The Best of Depeche Mode, Vol. 1

This 18-track sampler (expanded to 23 tracks in its deluxe version) is an able introduction to a group that revolutionized the world of synth-based rock and pop throughout the '80s and onward. While no single album can summarize a band with such an extensive resume, Vol. 1 should whet the appetites of potential fans, sending them searching through the proper albums for more. For hardcore fans, "Martyr" was recorded for the Playing the Angel sessions but not released until this collection. Overall, the band's stylistic diversity is on full view here, surveying 25 years of creativity where Depeche Mode essentially wrote the rules of its alternative radio/dance club–friendly sounds. It's impossible to go wrong with a collection that features "Personal Jesus," "Just Can't Get Enough," "It's No Good," "Shake the Disease," and "Precious." If you pair this with the albums Black Celebration, Music for the Masses, and Violator, you've got the basics covered (though there's still plenty more!).