A conversation about loss became a new collaboration, with Gore’s daughter contributing vocals and a remix-filled vinyl edition to follow.
Martin Gore and artist and lyricist Cliff Damavandi have released “Cross Whisper,” a collaboration that began with a conversation about grief. Issued through Mute on October 20 under the name MG x CD + JL =, the recording also features vocals from Gore’s daughter.
The starting point was Gore’s account of birds appearing around moments when he had lost people or animals close to him. One memory involved a bird repeatedly tapping at his studio window, an experience he later connected with the death of a friend.
Damavandi responded to that conversation by writing lyrics, which Gore then set to music. The story supplies the song’s emotional and symbolic foundation: it is the artists’ interpretation of a personal experience, rather than a claim that the appearances establish a supernatural connection.
A visualiser filmed by Luca Bailey in Japan and England accompanies the release. Gore’s official announcement brings the film together with the story behind the collaboration and the details of its physical edition.
The forthcoming 12-inch includes versions by Regis, Vera Grace, ANNA, Pye Corner Audio and boothnavy. Those remixes sit alongside the original recording, giving several electronic producers room to respond to the same piece.
“Cross Whisper” is available digitally now, while the vinyl is scheduled for December 4, 2026. For the Depeche Mode co-founder, the release places a small, remembered encounter at the center of a project shared with a lyricist, a vocalist and a wider group of remixers.
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