I first heard Blue Monday in 1983 on the radio, didn’t know who it was, just that it was like nothing I’d heard before. Sure, I heard a track with beats and disco before. Sure, I’d heard a few Kraftwerk tracks - but this sound was calling to me, like directly.
Before I heard anything else by them (and finding out who they were) I bought Blue Monday and fell totally in love with it and it’s dubbier B-Side The Beach). Along with this I borrowed Closer (Joy Division), I didn’t know the bands were connected briefly.
Whilst Closer was redefining music for me, New Order were active and I would say, honestly, for a period they were my favourite band. There is a difference between Joy Division and New Order and I see it as New Order, after finding their feet, press the colour button on Joy Division’s other worldly sound and electrifying the 80’s as they did this.
I sought and bought all (readily available) singles and albums by both bands. This didn’t take too long as their back catalogues at this point were still sparse.
The absolute moment New Order find their feet is Power, Corruption & Lies, which astonished me that it didn’t feature Blue Monday. Then I got into thinking about how uncommercial they were and for some reason this really clicked with me. Not sure how but the band gave me confidence and self esteem. A few years later when Low Life was released I bought this on day of release from Discovery Records in Solihull and I can clearly recall someone from the year above at school asking me what was in the record bag when he saw me on the bus home. As I described the band he looked at me as if I was cool, the band, somehow helped me grow and believe in myself, feels dumb to type this, but it’s true. I’d transformed from shy kid to cool teenager and New Order made me believe in myself.
Back to 1984, and my grandmother was going to but me a flat back cassette player to replace the one I’d left in a chip shop by accident whilst playing Space Invaders. I thought this would be a like for like mono replacement, but when she saw me looking longingly at a stereo cassette player simply asked, “would you like that one?”. I can’t thank her enough for that gift (R.I.P. Nan, love you). When I got home with it and a pack of blank BASF cassettes, almost like destiny, New Order were just about to play live on television and Radio 1 for a telethon thing (telethons were quite new then).
The ramshackle and electronica of that performance, I’d never seen anything like this. We didn’t have a video recorder, but in ways listening to this performance was better than rewatching it, over and over I listened to this. The attitude and disdain in it resonated with me, still does.
All of their 80’s singles are barn stormingly excellent. Movement is the sound of a band recovering and looking for direction. It sounds better now that it did then. Power, Corruption & Lies precedes the Acid House scene by a near 7 years whilst sounding steeped in classical vibes.
I would say, because of its placement, my age then and what they meant to me Low Life is my favourite New Order album. For a band I loved to actively release such a current sound then and mean so much to me - and fucking nail everything you wanted them to, it’s a record I still love.
Brotherhood is a small dip, but still a very good album. I saw them only live once, Glastonbury 1987 and that set was so perfect for me at 17 years of age. In ways I’m glad I’ve never seen them again. Leave the best things and times perfect. They were the right band to headline that hot night, real 10/10 material.
From Movement at the dawn of the 80’s to Technique at the end of the 80’s, I can’t think of many bands that span a decade so perfectly. Technique is a lovely album, it’s Acid House vibe is clear and they take in what is going on around them.
Shit, I’m typing too much here. I lose interest in them after Technique although I really acknowledge people like the later material.
It’s a 5 from me.
“turn this light off you ****”
