like the pop-side of the Velvet Underground.

When people meet me I think they're surprised to find out I'm not always angst-ridden.

I wasn't ever a massive David Essex fan, but I liked a few of his tracks, and Stardust was one of them.

There haven't been many credible electronic covers records.

Once I'd chosen the songs, it seemed like it would just be a question then of recording them. But it's a case of trying to re-invent the songs; taking them in different directions.

Music is really all about experimentation and lots of trial and error. It's just mind-numbingly boring until you hit on something that works well.

I didn't write songs for a very long time.

I do a cover of a Velvet Underground song, and they were one of the most important bands, for me.

Our music over the years has been very cinematic. It's surprising we never really got into film soundtracks.

I always hate explaining away songs, because for me they mean something, and for other people, they'll mean something absolutely different.

People are People still gets played to death on '80s stations. It was our first big break in America. It's not exactly my favorite song.

As part of Depeche Mode, I don't think it's right for me to be using my own songs for a solo project. I'm not a very prolific songwriter, so I keep those for Depeche Mode.

I even have nephews who make music, my daughter makes music. I don't know what advice to give them these days. It's really a tough industry to break into.

If you took music out of my life, I don't know what I'd do. It's the one thing that I have a real passion for.

Kids today don't know that much about vinyl.

Technology is a bit of a double-edged sword. Used right, it's a wonderful tool, but unfortunately, it makes it easier for a lot of mediocre people to get really crappy ideas out.

When I write a song, I always start on acoustic guitar, because that's a good test of a song, when it's really open and bare. You can often mislead yourself if you start with computers and samples and programming because you can disguise a bad song.

It was so exciting to go to the record shop and buy a piece of vinyl and hold it, read the liner notes, look at the pictures. Even the smell of the vinyl.

Working with someone is the best way to get to know someone, especially if it's a creative endeavor.

When I am in front of the camera or on stage, I am not me.

Fun is like life insurance; the older you get, the more it costs.

You know, sometimes you're jealous of other people and their achievements, and you wanna be that person, but I've come to realize that each individual on this planet has his own path.

How many people do you know who've had their dream come true? You're looking at one.

In Wales, it's eight different weathers in a day.

What came up at age 49 is I realized that of all the things I'm interested in, the thing I'm most interested in is figuring out what makes people tick, why people think the way they do, why they act the way they do. And I realized that music is such a great way to investigate why people do what they do.

Elderly parents tend to think their relationship with their middle-aged children is smoother than the children do. Adult grandchildren, who have little stake in pulling away from their grandparents, tend to describe that relationship as less rose-colored than do Gram and Gramps.

The idea of exposing the British public to the full breadth of my personality isn't a good one.

We travel for romance, we travel for architecture, and we travel to be lost.

Around 2001, I started analyzing lesbians. I started to realize that even really butch-acting or -dressing women still had a strong female identity that I never had.

Thinking minds doesn't get bored.

That's what so great about making movies. It's that you get to do stuff you never would be able to do in real life. You get to go to a recording studio, you get to go to Navy ships and fly all over the world for press. And it's just a great job.

I always wanted to sing, as a child.

The hurried can become unhurried. But it will not happen by trying alone, nor will it happen instantly. You will have to enter a life of training.

Throughout my years in business, I discovered something. I would always ask why you do things. The answers that I would invariably get are: 'Oh, that's just the way things are done around here.' Nobody knows why they do what they do. Nobody thinks very deeply about things in business.

I find it disturbing that men who are products of highly developed economies come to a developing nation solely to exploit their women and their children.