Reviews

If it is cynical marketing, then the crimes could have been much worse. While anyone even remotely interested in Joy Division will already own one or both of Unknown Pleasures and Closer, the repackaging does, for the first time, give a reason to invest in Still, the cobbled together compilation that Factory shoved out shortly after Curtis’ tragic end.

Joy Division - Unknown Pleasures

It was never an album to come close to the other two. There may be myth surrounding Joy Division and few Manchester bands come close to their apparent status of being above criticism – only the Smiths can rival their fans undying devotion – but the truth is that both Unknown Pleasures and Closer are startling, uncompromising, brutal and exceptional records.

The former is a raw document of life in a Northern town in the late 70s, a moment in time scorched forever into vinyl by the guiding hand of the erratic genius producer, Martin Hannett. The latter is a more controlled study, a difficult second album that showed Joy Division had the potential to be one of the most important bands on the planet.

Neither of them are maudlin or morose. Like The Smiths, the humour and the vibrancy of the band in their time seems to have been lost in time, leaving a skewed view of their reality.

Joy Division - Closer

That view is re-dressed by the three bonus discs, which come filled with three and a bit concerts, at High Wycombe, ULU and Factory respectively (the bit is an extra two songs from a show in West Hampstead).

Those new to the band would probably hurtle towards the show at Factory in Manchester to discover them live, but the truth is that on several occasions throughout their career, the four members felt little affinity with the city. As Stephen Morris says in the notes accompanying Unknown Pleasures, "we felt ostracised in Manchester; we had a chip on our shoulder that no one would give us a gig."

Unsurprisingly then, it is the show included with Still – recorded at the Town Hall in High Wycombe on 20 February 1980 – that really shows what power they could produce live. At gigs, they were almost a member down, without any of Hannett’s production to help them, but any thinness of texture was made up for by a raw, spiky and pulsating sound, filled with menace and energy, and this combination of gig and soundcheck recording captures that well.

Joy Division - Still

It is the sound of a band at the top of their game, as is the ULU show, though the sound of that and the Factory gig is hit and miss, as the late 70s technology struggles to cope with levels and feedback.

Edgy to the point of rough and frenetic to the point of confusion, it is this selection that shows off Joy Division live - A Means To An End bristles with power, Disorder rips along at a breathtaking pace, Love Will Tear Us Apart shimmers and shakes, and Ice Age delivers brutal blow after brutal blow.

For many, it will be the first time they have heard the band live at any length and that alone makes these re-issues worthwhile.

There may be an element of cashing in, but then what these three double albums show is that the band had the potential to be global superstars; much bigger, in fact, than New Order have become. Ian’s death robbed them of that possibility; can you blame the other three for squeezing a few more drops out of the band’s memory?