New Order - Brotherhood

 

Brotherhood was New Order's fourth studio album and at the time I thought it was the best they had released. The sticker shows I paid £6.29 for the LP but it is not clear from where I bought it.

I liked every track on the album as the band moved away from the dance-rock hybrid of "Power, Corruption & Lies" and towards "post punk", but with their strongest collection of melodies. 

The only song I had heard before was "Bizarre Love Triangle" as the 12 inch version was on the "Substance 1987" compilation, although I was unaware it had been their breakthrough single in the USA as I had not heard it when it was released as a single in the UK and got no higher than 56 in the UK chart. The song was subsequently used in the film "Married To The Mob", which starred Michelle Pfeiffer.

It was sometime after that I discovered that side one was supposed to have the "post punk" material whilst side two was "electronica". To me though, the only significant difference was perhaps the drums on side one were real but electronic on side two ?

"Paradise" opens side one with some crisp drumming then a synth bass line. The chorus has a lot of uncharacteristic "Sha-la-la-la-la"s which makes it quite catchy. "If we left this town we could walk the Earth together. If you let me down I will live in you forever".

The uptempo "Wierdo" is dominated by thrashy guitar  "Just like the ocean or the sea. Just like the blood that burns in me. Someone like you cannot be free. Just like a lock without a key"

However, the pace changes with "As It Is As It Was" which begins with a slow acoustic guitar intro, then the drums and bass come in. "I've kept my head against the wall, I've been this way for so long now. You weren't exactly falling over yourself when last I saw you. Well I always thought we'd get along like a house on fire, until you told me that I'd have to go. How can someone like you, work that slow?"

The post punk vibes return with "Broken Promise" which has an urgent bass and guitar intro. "And I never could believe it, and I never could be true. For the things that mean so much to me, don't mean that much to you"

Heavy drumming gets "Way Of Life" under way and around the two minute mark there is a killer guitar solo after which the bass and drums take over. "Who do you think you're talking to? When I look at you I know you're lying. All you say and do seems to fall apart and leave you crying".

Side two starts with "Bizarre Love Triangle", in which electronic beats and synthesized strings dominate.

"All Day Long"is a pretty but sad song, with Wagnerian style synths and then a lovely guitar break. "This is a song about an innocent who died at the hands of a desperate man. He trusted those who he thought he knew. He trusted those who he looked up to".

"Angel Dust" is perhaps the weakest song on the album. There's a simple one note at a time piano break, and dramatic synth strings. It's a decent track, but simply pales in comparison with the rest of the album.

The album finishes with "Every Little Counts", which is my favourite track. Starting with bass and cymbals not too dis-similar to Lou Reed's "Walk On The Wild Side", Bernard Sumner burst out laughing when trying to sing "I think you are a pig". However, the song continues and has some gorgeous guitar and synth strings. The guitar break plays the melody and a great synth motif comes in near the end. The track then the sound of a record being scratched by the needle to finish.

Having heard "Brotherhood" for the first time in over thirty years, it remains a fantastic album.

Track Listing :

Side One :

1. Paradise
2. Wierdo
3. As It Is As It Was
4. Broken Promise
5. Way Of Life

Side One :

1. Bizarre Love Triangle
2. All Day Long
3. Angel Dust
4. Every Little Counts

Released 1986
UK Chart Position : 9

Singles :

Bizarre Love Triangle ( No 56 - 1986 )

 

New Order - Power, Corruption & Lies

 

As written in the review of "Movement", I first started to get into New Order around 1986 when they released the single "Shellshock", which I bought, and then the 1987 compilation album "Substance". I then subsequently worked backwards until I got to their 1983 release "Power, Corruption & Lies", which was their second album.

Frankly, it was a record that I struggled to relate to. Whilst I took an instant like to the outstanding "Age Of Consent" I struggled to really like too much of the rest, and now only vaguely recall "Your Silent Face" and "Leave Me Alone".

I subsequently learnt that the album was highly acclaimed, with its heavy use of synthesizers, being a definitive break from their Joy Division past, and pioneering the dance-rock hybrid music of the 1980s. Not that I knew this at the time. It was released at more or less the same time as "Blue Monday" which became a huge hit worldwide, but was a song I was ambivalent about when it was released in 1983, but liked it on the "Substance" LP four years later.

The album cover was confusing, with no name, title or track listing, which were only circularly written on the disc and not easy to read, so you were reliant on recognizing it by the flowers on the front.

Side One opens with the fantastic bass riff of "Age Of Consent". I love the soaring synths that come in around 1 minute 40 followed by the guitar break. The drumming is also impressive. It's an almost perfect track.

The pace and mood changes with the "We All Stand". Starting with a slow jazz/funk bass line and synth motif before a gloomy vocal. It could have been on Joy Division's "Closer". "Three miles to go"

"The Village" has an upbeat bass and keyboards, and by New Order's standards is almost happy. "Our love is like the flowers, the rain, the sea and the hours".

"5 8 6" has a very Kraftwerk intro before morphing after nearly two minutes into virtually a copy of the riff from "Blue Monday". "I see danger" & "I heard you calling". It slows down and splutters for the finish as if running out of power.

The side two opener "Your Silent Face" has more nice synths over a hypnotic electronic beat. The bass plays the synth lines for the instrumental break then the guitar takes over before then the synths return. There is also some whimsical melodica. "You've caught me at a bad time, why don't you piss off".

"Ultraviolence" has funky bass and drums and a computerized dance beat in the vein of "Blue Monday".

"Ecstasy" has a robotic Kraftwerk type encoded vocal, think Space Lab, over throbbing bass and drums. Otherwise its virtually an instrumental.

"Leave Me Alone" is a great closing track. It has another great bass line intro with some pretty guitar playing and a lovely melody. It is both beautiful and sad, and  reminded me a little of "Every Little Counts" from Brotherhood.  "But from my head to my toes, from my knees to my eyes. Every time I watch the sky, for these last few days leave me alone. But for these last few days leave me alone, leave me alone".

I have to say "Power, Corruption & Lies" was so much better than I remembered it to be. I liked all of the tracks except for maybe "We All Stand".

Track Listing :

Side One :

1. Age Of Consent
2. We All Stand
3. The Village
4. 5 8 6

Side One :

1. Your Silent Face
2. Ultraviolence
3. Ecstasy
4. Leave Me Alone

Released 1983
UK Chart Position : 4

 

New Order - Movement

 

I first started to get into New Order around 1986 when they released the single "Shellshock", which I bought, and then the 1987 compilation album "Substance". I then subsequently worked backwards until I got to their 1981 release "Movement", which was first album in their new guise after the demise of Joy Division.

Three singles, "Ceremony", "Procession" and "Everything's Gone Green" had been previously been released and been minor hits, and I was familiar with "Ceremony" and "Everything's Gone Green" from the Substance album, but none of these were included on this album. Indeed, none of New Order's first eight singles were include on any of their albums at the time of their release.

The sticker on the cover shows I paid £6.49 in Our Price records, but looking at the track listing I don't remember a single song ! I can't even recall what I thought of the album at the time I bought it.........

Side one begins with "Dreams Never End", which is sung by bass player Peter Hook, with the vocal low in the mix and sounding a lot like Ian Curtis. The music though is the style New order would move to later in the 1980s. The intro has a twangy lead bass melody and is then joined by the guitar, before launching into the driving main part of the song at just under the one minute mark. A Post punk sound, it could have been a single. It's a really good song, and I am disappointed with myself in that I had no recollection of it !

"Truth" is sinister, with yet another fantastic bass line and haunting oriental style synths, and an occasional burst of guitar. It sound like a Joy Division song.

"Senses" can perhaps be described as post punk funk but this time it's Bernard Sumner who sings like Ian Curtis.

The fairly danceable "Chosen Time" closes side one although I can't say I really liked what appear to be video game sound effects in the overlong outro.

"ICB" opens side two, with the initials widely believed to stand for Ian Curtis Burial. There's another bass intro, with the drums generating a marching a beat but overall it's a bit of a dirge. There are also some more fairly pointless sound effects, clearly someone had been given a new toy to play with !

"The Him" starts with slow tribal drums and the bass line. The pace increases in the middle before returning to the slow bass line and the drum patterns and the mournful vocal. Just when you think the song has finished it continues with some pacy thrashy guitar with the drums and bass.

"Doubts Even Here" is the second track sung by Peter Hook., sounding again like Ian Curtis. Gillian Gilbert has some spoken lines towards the end of the song but it is difficult to hear what she is saying.  It's another gloomy song that again wouldn't have been out of place on Joy Division's "Closer" as a filler.

"Denial" has a rattling drum intro, then the guitar riff before the joining the bass increases the tempo. However, its a pretty dull track although the synth lines towards the end are quite nice.

"Movement" is clearly the work of a band unsure of what direction to be heading in, and in many parts sounds like the next Joy Division album rather than the first New Order LP. With the tragic loss of their vocalist, they didn't have a ready made front man and for the want of not knowing anything better or yet having their own style, the vocals either attempt to sound like the late Ian Curtis, or are very low down in the mix.

In playing the album I did not remember any of the songs, and I am sorry to say only the vaguely commercial "Dreams Never End" and "Truth" are probably the only ones I would want to listen to again. The rest aren't bad but there is nothing as remotely interesting as say "Atrocity Exhibition", "A Means To An End" or "The Eternal" on "Closer".

Track Listing :

Side One :

1. Dreams Never End
2. Truth
3. Senses
4. Chosen Time

Side One :

1. ICB
2. The Him
3. Doubts Even Here
4. Denial

Released 1981
UK Chart Position : 30