In Your Room

Come on, this is a Depeche Mode song. Therefore, unless there is clear evidence to believe otherwise, it's about getting your end away.

With Depeche Mode the music often tells as much of the story as the lyrics. Here the music starts softly, tentatively and ... celestially. The narrator, completely lost in a heady combination of obsession and lust begs his worldly lover for attention.

Success! The drums kick in, describing a broad, pounding rhythm. The narrator's almost psychotic devotion to his lover reaches a level where nothing exists to him but her. She has such power over him that she can control his movements and his thoughts. She is like a drug and he is completely surrendered to her effect.

His powerless state is a source of intense pleasure to him - as is the lovemaking which is explicitly described by the increasing volume and force of the music. We leave them to it for a minute as the music sighs, wails and pounds away. Eventually the rhythm asserts itself in a new way, and our narrator's thoughts turn to the ultimate release of his pleasure. However, so powerful is his lover in his mind that she could hold him tortured in this near-ecstatic state forever.

She is merciful. After he has been held in this state for a while, the music explodes in a climax unmatched by anything Depeche Mode has produced before or since. No more lyrics are supplied: a long instrumental sees this song through to its conclusion.

I've tried listening for the God and heroin interpretations, and the lyrics don't support either for me. (If they're personally meaningful to you, that's still great. I find tangential meanings in all kinds of songs.)

The most common word in the song is "your," which could be targeted at anything. The second most common is "favorite." Drugs don't play favorites. Some people feel that they are more favored or chosen in God's eyes, and those people are often scary. That option's still on the table.

"Here" is also prominent, and with the title it's a distinct place, from which the singer can be removed or in which he can be kept. There's no agency here. He might as well have said cage instead of room. Gods don't generally keep people in rooms. They don't generally have fleshy, breathing "feeling with your skin" relationships with people. I've been kept in my room by mental illness, and some people have very physical metaphors for that sort of thing, but even my depression doesn't control whether it's night or day.

What controls night and day is a torturer. Consensual or creepy (or both, if you're into that), these lyrics are describing the kind of very physical, very intimate control a person can exert over a prisoner. From Dominance/submission to Stockholm Syndrome, this is the obsessive monologue of someone who has only one human contact to focus on and no control. "Favorite" captures the way a captor's focused attention is interpreted as love. In a D/s game, that interpretation's probably right, but humans seem wired to believe it no matter the circumstances.

This is actually the kinkiest mainstream song I've ever heard. It's an intimate description of an erotic act (or fantasy or abuse) that's rarely talked about.

To Martin Gore love, desire and religion are just three different incarnations of one underlying human need, a craving to overcome the profound loneliness of every human being.

In this way many of his songs can be interpreted on different layers: love, sex, religion - anything that makes you feel being part of something.

But consequently Martin goes one step further into total surrender and oblivious self-abandonment. It's the ultimate state of peace of mind that corresponds with the deathwish that's resonates in many of his songs.

In Your Room perfectly fits into this principal theme, but does so in the most sensual way of all Mode songs.

BTW: The live version on the SOFAD live album is the only good reason to buy this one at all. Listening to it at 3 o'clock in the morning gives me shivers down my spine and makes my skin crawl.

I knew this would be my favorite DM song the first time I heard it.... It means alot to me because the only time I spend much time with my boyfriend is in his room.... it's actually the only place I've ever felt comfortable in....

SOFAD is by far the best album they've ever released. In your room - the lyrics are simply great. "I need you so much, will this relationship between us last forever?" -great!!!!

I don't know where people are getting drugs out of this song. I see it as flat out BDSM. Looks like the torture session was done by candlelight with some sensory deprivation added in. Looks like he was well trained to know that his skin did not belong to him, it belonged to the mistress. His breathing and body didn't belong to him, but belonged to the mistress. And he must have been tied down for a pretty long time.

Simply put, this song is about getting it on. Passionate unadulterated love making.

Yes, it is a BDSM song. This is song about his Mistress. He belongs to her.

The song is about how devoted to her. She is his universe, his reason for life.

His only wish is to belong to her completely.

For those who have experienced such feelings, that is completely clear.

Do you not think it couldve been about his heroin addition?

Incredible song! Just heard it for the first time and i already know that it's gonna tak a long, long time to get over it... guess i'm becoming addicted to DM...