Hey, guess what? Depeche Mode [ tickets ] is still damn good at sounding like Depeche Mode.

On their latest set--the follow-up to 2005's "Playing the Angel"--the electronic-music icons continue to leverage their greatest assets: frontman Dave Gahan's simultaneously beautiful and haunting vocals, and chief songwriter Martin Gore's eclectic electronic soundscapes.

There's plenty to feast on here, as evidenced by a trio of songs that make a formidable opening salvo: "In Chains," a deliciously moody, mid-tempo number full of Gahan's reverb-soaked lead vocals and harmonies; "Hole to Feed," a tribal-flavored cut that spotlights how well Gahan's and Gore's voices mix; and first single "Wrong," a quintessentially quirky DM number that sounds like the dark underbelly of the "Violator" hit "Personal Jesus."

There are some misses: "Jezebel," the obligatory Gore-on-lead-vocals number for this particular collection, is rather forgettable, and "Fragile Tension" sounds like a leftover from the "Weird Science" soundtrack that was performed on an $80 Casio keyboard. The two-minute instrumental "Spacewalker" probably wouldn't be missed, either--though, in its defense, it does boast the signature DM sound, and is in keeping with similar musical interludes found on previous albums.

Thankfully, the clunkers are far outweighed by additional standouts such as "Peace," a cut that features a jaunty keyboard hook, and sounds like something the group mined from its '80s-era archives; and "Perfect," which lives up to its name by employing a perfectly moody electronica foundation, a perfectly moody delivery from Gahan, and a perfect chorus brimming with perfectly moody harmonies from Gahan and Gore.

Even more impressive are "Come Back," a lush, huge-sounding ballad, and "Miles Away/The Truth Is," a snarling, angry number with yet another spot-on DM chorus--a particularly noteworthy development given that both tracks were co-written by Gahan, whose first songwriting credit on a Depeche Mode album came on "Playing the Angel." Either of the new cuts would sound at home on Gahan's outstanding sophomore solo collection, 2007's "Hourglass," and both are a convincing argument that the singer, who for years has been the voice of Gore's creations, has a different level of conviction when singing his own material.

Verdict: nearly 30 years into their recording career, these New Wave veterans still deliver the goods.