"Only When I Lose Myself" is a song by English electronic music band Depeche Mode. It was made exclusively for their 1998 compilation The Singles 86>98 and released as a single on 7 September 1998. It is the first non-album studio single since "It's Called a Heart" in 1985 and is also one of the rare singles to have two limited editions ("L" and "XL" – the others being "Enjoy the Silence", "In Your Room" and "Suffer Well").

Release

There are two B-sides on the single. "Surrender" was the first exclusive vocal B-side since "My Joy" in 1993 from the "Walking in My Shoes" single, and the other is an instrumental titled "Headstar". A rare remix of "Painkiller" from 1997 was re-released as a B-side on some versions. The release also includes a new remix of "World in My Eyes".

Music video

The music video for "Only When I Lose Myself" was directed by Brian Griffin, who had previously worked with Depeche Mode as a photographer, and did the cover art for Depeche Mode's first five albums. The soundtrack to the video is a unique version of the song, fading out at the last chorus and omitting the instrumental outro (like the radio version), but including the instrumental intro (which is missing from the radio version).

Track listing

All songs were written by Martin L. Gore UK and Australian CD1 UK and Australian CD2; UK 12-inch single UK and Australian CD3 UK limited-edition 12-inch single UK cassette single US and Canadian maxi-CD single (grey cover) US and Canadian maxi-CD single (green cover) US 2×12-inch single

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Release history