The keyboardist of British synth-pop group Depeche Mode, Andy ‘Fletch’ Fletcher, has died. Fletcher, 60, died of natural causes.
Fletcher founded Depeche Mode in Basildon, England in 1980, along with fellow synthesizer players Vince Clarke and Martin Gore. Singer Dave Gahan completed the band.
A year after the foundation, the debut album was released Speak and Spellwhich also immediately featured the biggest hit, I just can’t get enough, a song that is still played a lot on the radio. The live version of the song has been continuously in the Top 2000 of NPO Radio 2 since 2002.
Enjoy the silence
More hit listings followed, of which Enjoy the Silence the biggest one. In the years that followed, the hit success declined, but the band continued to exist. Fletcher remained a member until his death.
He was a nondescript member of the band, but was credited for his ability to bridge the gap between the other, more outspoken band members Gore and Gahan.
Since the 1980s, Depeche Mode has continued to perform. In 2020, the band was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
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