New Order - Power, Corruption & Lies (1983)

Note: the CD I listened to was the 2025 two disc "Definitive Edition" reissue.

Slant magazine called this album "the real beginning of New Order’s career" and I must concur. Leaving behind the "Joy Division music with New Order vocals" sound of Movement, we start to hear the group's take on the emerging synth-dance music coming out of the UK at that time. They added their own spin on that sound and this album ended being highly influential. The music seamlessly combined post-punk, synth-pop, and dance music into a style that influenced alternative rock, indie dance, and electronic music for decades. The influences of records such as this often end up sounding somewhat obvious not because they lacked imagination, but because everyone else spent the next few decades borrowing from them. Somehow I never had a copy on my shelves; an oversight corrected with the purchase of these CDs.

Press of the time:

• Rolling Stone (★★★★): "This record is a quantum leap over Movement, the band's first album, and over most of the music coming out of Britain lately."
• Smash Hits (6½ out of 10): "mainly murky and dull"
• Billboard: "insistent, danceable rhythms and melancholy harmonic colors coexist"
• Trouser Press: "a distinct improvement over New Order's debut album"
• Robert Christgau (B+): "I find it relatively gentle and melodic in its ambient postindustrial polyrhythms, their nicest record ever. I also think it sounds pretty much like the others."
• New Musical Express: "I suspect it'll prove one of the best records made in England this year."
• Record Mirror (+++): "a severe disappointment"

Power, Corruption & Lies placed at #262 on the 2020 edition of Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time and, in 1989, was placed at #94 on that magazine's list of the 100 Greatest Albums of the 1980s, calling it "a landmark album of danceable, post-punk music."

I call bullshit on this reissue for not including
"the HIT Dance Single 'BLUE MONDAY b/w THE BEACH' (FACTUS 10)."
Those tracks were originally on the cassette and
there's plenty of room on these two discs ferchrissakes.

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: Did not chart

Tracks: I gravitate towards the dancier stuff which, to my ear, is Age Of Consent, The Village, Your Silent Face, and Ecstasy.

Bonus tracks: I can't resist the siren call of bonus tracks, particularly if the reissue carries a designation such as this "Definitive Edition." It's just too much for the collector in me to pass up. Unfortunately, all we've got here are demos which they've titled "writing session recordings" and they're about as exciting as reading the unedited first draft of a young adult novel. The exceptions here are tracks 7-10, the John Peel session from 1982. The band delivers more relaxed versions of four tunes: Turn The Heater On, We All Stand, Too Late, and 5-8-6. Turn the Heater On (a Keith Hudson cover) and Too Late were only ever recorded for the Peel session and neither were ever performed live.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: I have a particular memory of this album and the first time I held an import copy back in late '83, but that tale is rather mean-spirited and I gain nothing from sharing it here. I'll just mention that all involved were knuckleheaded teenaged boys and leave it at that.

Previously revisited for the blog:

Waiting For The Sirens' Call (2005)	Republic© (1993)
Get Ready (2001)	Bizarre Love Triangle (1986)
(the best of) New Order (1995)	Brotherhood (1986)
(the rest of) New Order (1995)	Movement (1981)

New Order - Movement (1981)

German Import

I originally thought this album is Joy Division simply trying to find their way after the death of Ian Curtis. But then I heard bassist Peter Hook describe the album as "Joy Division music with New Order vocals" and his description is better than mine, so here you go:

Some final thoughts on the 40th anniversary of ‘Movement’ today…

Loved seeing lots of you giving the album a play today, thanks for all the tweets - we’ll make sure to play some ‘Movement’ tracks on next year’s tour!

Hope to see you soon!https://t.co/aRq5vk7N7r pic.twitter.com/nJRMYsDxpd

— Peter Hook (@peterhook) November 13, 2021

So one could make the argument that Power, Corruption & Lies the first true New Order album and I'm okay with that.

My copy, a 2000 import reissue, has no liner notes and no bonus tracks.

Press of the time:

• Smash Hits (8 out of 10 - review by future Pet Shop Boy Neil Tennant): "electronic but human (even romantic!)"
• Billboard: "brooding, dark and slightly unnerving"
• Trouser Press: "superior mood music"
• Robert Christgau: (B+): "Very atmospheric--the spaceship as sepulcher, with a beat."
• Record Mirror (★★★★): "a spell-binding record"

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: Did not chart

Tracks: Of the 8 tracks here, my top picks are Dreams Never End, Senses, and Chosen Time which all at least give a hint of what was to come from the group.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: Unfortunately, I may have made a memory just this week. As I was listening to this disc, I grabbed my sophomore yearbook ('81-'82) off the shelf and mindlessly started flipping through pages. I visited my hometown last month for a funeral and, though it has been demolished for a few years, I finally saw firsthand that the high school building where I attended classes was nothing more than a grass field situated next to the brand new facility that had taken its place. Granted, the building I remember was built in 1949 and a dump even when I was in school, but just the fact that it was gone got to me. Looking through the yearbook and seeing interior and exterior pictures of the building, classrooms, gyms, etc. - soundtracked by this Joy Division-ish music - was depressing as hell. And then I started noticing photographs of students and teachers who are no longer with us and that did me in completely. Needless to say, I have sworn off both this album and high school yearbooks for a while, possibly a good, long while.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Waiting For The Sirens' Call (2005)
Get Ready (2001)
(the best of) New Order (1995)
(the rest of) New Order (1995)
Republic© (1993)
Bizarre Love Triangle (1986)
Brotherhood (1986)

New Order - Republic© (1993)

Stephen Morris ranks it as his least favorite New Order album: "My least favorite, I suppose, is Republic probably because it was just a very, very unpleasant record to make. And we shouldn’t have made it, really." More from the band about the album here. Since I wasn't involved in the making of the album, I don't share Stephen's views. While it isn't my favorite New Order album, I wouldn't rate it as their worst, mainly on the strength of the opening two tracks. And I don't think I'm alone in that opinion - the album is the group's biggest US release and the aforementioned two tracks had some US chart success:

U.S. Billboard chart peaks	Pop	Dance	Rock
Regret	28	1	1
World	92	1	5

It's a little too slick, nondescript, and Peter Hook's bass is pushed far too low in the mix but even this arthritic guy can't help but dance to it.

Press of the time:

• Rolling Stone (★★★★): "Chemistry is what the group is about and what it demonstrates by inventing lively sonic textures throughout a piece"
• Stereo Review: "more about hooks-per-minute than beats-per-minute"
• Robert Christgau: ***

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: #11

Tracks: There's Regret and World at the top, then most of the remainder of the disc is nondescript but enjoyable dance filler highlighted by Everyone Everywhere and Chemical. And then there's Times Change and Avalanche, which are best avoided.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: Seems ludicrous now, but when this album was released in the spring of 1993 I was feeling every bit of my 27 years of age and then some. Teaching teenagers for four years had helped in that regard - teenagers only know three ages: babies, teenagers, elderly (being over 20, they put me firmly in the latter category and treated me as such). In addition, my wife and I were expecting our first child and I was about to undergo a career change that ultimately wouldn't work out. In any case, a weary me found myself in the electronics section of the local Walmart and I had my eye on this CD, having heard Regret on heavy rotation on the Houston radio station I frequented. One of my high school students (complete with Andre Agassi bleached mullet) saddled up next to me in the aisle so I quickly bailed on the CD section because, as most teachers know, we really don't want to see our students out in the wild and I just didn't have the strength to deal with it. I picked up a NO greatest hits compilation a couple of years later, but didn't buy this album until the past year or so.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Waiting For The Sirens' Call (2005)
Get Ready (2001)
(the best of) New Order (1995)
(the rest of) New Order (1995)
Brotherhood (1986)
Bizarre Love Triangle (1986)

New Order - Brotherhood (1986)

German import (2001 reissue)

It has that (former) characteristic New Order sound with Peter Hook using the bass as a melody instrument, but the writing is lackluster (save Bizarre Love Triangle, natch). New Order was a band that released albums so they could release remixes, I guess. But while I find it forgettable for the most part, it gets my middle-aged butt up out of the chair and dancing. Full disclosure: I wasn't listening to this in '86 and really don't have a good excuse as to why.

The critics loved this thing though, as most magazines rated it 4 out of 5 stars and hard-to-please Christgau gave it an A. The only exception I found was this review (but I didn't look very hard, to be honest):

Smash Hits, Nov. 5, 1986. p. 76
Ouch.

And here's my scan of the CD's liner booklet 😕:

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: #161

Tracks: I'll rank 'em because that's the mood I'm in this morning:

1. Bizarre Love Triangle
2. Paradise
3. Way of Life
4. Angel Dust
5. All Day Long
6. State of the Nation
7. Broken Promise
8. Weirdo
9. As It Was When It Was
10. Every Little Counts

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None

Previously revisited for the blog:
Waiting For The Sirens' Call (2005)
Get Ready (2001)
(the best of) New Order (1995)
(the rest of) New Order (1995)
Bizarre Love Triangle (1986)

New Order - (the best of) New Order (1995)

A fairly good survey of New Order, 1981-1995, and a perfect CD for highway driving. This compilation primarily consists of 7" mixes of the group's UK & US singles, including several previously unreleased remixes. Two downsides: 1) many of the songs are severely cut down for length, which (hopefully) will drive the listener to find the original album versions, or better yet, the extended mixes, and 2) poor liner notes. This disc is still available, though it was superseded by the 2005 two disc compilation, titled Singles, or you can go old school and select Substance 1987.

I love the sound of Bernard Sumner's voice over Peter Hook's bass lines. I wish those two boys could get along.

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: #78

Tracks:  17 tracks, 71 minutes. All good - nothing to skip here. Favorites include Dreams Never End, True Faith-94, Bizarre Love Triangle, Regret, and the "machine designed to make people dance," Blue Monday-88.

	Song	Year	UK	Billboard Dance chart
1	Let's Go (Nothing For Me)	1995
2	Dreams Never End	1981
3	Age Of Consent	1983
4	Love Vigilantes	1985
5	True Faith-94	1994	9
6	Bizarre Love Triangle	1986	56	4
7	1963	1995	21
8	Fine Time	1988	11	2
9	Vanishing Point	1989
10	Run	1989	49
11	Round & Round	1994	21
12	Regret	1993	4	1
13	World	1993	13	1
14	Ruined In A Day	1993	22
15	Touched By The Hand Of God	1987	20	1
16	Blue Monday	1988	3	1
17	World In Motion	1990		10

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: Considering the playing time this CD gets, I'm surprised there are no memories attached.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Waiting For The Sirens' Call (2005)
Get Ready (2001)
(the rest of) New Order (1995)
Bizarre Love Triangle (1986)

New Order - (the rest of) New Order (1995)

UK Import

This release is a companion to the band's 1995 greatest hits package, The Best Of New Order. 10 remixes, 80 minutes of dance/techno music. While none of the remixes are better than the originals, they are different enough for a curious listen every now and then, sort of like the Pet Shop Boys' Disco 2. I have to confess to a little chair dancing as I write this. Bottom line: this album is completely superfluous, but if you like New Order, you'll like this.

Tracks:  The better remixes here are True Faith (Shep Pettibone remix) and Regret (Fire Island mix). The most abrasive remix is Confusion (Pump Panel Reconstruction mix) which is too much for me from the get-go. Naturally, Confusion is the longest track at 10:12.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None. Since it was never released here in the US (that I know of), I was unaware of this release until I saw it sitting in a used bin. Obviously, I couldn't pass it up. The CD insert contains list of the then-current New Order digital offerings, including a DVD:

Previously revisited for the blog:
Waiting For The Sirens' Call (2005)
Get Ready (2001)
Bizarre Love Triangle (1986)

New Order - Waiting For The Sirens' Call (2005)

This band's music never changed too much over their eight studio albums and that's fine with me. Bassist Peter Hook left the band after this CD. The remaining members stayed together as Bad Lieutenant. After hearing the 2009 Bad Lieutenant CD, I realize that the band's sound is as dependent on Peter Hook's plangent bass playing as it is on Bernard Sumner's immediately recognizable voice and terrible lyrics. Not to worry, there's plenty of both here. There aren't many all out dance hits here, but what did you expect from 50 year old men? The music definitely leans more to mid-tempo pop. Metacritic rates the album at a 63; I think that's low, but not by much.

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: #46

Tracks: This CD is definitely front-loaded. It starts off with four solid tracks, including the best song on the CD, Krafty (yes, that's a not-too-subtle tip o' the cap to Kraftwerk). After those four, the best tracks are Morning Night And Day and the very catchy Jetstream, which features Scissor Sisters member Ana Matronic on backing vocals.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: I purchased this disc within a week of its release in April 2005. I was in graduate school and needed new music for the long commute to campus. This fit the bill nicely. As far as road music is concerned, this is above average. I think I'm taking this disc directly from here to my truck's CD player.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Get Ready (2001)
Bizarre Love Triangle (1986)

New Order - Bizarre Love Triangle (1986)

CD Single

Because you can never have too many versions of this classic.

Tracks: There are four versions of BLT included here, but the best by far is the Extended Dance Mix. Also included is State of the Nation, one of New Order's weaker singles that hasn't aged well.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: For a few years, I didn't know the name of this song. I finally put it together in the early '90s.

New Order - Get Ready (2001)

I'm sure that others would disagree, but I think New Order has a very distinctive style. Bernard Sumner has a recognizable voice and Peter Hook's bass playing style is unique. And while people don't usually think of New Order as a guitar band, the group simply uses guitars in interesting ways on most tracks. Another interesting facet of New Order is the fact that there music hasn't really changed much over their 20+ years of existence. In other words, tracks from Get Ready wouldn't be out of place on any of their 80's releases. And for me, that's a good thing. Metacritic has it rated at 72/100, which sound about right to me.

Billboard, October 27, 2001, p. 28

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: #41 (Nov 3, 2001)

Tracks: Let's be honest - much of New Order's music sounds the same, which is part of their appeal. But, for me, the stand out tracks are Crystal, 60 Miles an Hour, and Rock the Shack.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: I remember buying this CD at a used CD store in San Antonio about 2005 or 2006, but the songs don't trigger any specific memories.