The two incidents mentioned in the lyrics to "Blasphemous Rumours" are reportedly based on true stories.

Singer Dave Gahan tells the story of a sixteen-year-old girl's failed attempt to kill herself by slitting her wrists, and the story of an eighteen-year-old girl who renews her faith in God only to be struck by a car, end up on life support, and die shortly afterwards. The conclusion: "I think that God's got a sick sense of humour, and when I die, I expect to find Him laughing."

By contrast, "Somebody," which was sung by Martin L. Gore himself, is a softer, more gentle love song in which Gore sings of his desire to find someone to be his lover and his confidant and who respects his opinions about "the world we live in and life in general," though she may not necessarily agree with them.