WHY Did Alan Wilder Quit The Music Industry? 

Alan Wilder left Depeche Mode back in June 1995. He went on to have a successful solo career under his "Recoil" alias. But why exactly did Alan decide to quit the music industry for good?

Whatever Alan Wilder is doing with his life now, I just hope he stays healthy, happy and creative. ❤

At some point all of us who knew DM and Alan realized that Martin and Wilder were the yin yang… a total balance and perfect combination of pop and alternative… together they were perfect.

When Alan joined the guys at the Royal Albert Hall, it was one of the most heartwarming events in music history... Not long ago he did the In Chains remix. We were all hopeful. Then something happens... Alan decided to sell the Depeche Mode relics/stuff because he can't finance anymore the lifestyle he was living. I heard that Martin didn't like that very much... After that, he released the "A Strange Hour In Budapest" (I live in this city, so I was very proud of it :)), and then he completely disappeared... :( I think he realized that he wouldn't be able to earn enough money from Recoil, and in return, the project would take a lot of time took away from his family. I will never forget when I was able to meet him backstage at the first Recoil concert in Budapest 2010. Alan & Paul came to the concert by car(!) from London, because the eruption of the volcano "Eyjafjallajökull" in Iceland caused a logistical nightmare... Anyway, Depeche Mode showed - ironically just after Alan's departure - that they can make an outstanding album even without him, if the production is in good hands (Tim Simenon). Unfortunately, none of the producers felt the potential in Martin's demos since then... Any hope of Alan returning after Andy's death was completely unrealistic. First of all, Andy had nothing to do musically with the production, so why would this have changed after his death? Second, we haven't seen any photos of Alan in over a decade (except for the one Vaughn talked about). Let us note and respect that he has fully retired. Maybe there's a small chance of a repeat of the magic of the Royal Albert Hall, so I can imagine Alan making a guest appearance once again...(?) But nothing more. It would also be amazing at least if you Vaughn could arrange an interview with Alan... :) I know a lot of people have said this before. But if many of us say this... :) By the way, what questions would you ask him?

I‘ve met Alan two times and was able to speak with him on both occasions. The first time was in 2000 in Cologne when the gold award for the singles tour was presented to him. The second time was also in Cologne, this time during the strange hour live event. He was very kind and seemed to enjoy both events.

I've said this once and I will say it again...I would love to see him score a film. I think it would be brilliant.

I’ve seen DM with Alan and without him and it just wasn’t the same. He brought an energy to the music that hasn’t been there since.

You have to find him and talk to him. We need this

Depeche Mode started and finished with Alan Wilder for me. That being said, Vince Clarke's importance in DM, Yazoo and Erasure amongst others cannot be overstated. Alan Wilder, if he has stopped music creation is a huge loss. I was holding out for him to appear on motion picture soundtracks. His music would work so well in Hollywood. Hollywood, cross his palm with silver and let the world hear his genius, please.

I want to thank all of you here who share their stories of encounters they had with Alan. Every single one of them is really lovely to read and makes my heart smile.

I met Alan about 8 years ago , I was still working in a restaurant business and he just walked in with his wife and baby for a lunch . I was of course dumbfounded. We had a little chat , as much as it was possible and one of phrases he jokingly said was something along these lines: music comes slow to me these days , I guess I am just a quite a lazy person 😀. He came across as a very nice person and indeed he was drinking red wine 🍷🍷🍷

Alan Wilder has always been someone i really deeply care for and i just don't know why i feel this way. Like… an old friend who you just want to see happy and succeeding because you KNOW how much of a talent he has and how much he deserves to get the praise and respect for what he achieved. This man's deep understanding of Music and also the tech-nerd side of him is what i always loved the most. And especially his calm and down to earth personality. I haven't even met him in RL personally yet and yet i miss him and care for him a lot as if we're close friends :( I know it sounds weird… But that's just how it is. Best wishes from Germany.

Thank you Vaughn George. First off, Alan Wilder's departure from Depeche Mode was a musical tragedy. Clearly undervalued and underappreciated....by the other three, NOT the fans. My personal feeling is that, as a solo artist with Recoil, he underachieved. The venue in this media is arguably fairsized, but Alan Wilder has the talent that could still have been filling, or producing for an act that's filling, stadia. I can't say that I'm into Recoil, but I truly wish that I were. Maybe Alan Wilder has had enough of 'relative' success. His legacy will ALWAYS exist, and hopefully/presumably he has a penny or two. There will always be gratitude for his part in Depeche Mode's success. He will NEVER be forgotten.

alan wilder is my hero. straight up he quit because his genius was too great for the masses to grasp. he said about his "successful" music career that it was costing him more money to make music than he made off of it. he was only getting better but LESS appreciated/respected/successful/known.

Alan was a hardworking artist , he used to stay in the studio late night until 4 AM while Dave was on drugs , Martin was drunk , Fletcher no skills was just walking around battling his manic depression. He wasn’t getting enough credits and some people were power tripping on him . Why he left .

I miss him like hell 😢 the music industry is nothing without him. I'll save a glass of my best red wine for him ❤

Alan gave Depeche Mode a great Sound with his Sound Programming an Arrangements. We should never forget this

Alan's one of the most talented people in the industry and it'd be a shame if we never saw anything from him ever again.

Alan is a musical genius that’s second to none and we all know this. His attention to detail in sound and production is breathtaking, but no matter how good you are your heart has to be in it to move forward. I know tens of thousands of fans would love to see a new Recoil album and maybe some production credits on a emerging band’s album but I think the dream of him returning to DM is gone. He climbed to the mountain top with them and that’s that, but one could still dream, right? Anyway, these days he would be considered a pioneer and elder statesman of the electronic sound that’s somewhere in the background of life. More power to him. As it stands now, he has a legacy that will live on forever.

One day he has to grace us with the pleasure of an interview on this channel. That would be beyond phenomenal.

I miss Alan, he WAS Depeche Mode. He can do whatever he wants to do to make him happy with his family and kids. I just hope he is doing well financially and happy. He deserves it for what he gave to the fans.

Alan if you’re reading this .. we love and miss you dearly. Please come out of retirement.

One of the biggest missed opportunities was Massive Attack not recruiting Alan. That would have been a WOW historic moment in the music industry. If I remember correctly, he hinted in a number of interviews that he would join them in a heartbeat, but he needed to be asked. Unfortunately, it seems that he never was.

The guy is in his mid 60's and has achieved alot. The music industry has changed so much. He probably has plenty of other things in his life that we wants to do. I'd love to see Dave do another solo album and Alan being producer / engineer!

Dear Vaughn George! I’ve taken an interest in your thought: „Why Alan Wilder decided to leave the music industry.” There is a simple answer for that: Alan had accomplished everything, he wished for. His small tour with his own project had the same meaning symbolically like a putting a dot at the end of a sentence…Alan even joined DM again for a short time for a special concert in London, seemingly reconciling with other members of DM as well as the fans… However, Alan understood that he can’t move up anywhere with Depeche Mode, already reaching the limit of possibilities there ever were with DM. He had lost the excitement and the rest of DM wasn’t helping in any way if anything they were only making the matters worse. Each of them was battling their own demons and Alan must have been asking himself a question whether all this still means anything at all. And after a longer break he finally understood that it doesn’t. He went his own way but even that had worn itself out. His project RECOIL had reached its limits as well. I for one adore his solo works but it is very specific and has its own limitations… So then, after an (un)expected tour with his compilation album “SELECTED”, Alan said to himself that he has had enough… I’ve achieved everything, I paid my debt to the fans of my work… And with that he disappeared from the music industry…In silence, he had abandoned everything he ever loved and left behind an artistic legacy to finally enjoy his well-deserved quiet and tranquillity. In all honesty, where exactly was he supposed to move on? Collaborate with different artists? Become a producer? Or do cinematic music and movie soundtracks? DM would never take him back, let’s take that for a fact (let’s stop dreaming for our own good) and he had no intention to join other bands… Allegedly, after his departure from DM he was approached by Robert Smith… Hmm, I don’t know what to think about that, I don’t know Alan personally (even though I have met him and took a picture with him twice) but in my opinion he was already tired of making compromises within functioning in music groups… He had exhausted himself in DM… Joining yet another band would put him in the same position as the one he had just left. And that’s not very logical, is it? Besides that, Alan was generally disappointed by the musical direction, reportedly not even his publishing house (MUTE RECORDS) treated him the best (Alan himself hinted at this matter on couple of occasions), so after a couple of years he became a little bitter… He weighed the positives and the negatives… And then he just decided to leave. Us fans can constantly dream about him returning, in other words that his famous enthusiasm and passion for music will make a comeback, but as the years go by, I am more at peace with the fact that this won’t happen… Alan is a perfectionist and, in my opinion, he himself felt that he had already told the world everything he ever wanted to tell. Even that is art. Knowing when the right time to leave is. I think there is nothing worse for an artist to make an unsuccessful return to the scene or be received vaguely with doubts and hesitation etc. Isn’t it better to be at peace with his decision? He left behind great works of art that still bring joy to us after all these years, so why bother. I know, fans of bands like Oasis or R.E.M. suffer too, but for what reason? Everything had its charm back then, but now? It wouldn’t be the same. We shall not be sentimental and live in memory optimism… PS: I, as an old DM fan, think that it would be enough if Martin would just pick the phone and called Alan like… “So, what do you say if we just give it a go and see how it works out in the studio?” But also, none of us really knows how Alan is doing physically whether he is healthy and so on. I think that the right time for this conversation has already passed in vain... I stopped even believing... DM without Alan were like a three-legged dog… Now there are only two of them remaining and who knows… Maybe it will work for the two of them like never before… Alan had his specific antics and complicated personality… Andy had his own special position he was in… Now they are facing the truth and probably also thanks to the producer J. Ford, they have talked about all their troubles and old sins and can move on and work like a Swiss watch. Let’s give them a chance. Maybe the first lady of DM (Marta S.) will do a miracle with them…

Alan Wilder is a name that people enjoy fantasizing about, which I find intriguing. The sensation that 'there's more to him that hasn't yet been shown' is profound. Fans harbor a longing for his return and hope that he will eventually come back.

Alan was just as critical to their work as Martin and Dave. It's unfortunate they parted, but that's life. The musical wasteland desperately needs Alan Wilder, however!

I'm 22 years old and I'm from Argentina, if Alan made a new album, that would make me very happy. ❤️

Alert! Alert! Love seeing him pop up here. He's the reason I found your channel and FB group. Yes, there is a hunger for his music. I don't see that ever dying out. The popular opinion of hearing about new music from him would be "Shut up and take my money!" I often wondered about him going the Danny Elfman and Trent Reznor route for film scores. Pick up any Recoil album and listen to all of that ambiance he can create. He has so much talent!

WE ALL LOVE ALAN !! COME BACK ! ! !😢

Thank you for this video and thank you so much for talking straight from your heart. When you talk about Alan you bring across your appreciation and admiration for him and you speak for so many of us.

Seeing Alan come on stage to join DM at The Royal Albert Hall is my fav ever DM moment

Alan was rightfully justified in leaving DM, He was the 'cleanest' out of DM and was actually over used to get song material and live set ups out. I was fortunate to see DM at their Devotional Tour in South Africa in 94, so I got to see all of them together. If Alan wants to quit the music scene completely, he doesn't need to prove anything more. I had a great respect for him.

ALAN WAS THE GLUE THAT TOOK THE SONGS BY GORE TO A DIFFRENT LEVEL. BY HIS VIRTUOSO PLAY AND HIS TALENT AS A MUSICAL PRODUCER.

Music needs Alan Wilder, i dont mean the industry, i mean us, the ones who actually listen and enjoy Good music! Please Alan, lets make a new Recoil album!!

God, I bought all the Recoil albums, and I would buy them twice, just to have the opportunity to hear a new album from Recoil. I love his work.

I met Alan in Prague in 2012. Really nice and funny guy ☺️. I’d love to see him back in the game.

I felt some kind of finality from him when he auctioned everything off. That was the point that I thought to myself, "I think this is essentially retirement."

If we get to see his face again I will literally cry and die happy right there.

Alan does whatever Alan feels he should do, of course, but I fully agree with the statement made in this video that there is a hunger and a drought out there for his irreplaceable talent. Some musicians go beyond just making music, they literally save lives by doing so. Alan is such a musician.

Thank you for your video. A good topic! I'm a huge Alan Wilder fan and eagerly await for new material.

Sad that Alan didn't have the best relationship with Martin & Fletch and that those two didn't seem to appreciate his talents and input, I love DM but they're truly not the same without Alan.

I will love Alan forever just for Luscious Apparatus alone

What a huge loss ! I wish those didn't happen. He really deserved more , he put a lot of effort into albums. No need to say anything anymore because he was determined. All i want to say that thank you so much for everthing Alan especially what you've done for your career , you will always remembered with your kindness by all the DM fans 💗 ...

I met Alan in 1984 and he told me it was amazing to be part of Depeche Mode. I met him again in 1994 and he told me that he was tired. You know what I deducted at that time from our conversation? "This guy's wife must be bullshitting him all the time with so much travel, girls, promotions, work, and stuff...". In my opinion, and I never believed the press too much, anything that would keep him away from that busy musician's life could be the real strong reason behind it, I'm not saying the only one. As Recoil hurt him financially (his own words on RU-vid) and making money (success) requires a lot of promos, concerts, etc, he must have quitted.

Yay! Alan Wilder! Just started your video and had to post my enthusiasm!

I think Alan should have somehow transitioned to film scoring. And it’s a pity it didn’t happen. I have a feeling he wanted that but there hadn’t been an opportunity or demand. His music is so cinematic. I think when you grow older as a musician and sound designer like Alan and mature you do stuff like this. Look at Trent Reznor or Lisa Gerrard. Not that he has anything to prove to anyone and certainly not to me (although I’ll confess he’ll always have a special place as one of my heroes).

I absolutely love the work Alan Wilder did with DM. Brilliant. I do hope he works with them again. Not holding my breath but never say never. As far as future work, I do hope he releases something or takes on a producer role once again. Alan’s work with Nitzer Ebb’s and the Recoil solo projects are other faves of mine. The man is a genius.

Happy 64th Wilder! 💖 Hoping this finds you truly happy & in good health. After all, you deserve the very best. Make a wish. 🌠

Alan should start the equivalent of a Kickstarter campaign and we can all buy his album before he releases it thus paying for it upfront. Any friends of Alan reading these comments, please pass the idea along to him.

One of the great tragedies of British synth pop! Alan left DM at the height of their music creativity with SOFAD. He brought the complete DM sound to their music which has been missing ever since...

Wilder has always said he never wanted to be a pop star into old age. Totally understandable but I don’t get why he wouldn’t want to keep working as a producer for artists who wanted his services since there must be many musicians/bands who would love the Wilder stamp of approval on their work.

Alan, PLEASE!!! COME BACK!!! I really hope he hears you!! Thank you for being our voice!! I recently discovered your channel and can't be more excited! Everything you say could be perfectly said by me 😊 so Thank you! We love him, we adore him, we're eager to see him again!! That would be a dream come true!! I really want to meet him in person but I could never bother him. If he only knew how much he IS loved! I think he doesn't realize the extent of admiration we have for him!! Alan, come back!! 😢❤❤

I think Alan answered it in 2014 Q&A for "Alan Wilder back to Depeche Mode!" fb group. Q: When will a new Recoil album be released? AW: This is going to sound rather negative I’m afraid - I don’t mean it to be but I am a realist. As everyone is aware CD & music sales have fallen dramatically over recent years. Recoil is not a financially viable project and hasn’t been for some time. For many years now there has been no income for myself from the sales of my own music. Any income has been used to pay off debts to Mute Records for overspends on the earlier albums (not their fault but a sign of the times as they were). For example, in the '90s it was still normal to spend say £40,000 on a video (as we did for ‘Drifting’ for instance) - a video which hardly got shown I might add. This is not a complaint or sour grapes from me, just a fact. More recently and until now, I have pretty much subsidised the project myself, recorded in my own self-built studios and so on. Mute never have, and never will give me an advance in this current climate and I just cannot afford anymore to sit in a studio for the best part of a year to make a record which very few people will buy. Sadly, most people expect to receive music for free these days, or via file sharing, illegal download and so on. Live work can bring a small amount of income but it is not something I naturally gravitate towards and, if I were to put together a band, that would probably lose money given the number of tickets I could reasonable expect to sell. The truth is I have been pulling in favours left, right & centre (from people willing to help with little or no payment) just to keep things going. I do understand that there are other ways to skin a cat - like self release, fund gathering - and so I am not ruling myself out of the game completely but, for now, I have many other priorities which I need to pursue. Frankly, I am distracted from music by needing sort out ‘life’. Once I get settled into a new home and re-build a small studio (my current one is dismantled and packed up), then maybe I’ll get the urge to pick up where I left off.

Shame Gahan and Gore could not build bridges with Wilder in the wake of Fletch's death... having him rejoin the band would give hope that we might hit the heights of Violator and SOF&D.

Totally agree with your comments Vaughn, saw Depeche a few times in the 90s, lived for their music, was never the same for me after Alan left and now find it hard to watch what sounds like a cover band to me touring the U.S :(

Since it's almost impossible to imagine him joining the band again, He should be at least producing Depeche Mode. There you have it, I said it! 😊. Great Video Vaughn!

I do agree with you that the music industry is not what it was before, today you need a lot of new techniques to keep in touch with the fan base. The social media platforms are too many to manage and if you're a solo artist it's just too much to handle. I've been blessed to have worked for 2 major record companies in my lifetime, released my solo album under a major and toured to the Masses. It really takes a toll on your soul and unfortunately you get burned out, tired from all who want to make $ off you. Now in my early 50's, I'm still involved in music but not 100% of my life. After losing 2 family members from covid this Feb, my mother and uncle, I took a break for 5 months from performing live (Depeche Mode tribute band Devotional) I'm back on stage, but still looking at retiring from music and focusing more on my life and spending that quality time with those who are still here with me. Alan Wilder will always be my hero in music, he's the foundation and will always be that important member of Depeche Mode. After watching passed videos from interviews with Dave and Martin, I don't think they really respected his work and let their egos take over, you can still see the ego flow from Dave more than Martin but it's a huge loss for them. I don't expect much from this new album as they are still working with the previous producer from Spirit (boring album) who just hasn't got the chops as Alan Wilder does. I got to meet Alan in Los Angeles during his Recoil tour and what a pleasure it was to talk to him. Very kind man who knows he's missed in DM. Listen to Alan Wilder's remix of Chains, a masterpiece! The chapters are closing for Depeche Mode, let's see what we can expect from this new album and tour. I enjoy your videos and I appreciate the work you put into them. Cheers amigo from Los Angeles. :)

Robert Smith tried to get Wilder to join The Cure. Imagine that!

Excellent video as always my friend!

Alan retiring from music is natural. It happens in many careers, why it seems weird for people outside music puzzles me. Every person has the right to live the life they want. He left his mark in the music business and lived the dream, deserves all the family and personal time he wants now. Contrary to most contemporaries that end up prisoners of their bad money management, drugs or ego...stopping is a luxury VERY few can. Great video sir! For me he is like Queen's John Deacon or Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones (still plays but he just keeps a low profile overall)

It's crazy to think that at one time Alan was the MOST accessible (ex)member of DM with the shunt Q&A. So many things have changed since then and I hope he's enjoying retirement.

Thank you Vaughn George for bringing that up! Obviously DM without Alan sounds simple like lazy jacket potato, he was the one who brought this cinematic and rich top notch quality to the band productions, personally missed him so much and wish him back as an musician and DM co-producer.

The reason is simple Dave ruined the band during that time, Alan couldn't stand this behavior, he loved music more than the rock and roll life.. The biggest mistake the trio made was that they did not get him back.. The masterpieces ends in SOFAD. We all had the hope that with Fletch departure they get back together but they once more disappoint us...

I just got this notification a day late ugh...great video Vaughn...omg yes more RECOIL would be a dream come true! I hope he's watching 👀...lots of Recoil fans here!

The same situation is with John Deacon from Queen, he left music industry completely after Freddie's death

The Recoil albums have been awesome! One does not tire of the diversity, and the construction of sound and mood; re-hearing composition, one picks up a difference nuance. AW has given us depth in music! Concerning DM, recent interviews with DG subsequent to the passing away of AF, and the launch of their new album, do not indicate a regrouping.

Yeah I've been thinking this over and I've come to the conclusion that he left at a bad time for musicians in general, but especially electronic musicians. Album sales had petered out, their fan-base were among the most technologically savvy and so they were the most pirated, gigging is difficult to draw crowds unless you are a stadium band like DM or a dance-party DJ, and most of all, making a living on social media wasn't a thing yet. Even if his true fans wanted to support him directly, they couldn't. Alan saw the album as the commodity that he would leverage for income, but that's an antiquated system. I don't think people in 2010 realized that the future (now) is that if you keep the music (mostly) free, your fans will support you directly. If he just came back and started a patreon even, his fans will support him. Alan Wilder sample pack (and I don't mean the old emulator samples)? Sign me up. Those kinds of things are also pirated, but way harder for most people to get their hands on. Alan Wilder paid virtual talk? Sign me up. The paradox is that they guy who was on the forefront of musical technological innovation, lost the plot in the bigger picture of technology (yeah, I know he's an in-the-box guy with all the latest innovations in that respect, he just missed out on the revolution of social media). I've pirated his music many times (also paid for it many times, all the recoil stuff) but point me in the right direction and I'll throw him some bones. The guy literally changed my life. Wilder is a hero and he doesn't know it, didn't get to really capitalize on it beyond those promotional tours.

I didn't realise he walked away from it all. I thought he was still within it. Well, there we have it then. It's all over 😲 We will never forget you, all you did with them, and you Alan giving us the distinctive DM sound. It will live with us. 🙏 Thank you 🙏 We hope you keep well 🙏 Kia Ora 👍

Man! That is one of the most honest video I've seen for a long time.

Honestly, I've never read any comment from Martin pr Dave saying "We approached Alan to work on a regular basis but he refused". Apparently, they've never forgave him for leaving and the real reasons under Alan's perspective would hopefully be one day released as his music memoirs. Something definitely went wrong along the way. One fact is: Depeche Mode has DELIBERATELY made their sound very much like the original demos lately, and Alan did totally the opposite. Ever since, they have never chosen a producer that would challenge their creativity in many ways beyond the demos. That's been a choice and Alan must know pretty well why he left. If it weren't for him, there'd be no Enjoy the Silence as we know it. I absolutely disagree with the artistic path Depeche Mode (Martin) took after Alan left, because they could've worked with other producers and collaborators just as talented as Alan. They chose NOT to.

Thank you for being candid. Another Recoil album would be great.

The last music activity of Alan was in 2016. See Dede feat. Alan Wilder

It is a great pity that their ways have parted and the biggest pity is that they are not willing to get together again. Alan is missing in DM and you can hear it very much in their sound. Years go by and it seems that their ways will not meet again. Who knows what it would look like if Alan was in DM even now. Anyway, the spark is gone, the passion is gone.. And it's not just because Alan left. I really miss Alan's music, I really like his style and sound. However, I can understand the reasons why he decided to quit the music business after so long time.

I saw that last known photo, he looks great!

Alan Wilder was the reason I got in to DM… As I have said before, without Alan, DM is just another cover band.

Thank you, Sir. No matter what happens we will always have the Depeche mode albums, Alan did with them. They are the best ones. -Andy Ry Denmark.

he's the reason all early albums were fantastic. Fav Some Great Reward.

Now is the perfect time for Depeche Mode to get on the horn with Alan Wilder today and pave the way for a new album collaboration. Assemble the dream team: Flood, Dave Bascombe and Gareth Jones to help conjur up some new dark magic. The next lineage of music that would naturally form a branch off SOFAD. The signs are all out there pointing towards the holy Trinity of Dave, Martin and Alan to form this long awaited reunion...to continue the legacy. We're all grown up now so go and make music together as DM for the sake of all of us!

Nobody has supported his work at all for decades and the constant online "fandom" of his probably breaks his heart by ignoring his work while calling him a genius? They're the same people who made him feel like he'd be set for life with his solo work and they're all talk. It's probably for his mental health is what I'm saying.

Martin Gore has made a lot of different collaborations in recent years. Imagine if he and Alan Wilder would make one or a few songs together...

Depeche Mode speaks to the ones outside the masses. Alan is on the outside... with us 🖤

#BringBackAlan

Thank you for sharing your thoughts and feelings. It's very touching how you talk about him, with admiration and respect. I also have a lot of respect for you for avoiding another person's personal life. Thank you. Everything I could say has already been said many times by other people. I understand his decision to leave Depeche Mode, and what about Recoil, maybe he's already done everything he wanted here. He is an amazing musician and I love him very much. I'm just grateful to him for everything he brought to music - Depeche Mode, Recoil. And he brought a lot. I respect his decisions, and I will be satisfied with any scenario, with or without new music. I just want Alan to be happy.

Great video. Exact, precise and spot on.

The issue at stake is that he is older and feels that his time in the industry is no more. The music industry just sucks for the past 25 years. I don't blame him.

I read an article about Alan. He basically was really pissed off someone could take all of the music he made can be downloaded for free and he gets absolutely nothing in return. I think he was tired of fighting that battle. I never thought Alan would ever return to Depeche Mode. What if the same problems that they were having happen again. That wouldn’t be fair to Alan Depeche Mode and the fans. Hopefully one day Alan would do something when it comes to recoil or any kind of music. Thank you Vaughn 😊.

Agree 100% There's a lot of great music yearning to come forth. Alan is so far ahead of his class he is a class by itself. So many are proteges of, inspired by, or simply are desperate for stand-out music a-la Alan Wilder. Nobody can dispute he is a genius on many levels. Like you, Vaughn, our love for music began with Alan and he will always remain that hope and wonder that comes from music.

I remember about 10 years ago he said that Recoil was not financially viable anymore and that he was in debt (financially) Daniel Miller! He also auctioned off a lot of his Depeche stuff which he openly admitted was because of his divorce bill! I get the impression (my own impression) that he would jump at the chance of joining DM again! Hopefully he’ll reappear soon, it would be tragic for his talent to go to waste! Would actually love to see him work with Gary Numan!

It is such a talented musician ...iam always feeling Recoil should get more appreciation as it is really something unique. Love to listen to it on the headphones in the dark room ... so many incredible sounds ... melody... colaborators input. It is masterpiece. Iam sad he vanished wish he find some new inspiration, energy on the othere side i know it is not cheap to produce new album. There are a lot of artist who vanish men somewhere they still creating ... wish Alan continue

Like many people, I too, dream of Alan releasing something in music, but after so many years of ditching his personal studio and selling all his synthesizers and samplers and all the record material he did with DMs he didn't think he had plus the reasons to re-enter the music market again. I have a current obsession, I wonder 3 or 4 times in a month: "who knows what Alan Wilder is doing right now" people who have reached the top ... have difficulty living with everyday life without going into depression. But this will not be the case with Alan, for this reason sometimes joking with my friends, we ask ourselves: "who knows what Alan is doing right now" and sometimes we think and joke telling us that he is pushing the shopping cart for his wife in the supermarket, trivializing it we feel closer to him. It is true we are idiots and deluded, but Alan has left us nothing but hope. With love. Gianfranco ❤

When it's not fun anymore, you should stop. Sometimes there are phases in our lives where we question what we do and the whole meaningfulness of it. I have a feeling that a lot of external things went onto him a bit too much and he did not longer feel like he wanted to continue making music that would mostly only enrich the type of people he did not want to support. Especially as a whole industry. And as much as the Internet as a tool helped musicians in a lot of ways, it also made it harder and harder to be discovered and being able to make a living of your art. But even if you DID make a good living of it… there is still something that heavily influences your decisions if you should continue or not. I just hope that the decision Alan made actually made him feel good about it. And i also hope that he did not prematurely close the musical curtain because he was completely demoralized but just feels like wanting to approach something else. :( What ever it might be......

Happy 65th A. C. Wilder! 💖 Hope that you're in good health & you have all the happiness your heart truly desires. After all, you deserve the very best. 🌠Make a wish.

I miss Alan's contributions to DM. Without him, the band has been sounding bleaker with each successive album. I really couldn't listen to Spirit after the first play.

Alan Wilder is FANTASTIC!!! SPECTACULAR!!! ALAN WILDER FOREVER!!!]💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯❤️🌹🌹❤️❤️❤️❤️

I remember an interview from when he was still with Depeche Mode talking about his frustration that someone with a home computer and a cheap sound card (compared to his setup) doing shallow 4onthefloor techno stuff gets more attention and sells way better than his Recoil project he puts so much time and effort in.

It was obvious from that open letter that he penned around 2008 that he was disillusioned with the direction of the industry: "So who shall we blame for the whole mess? Do we stick two fingers up at the record companies who have sat around twiddling their thumbs, peddling overpriced re-issues for years while their A&R men bombard us with shallow, faceless pop idol, X factor boy bands? Is it fair to say “… well, you had it coming”…? Or do we accuse the casual ‘non-listener’ with the attention span of a three year old living in a disposable, homogenized, Paris Hilton-obsessed society, over stimulated with too much life choice? A society that places value in triviality and accepts mediocrity without much question? Or perhaps the devaluation has evolved from the cult of the DJ, where anyone can regurgitate the very essence of rock ‘n’ roll by lifting an entire 70’s funk classic, adding some rap drivel over the top and calling it their own work? Is modern music regarded as an art form at all anymore? Or is it just another business now?"

I think we need to start a support group. HOW TO LET GO OF ALAN WILDER. if that's ever possible, the letting go part. 😎

I know the band and Alan I am sure are tired of hearing or being asked about him joining the band again, that is just us fans loving their work together and wishful thinking and hoping on our parts it may happen again. That being said I too would love more Recoil material, I own all his Albums and enjoy his music very much so i am always on board with hearing more..

But he's re-releasing his old albums so that's a good sign!