Belle End wrote:
When a 60's superstar is outsold to the tune of 30m by an 80's UK electronic band with a string of barely memorable hits, I find that pretty eye-opening, and it therefore means something.
This is all in your purely subjective opinion. A ton of musicians, music-critics, and fans (including me) disagree with your assessment of Depeche Mode as the musical equivalent of a fast-food meal at Taco Time. Indeed, several musicians, music-critics, and fans (including me) consider Depeche Mode one of the most essential of all post-punk bands, featuring one of the three or four most talented songwriters of the period (Martin Gore).
I am not convinced that your eyes being opened means anything at all. According to your musical judgement, I would suggest having your ears opened.
Depeche Mode are monumentally shite but nowhere near as bad as some of the artists that make the top selling singles of all time. The general public embarrass me. I shouldn't care of course but I think i hate them.