# Tour of the Universe (tour)

Tour of the Universe was a 2009–10 worldwide concert tour by English electronic band Depeche Mode in support of the group's 12th studio album, Sounds of the Universe, which was released in April 2009.
The Live Nation-produced tour, which was announced in October 2008 in Berlin, kicked off with a warm-up show in Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg in May 2009. By the end of the year, the tour had reached Europe, Asia, North America and South America.
The concerts in Barcelona, Spain were filmed for the video release Tour of the Universe: Barcelona 20/21.11.09, which was released on 8 November 2010 in Europe and 9 November 2010 in North America on DVD and Blu-ray.

## Overview

The tour commenced in May 2009 with a warm-up show in Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg, followed by the first full-fledged date in the Tel Aviv District city of Ramat Gan, Israel. The tour was disrupted as lead singer Dave Gahan was struck by a severe bout of gastroenteritis, which occurred before the band were to take to the stage in Athens. Following subsequent cancellations of eight further shows, the tour was eventually confirmed to recommence in June while Gahan reportedly flew to the United States for treatment; a low-grade malignant tumour in his bladder was found and successfully removed. Although a portion of the cancelled dates were rescheduled, the band's appearance at the Pinkpop Festival in the Netherlands was pulled, while all remaining dates and one of two dates in Leipzig, Germany were cancelled indefinitely due to "scheduling conflicts".
In June 2009, the band played their first show following Gahan's illness in Leipzig, resuming a European leg which eventually wrapped up in Bilbao, Spain. The tour was cut short after Gahan tore a calf muscle, forcing the cancellation of two dates in Porto, Portugal and Seville, Spain respectively.
In July 2009, the group began a tour of the U.S. and Canada. The leg, which featured a headline slot at the Lollapalooza Festival in Chicago, started in Toronto and culminated in Fort Lauderdale, Florida in early September. In August, two dates in California were cancelled after Gahan received doctor's orders to serve a period of complete vocal rest.
In October 2009, the band returned to North America to play four dates in Mexico. The leg continued on to Costa Rica and South America, their first shows in these territories since the Exotic Tour in 1994. The group received attention in the media following the group's performance in Peru after it was reported that Gahan thanked the wrong country. According to reports, Gahan said: "Thank you very much, Chile" towards the end of the concert held in Lima. However, this claim was later disputed by a band representative, who quoted Gahan as saying: "Thank you very much, good night" instead. The leg eventually finished up in Buenos Aires. Later in the month, the act began a European leg of indoor venues, which kicked off in Oberhausen, Germany and culminated mid-December in Manchester, United Kingdom.
In January 2010, the group commenced a third European leg in Berlin. The leg included five shows that were rescheduled following Gahan's illness in the summer of 2009. The tour also included a date as part of a series of concerts in aid of Teenage Cancer Trust, which was held at the Royal Albert Hall in London. During this concert, the performances of "Home", "One Caress" and "Come Back" were accompanied by a seven-piece string section. Additionally, during the encore, former band member Alan Wilder made a surprise appearance onstage, accompanying Martin Gore's performance of "Somebody" on piano. It was the first time Wilder had performed with the band in more than fifteen years, having exited the group in 1995. Speaking about the event, Wilder said that he was "happy to accept" Gahan's proposal to join the group onstage and stated that "[they] were long overdue some kind of reunion of this sort". The entire tour eventually wrapped up in Düsseldorf, Germany in late February, after ten months and 102 shows in 32 countries. In total, the band performed to more than 2.7 million people. As reported by music industry publication Billboard, the tour was one of the most profitable in 2009, ending 20th in the magazine's "Top Tours" list.
Similar to the group's previous tour, Touring the Angel, recordings of some of the tour's concerts were made available on double CD format or as a digital download under the generic name Recording the Universe. A video release of the live concerts held at Palau Sant Jordi in Barcelona, Spain, titled Tour of the Universe: Barcelona 20/21.11.09, was released on 8 November 2010 in Europe and 9 November 2010 in North America on DVD and Blu-ray. The DVD release was issued in two formats, "Deluxe" and "Super Deluxe", which both include two audio CDs of the live concerts. The "Super Deluxe" edition also includes a second DVD featuring the tour documentary, "Inside the Universe", as well as extra bonus materials.

## Set list

General set list for Europe, leg #2 and #3
* Intro (excerpt from "In Chains")
* "In Chains"
* "Wrong"
* "Hole to Feed"
* "Walking in My Shoes"
* "It's No Good"
* "A Question of Time"
* "World in My Eyes"
* "Precious"
* "Fly on the Windscreen"
* Song performed by Martin Gore
** "Freelove"
** "Clean" (Bare version)
** "Dressed in Black" (Acoustic)
** "Sister of Night"
** "Jezebel"
** "Insight" (Acoustic)
** "Judas" (Acoustic)
** "One Caress"
* Song performed by Martin Gore
** "Home" (Acoustic)
** "Miles Away/The Truth Is"
** "Come Back"
* "Policy of Truth"
* "In Your Room" (Zephyr mix (with bits from the album version))
* "I Feel You"
* "Enjoy the Silence"
* "Never Let Me Down Again"
* Song performed by Martin Gore
** "Somebody"
** "A Question of Lust" (Acoustic)
** "Dressed in Black" (Acoustic)
** "One Caress"
* "Stripped"
** "Behind the Wheel"
** "Photographic"
* "Personal Jesus
Note: Set lists differed between dates, with rotated songs (denoted above), possible minor song order changes and song omissions.

## Tour dates

List of concerts, showing date, city, country, and venue :
| Date | City | Country | Venue/Event |
| Europe ||||
| 6 May 2009 | Esch-sur-Alzette | Luxembourg | Rockhal |
| Asia ||||
| 10 May 2009 | Tel Aviv | Israel | Ramat Gan Stadium |
| Europe ||||
| 8 June 2009 | Leipzig | Germany | Zentralstadion |
| 10 June 2009 | Berlin | Germany | Olympiastadion |
| 12 June 2009 | Frankfurt | Germany | Commerzbank-Arena |
| 13 June 2009 | Munich | Germany | Olympiastadion |
| 16 June 2009 | Rome | Italy | Stadio Olimpico |
| 18 June 2009 | Milan | Italy | Stadio Giuseppe Meazza |
| 20 June 2009 | Werchter | Belgium | Festivalpark (TW Classic Festival) |
| 22 June 2009 | Bratislava | Slovakia | Štadión Pasienky |
| 23 June 2009 | Budapest | Hungary | Ferenc Puskás Stadium |
| 25 June 2009 | Prague | Czech Republic | Synot Tip Arena |
| 27 June 2009 | Saint-Denis | France | Stade de France |
| 28 June 2009 | Nancy | France | Zénith de Nancy |
| 30 June 2009 | Copenhagen | Denmark | Parken Stadium |
| 1 July 2009 | Hamburg | Germany | HSH Nordbank Arena |
| 3 July 2009 | Arvika | Sweden | Folkets Park (Arvika Festival) |
| 6 July 2009 | Carcassonne | France | Esplanade Gambetta |
| 8 July 2009 | Valladolid | Spain | Estadio Nuevo José Zorrilla |
| 9 July 2009 | Bilbao | Spain | Monte Cobetas (Bilbao BBK Live) |
| North America ||||
| 24 July 2009 | Toronto | Canada | Molson Canadian Amphitheatre |
| 25 July 2009 | Montreal | Canada | Bell Centre |
| 28 July 2009 | Bristow | United States | Nissan Pavilion |
| 31 July 2009 | Mansfield | United States | Comcast Center |
| 1 August 2009 | Atlantic City | United States | Borgata Event Center |
| 3 August 2009 | New York City | United States | Madison Square Garden |
| 4 August 2009 | New York City | United States | Madison Square Garden |
| 7 August 2009 | Chicago | United States | Grant Park (Lollapalooza) |
| 10 August 2009 | Seattle | United States | KeyArena |
| 16 August 2009 | Los Angeles | United States | Hollywood Bowl |
| 17 August 2009 | Los Angeles | United States | Hollywood Bowl |
| 19 August 2009 | Anaheim | United States | Honda Center |
| 20 August 2009 | Santa Barbara | United States | Santa Barbara Bowl |
| 22 August 2009 | Paradise | United States | Pearl Concert Theater |
| 23 August 2009 | Phoenix | United States | US Airways Center |
| 25 August 2009 | West Valley City | United States | The E Center |
| 27 August 2009 | Morrison | United States | Red Rocks Amphitheatre |
| 29 August 2009 | Dallas | United States | SuperPages.com Center |
| 30 August 2009 | The Woodlands | United States | Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion |
| 1 September 2009 | Atlanta | United States | Aaron's Amphitheatre at Lakewood |
| 4 September 2009 | Tampa | United States | Ford Amphitheatre |
| 5 September 2009 | Sunrise | United States | BankAtlantic Center |
| 1 October 2009 | Guadalajara | Mexico | Arena VFG |
| 3 October 2009 | Mexico City | Mexico | Foro Sol |
| 4 October 2009 | Mexico City | Mexico | Foro Sol |
| 6 October 2009 | Monterrey | Mexico | Monterrey Arena |
| Central America ||||
| 8 October 2009 | Alajuela | Costa Rica | Autódromo La Guácima |
| South America ||||
| 10 October 2009 | Bogotá | Colombia | Simón Bolívar Park |
| 13 October 2009 | Lima | Peru | Explanada del Estadio Monumental |
| 15 October 2009 | Santiago | Chile | Club Hípico de Santiago |
| 17 October 2009 | Buenos Aires | Argentina | Club Ciudad de Buenos Aires |
| Europe ||||
| 31 October 2009 | Oberhausen | Germany | König Pilsener Arena |
| 1 November 2009 | Bremen | Germany | AWD-Dome |
| 3 November 2009 | Hanover | Germany | TUI Arena |
| 7 November 2009 | Mannheim | Germany | SAP Arena |
| 8 November 2009 | Stuttgart | Germany | Hanns-Martin-Schleyer-Halle |
| 10 November 2009 | Geneva | Switzerland | Palexpo |
| 12 November 2009 | Valencia | Spain | Recinto Ferial |
| 14 November 2009 | Lisbon | Portugal | Pavilhão Atlântico |
| 16 November 2009 | Madrid | Spain | Palacio de Deportes |
| 17 November 2009 | Madrid | Spain | Palacio de Deportes |
| 20 November 2009 | Barcelona | Spain | Palau Sant Jordi |
| 21 November 2009 | Barcelona | Spain | Palau Sant Jordi |
| 23 November 2009 | Lyon | France | Halle Tony Garnier |
| 25 November 2009 | Casalecchio di Reno | Italy | Futurshow Station |
| 26 November 2009 | Turin | Italy | Torino Palasport Olimpico |
| 28 November 2009 | Erfurt | Germany | Messehalle |
| 30 November 2009 | Rotterdam | Netherlands | Rotterdam Ahoy |
| 1 December 2009 | Nuremberg | Germany | Nuremberg Arena |
| 3 December 2009 | Vienna | Austria | Wiener Stadthalle |
| 6 December 2009 | Zürich | Switzerland | Hallenstadion |
| 7 December 2009 | Zürich | Switzerland | Hallenstadion |
| 10 December 2009 | Dublin | Ireland | The O$_2$ |
| 12 December 2009 | Glasgow | Scotland | SECC |
| 13 December 2009 | Birmingham | England | LG Arena |
| 15 December 2009 | London | England | O$_2$ Arena |
| 16 December 2009 | London | England | O$_2$ Arena |
| 18 December 2009 | Manchester | England | Manchester Evening News Arena |
| 9 January 2010 | Berlin | Germany | O$_2$ World |
| 11 January 2010 | Budapest | Hungary | László Papp Budapest Sports Arena |
| 14 January 2010 | Prague | Czech Republic | O$_2$ Arena |
| 17 January 2010 | Liévin | France | Stade Couvert Régional |
| 19 January 2010 | Paris | France | Palais Omnisports Bercy |
| 20 January 2010 | Paris | France | Palais Omnisports Bercy |
| 23 January 2010 | Antwerp | Belgium | Sportpaleis |
| 25 January 2010 | Malmö | Sweden | Malmö Arena |
| 26 January 2010 | Gothenburg | Sweden | Scandinavium |
| 29 January 2010 | Bergen | Norway | Vestlandshallen |
| 31 January 2010 | Stockholm | Sweden | Ericsson Globe |
| 2 February 2010 | Helsinki | Finland | Hartwall Arena |
| 4 February 2010 | Saint Petersburg | Russia | CKK Arena |
| 6 February 2010 | Moscow | Russia | Olympic Stadium |
| 8 February 2010 | Kyiv | Ukraine | Palace of Sports |
| 10 February 2010 | Łódź | Poland | Atlas Arena |
| 11 February 2010 | Łódź | Poland | Atlas Arena |
| 14 February 2010 | Zagreb | Croatia | Arena Zagreb |
| 17 February 2010 | London | England | Royal Albert Hall |
| 20 February 2010 | London | England | O$_2$ Arena |
| 22 February 2010 | Horsens | Denmark | Forum Horsens |
| 23 February 2010 | Horsens | Denmark | Forum Horsens |
| 26 February 2010 | Düsseldorf | Germany | Esprit Arena |
| 27 February 2010 | Düsseldorf | Germany | Esprit Arena |

## Musicians
### Depeche Mode

* Dave Gahan – lead vocals
* Martin Gore – guitar, synthesizers, lead and backing vocals
* Andy Fletcher – synthesizers

### Additional musicians

* Peter Gordeno – synthesizers, piano, backing vocals
* Christian Eigner – drums, synthesizers