In light of the forthcoming trio of shows featuring Peter Hook & The Light performing the first two New Order albums in their entirety and the long-delayed post-Hook compilation Lost Sirens finally making an appearance, it's worth a quick reminder of what you can expect at those shows plus a look at the various releases from the maze of New Order side-projects out there from Hook, Sumner, Gilbert, Morris etc, not including production work (that is another story)
New Order (taken from the How To Buy - New Order article)
"Movement" - 7/10
1981
Factory
Recommended tracks: Dreams Never End, The Him, Chosen Time, Truth
Many fans see Movement as something of a benchmark and a key period in which the band tried to move on from Ian Curtis' sad premature passing (musically at least) and from in-house producer Martin Hannett, who himself was beginning to detach himself from Factory and reality. Although lacking in stone-cold classics, much of Movement is a transitional stepping stone towards the following glory years, utilizing new technologies and intensive machine-like drumming from Steven Morris throughout, especially on "The Him" and "Chosen Time", my favourites here. There are occasional nods to JD material ("Doubts Even Here", "Truth"), but most of this album finds a band tolerating Hannett at his least receptive and themselves in a quandary as to what they wanted to sound like. Notably, Hannett did teach New Order the art of using a mixing-desk and a few of his 'toys' - a skill that all four members squirreled away for future reference at Hannett's expense. If you can pick up the 2-CD re-issue on Rhino/Warners, you'll get the full album plus those all-important and, some might say, superior single tracks, Temptation, Ceremony and the transitional benchmark for future New Order forays into proto-disco, Everything's Gone Green. Tony Wilson once exclaimed vehemently that ...Green is the most important dance-record in the band's career, not Temptation or Blue Monday. As usual, he was probably right - Franz Ferdinand, White Lies and LCD Soundsystem have included similar elements in their music at some point. Of course, the vinyl editions of any New Order album are also worth getting.
"Power, Corruption & Lies" - 9/10
1983
Factory
Recommended tracks: Pretty much all of them, except the dreary We All Stand
Where Movement feared to tread, PCandL stomped robotically and relentlessly on. From the opening bars of album starter Age of Consent, you can tell New Order are ready to rock and make a statement of intent. The song's pretty synth hooks and ankle-deep bassline became something of a signature track for New Order, along with the Kraftwerk-esque Your Silent Face and proto-disco epic 586, the bastard son of Blue Monday in all but title. Leave Me Alone, the album's closing paean to solitude, is perhaps the most organic song on here (less electronics, more in the way of guitars and bass), while We All Stand is as limp as a shot dog and almost as painful to listen to - to me, it's a rare case of New Order failing to deliver. They more than make up for it with the rest of the album, which arguably disproved Hannett's initial gripes with band and label about money being wasted on everything but the right technology - every conceivable synthesized toy seemed to have been newly-acquired at the time to make a cutting-edge album that still transcends more often than not. The 2-CD reissue from 2008 contains Blue Monday (of course) and it's genre-defining dub-cousin The Beach, plus the Arthur Baker-produced Confusion and Thieves Like Us and rarer offcuts, Murder and Lonesome Tonight.
For more on New Order's catalogue, check the How To Buy feature here
Electronic
Electronic - 8/10
The debut album from Sumner and Marr came some time after the first Electronic release, the single (and hit) Getting Away With It, and with it came more hits in the shape of the excellent Get The Message and the less convincing Feel Every Beat. In truth, Electronic was a product of Sumner's interest in dance-music and Marr's ability to craft a riff - the mix was infallible for the most part. Songs like Tighten Up and Reality have more than an element of New Order about them while the lush Patience Of a Saint with Neil Tennant on vocals, was a sublime effort that, on any other label, would have been issued to radio and been a chart-topper. But this was Factory after all and the song stayed on the album. However, Tennant returned to Electronic once more for the splendid slice of disco-pop, Disappointed - this time on EMI (Factory had just gone under by 1992). By now, album number two was being readied with a special guest in tow.
Raise The Pressure - 7/10
Karl Bartos (Kraftwerk) proved to be a worthy addition to the songwriting nucleus of Marr and Sumner, composing almost half of the thirteen tracks on Electronic's second album. Raise The Pressure was smoother and more refined than its preceding cousin and heralded the outfit's first major-label outing. The opening song and first single had more in common with Sumner's other project than Bartos' typical work, despite his hand in writing it. The same goes for the next single For You, another blistering pop-song that set up the rest of the album perfectly. Sadly, Raise The Pressure suffers from being over-long and short on further classics, although One Day and Second Nature come pretty close. Slick beats and polished production carry the album through to a pleasing conclusion found on Time Will Tell.
Twisted Tenderness - 6/10
The third Electronic album eschewed the rounded edges of ...Pressure, replaced with a rougher dynamic that employed the musical talents of Doves' Jimi Goodwin and Black Grape's Ged Lynch, as well as co-production from previous clubbing cohort, Arthur Baker. With that star-studded line-up, the promise unfortunately outweighed the end result. EMI saw fit to issue just one single (the OK Vivid), not surprising when you listen to the choices on offer. But ...Tenderness has its moments - Make It Happen rocks out, the title-track is rather moreish and Late at Night (mooted for single release, then pulled) warrant repeated listens, while the remaining songs aren't bad, they just don't quite have the sparkle of previous albums.
Revenge
One True Passion - 7/10
Peter Hook's first side-project appeared in 1989 with the release of the EP, 7 Reasons, a three-track taster of things to come. The title-track resembled New Order's Brotherhood-era output, while Jesus I Love You offered a glimpse of the brutal electro-beats awaiting casual listeners of the band's only album. Formed as a result of New Order's hiatus, partly prompted after Sumner's intention to head off to form Electronic, Hook's desire to continue with his own project took over and Revenge became a joint venture with David Potts. One True Passion is a mixed, but rewarding, bag that growls where Electronic perhaps only chirruped. Highlights included Pineapple Face, It's Quiet, Slave and Big Bang, while the remaining sounds veered from sleazy biker-chic to cumbersome rock in equal measure. Perhaps not as dexterous as Sumner's offerings, Hook's bull-nosed creative boasted power and precision and a decent cover of John Cale's Amsterdam (found on the Pineapple Face single). The LTM double CD is really worth getting for the entire Revenge output (more or less).
Monaco
Music For Pleasure - 7/10
Well worth seeking out is the first of two Monaco albums. The first single What Do You Want From Me? is as catchy as you can get and is arguably better than some of New Order's later efforts. Less rocky than Revenge, Monaco's Hook and Potts mined a seam of straightforward indie-pop and gave it a jumpstart with a string of decent singles and this serviceable debut album. The mid-to-late '90s were a period of discovery with urban and dance-music on a renaissance and Brit-pop floundering, but for the efforts of Paul Weller, Oasis and Blur, so Monaco didn't fit rigidly within either camp. Music For Pleasure was just that, a confident collection of songs that were only marred by some lengthier dalliances (Junk) or perhaps a lack of variety when listened to in one sitting. Overall though, worth seeking out. The year 2000 saw their self-titled second album (5/10) hit the shelves but, by then, interest had waned and the band had fizzled out - Hook resumed New Order duties soon after.
The Other Two
The Other Two & You - 7/10
For all its title's naffness, Gillian Gilbert and Steven Morris's first album as The Other Two had plenty of good ideas, even if a few of the songs were written when Factory was still a going concern. But, after the label imploded in 1992, The Other Two & You almost went with it, instead ending up on London Records in 1993, somewhat out of time. The super singles Selfish and Tasty Fish remain obvious highlights but, for me, the real gem was the Dubstar-esque Innocence and the single remixes of Movin On (by Moby) and Selfish (Farley and Heller). Extra CD track Loved It had previously appeared on a promo invite card to Factory's new HQ launch party and is comprised of samples from New Order's Channel 4 documentary for the Play At Home series. During another New Order hiatus, the rather cluttered and confused second album, Superhighways (4/10), appeared in 1999 then promptly disappeared almost as quickly. Voytek, New Horizons and the title-track are promises of what could have been, but the album was just too 'hi-energy' to really cut it. Get the first album, reissued in 2010 by LTM - plenty of extras to be had.
Bad Lieutenant
Never Cry Another Tear - 7/10
2009 saw Bernard Sumner unveil another new project, this time the radio-friendly Bad Lieutenant with future New Order members, Phil Cunningham and Tom Chapman, plus Marion's Jake Evans. To date, BL have issued just this one album, a double-vinyl set that turns out as a safe bet overall. The single Sink or Swim and Twist of Fate (eventually issued two years afterwards as a remix EP) were strong tracks that reprised Sumner's Electronic, while the remainder of the album has moments both memorable and bland. The two closing songs are back on form, particularly Falling Trees, but too many of the songs blend into each other to be really effective as a whole. Their live shows at that time were perhaps a little more enticing and hinted at Sumner's continued desire to perform New Order and Electronic songs with his latest outfit.
Freebass
It's a Beautiful Life - 5/10
Formed of Andy Rourke (The Smiths), Mani (Stome Roses and Hook, the bass-wielding trio enlisted vocalist Gary Briggs from indie hopefuls Haven and recorded one album and a clutch of digital singles before collapsing in 2010. The album doesn't stand up too well due to being under-produced and mastered, which is a pity because some of it is decent enough. Lady Violence and Secrets and Lies were the pick of the bunch, Not Too Late was Monaco again and the accompanying instrumental version of the entire album oddly made sense at the time. The band split just as Hook's Hacienda Records unleashed the album - no matter, because something much bigger was waiting around the corner
Peter Hook & The Light
1102/2011 EP - 8/10
Something of a statement of intent and the first material recorded by The Light. Essentially a platform on which to re-record and perform the less-known Joy Division and least-favoured New Order songs (least-favoured by the rest of the band), Peter Hook's most recent band seems to be his personal on many levels. Son Jack takes up bass duties along with his dad, while Rowetta belts out vocals to Atmosphere, Insight etc. New old song Pictures In My Mind is a belter in the Warsaw tradition (originally demoed around this time) and makes this EP more than enough reason to purchase. Some found her vocals too overwhelming - this listener was surprised at just how much it all worked a treat.
New Order (taken from the How To Buy - New Order article)
"Movement" - 7/10
1981
Factory
Recommended tracks: Dreams Never End, The Him, Chosen Time, Truth
"Power, Corruption & Lies" - 9/10
1983
Factory
Recommended tracks: Pretty much all of them, except the dreary We All Stand
For more on New Order's catalogue, check the How To Buy feature here
Electronic
Electronic - 8/10
Raise The Pressure - 7/10
Twisted Tenderness - 6/10
Revenge
One True Passion - 7/10
Monaco
Music For Pleasure - 7/10
The Other Two
The Other Two & You - 7/10
Bad Lieutenant
Never Cry Another Tear - 7/10
Freebass
It's a Beautiful Life - 5/10
Peter Hook & The Light
1102/2011 EP - 8/10
