Love Will Tear Us Apart

Whaddya mean we don't like Joy Division 'round here?

Covers of "Love Will Tear Us Apart" only illustrate how unique and inimitable Ian Curtis and the band really were. The more the indie rockers try to match them, the more they fail, not only in covers but in sound, image, everything. (Sorry, Interpol.)

I didn't like Nouvelle Vague's version, but I like their take on "I Melt With You" quite a bit. "Too Drunk To f***" isn't bad either.
 
Joy Division and New Order are two of my favorites. In fact, I like them almost as much as The Smiths and Morrissey. Did Manchester ever produce a band that wasn't smashingly wonderful?

I have some Interpol tracks, and I don't find them all that bad, just unoriginal. "Leif Erikson" and "PDA" are cool. I can't help hearing echoes of Joy Division in the music. Often I think the singer is blatantly imitating Ian Curtis. I read that he claimed he had never heard Joy Division's music until people started saying his band was like them. With a denial like that, you know he's hiding something! That's like a startled boy caught by an angry mom with a forbidden cookie in his mouth going "Mmmmmwookeee...? Mmmhwat...mwookeeee?" But yeah, there are some good Interpol songs. They have a good chance of outgrowing their influences.
 
Worm said:
Did Manchester ever produce a band that wasn't smashingly wonderful?
The Verve (towards the end at least), The Bee Gees, Doves, Oasis, Elbow, Take That, Ultavox, 10cc, M People, Simply Red and, in my opinion, Joy Division. And that's just the bands. I know you were being glib in your question, but 99% of every city's music scene is rubbish. Maybe with Manchester, it's 98%.

I'm one of the few people who dislikes Joy Division, but adores New Order. I just find them rather dull and, unsurprisingly, dislike that voice. To me, it's just a drone, but I'm glad others can get beyond it or even like it. It's actually what kept me from liking Dylan for a long time. I learned to appreciate, and rather like Dylan's rasp after listening for a while. Same with Mark E. Smith. I loved his voice the second I heard it because it seems like he's going out of his way to sound ugly and angry and unappealing.
 
I loved JD long before I got into Morrissey.

I met a guy (English) in his 20s recently, who looked remarkably like Curtis and when I told him that, he didn't know what Joy Division was and neither did any of his friends! I find it very sad.:(
 
I've alway's thought that Barney's vocal's are better suited to New Order's more dancier track's or to something like the Chemical brother's "out of control" but whenever they do Love will tear us apart his vocal just seem's out of place with too much shouting and whooping as well, I know New order are 75% of Joy division but with Ian Curtis on vocal's this song could only ever be 100% joy division, no one else can do it justice.
 
dazzak said:
The Verve (towards the end at least), The Bee Gees, Doves, Oasis, Elbow, Take That, Ultavox, 10cc, M People, Simply Red and, in my opinion, Joy Division.

agree with late verve - that last album was patchy at best. aside from take that, m people and simply red, i quite like everyone else on that list. save elbow - i've never heard 'em.

oh, and "reap the wild wind" by ultravox is pure pop brilliance. :)
 
dazzak said:
The Verve (towards the end at least), The Bee Gees, Doves, Oasis, Elbow, Take That, Ultavox, 10cc, M People, Simply Red and, in my opinion, Joy Division. And that's just the bands. I know you were being glib in your question, but 99% of every city's music scene is rubbish. Maybe with Manchester, it's 98%.

Ahahaha. Curse you! Well, how about...has there ever been a city with a better ratio of good bands to shitty ones?

I had the same reaction to Curtis' voice, initially. I could not listen to Joy Division for five seconds without yanking the needle off the record. They're probably one of the all-time most difficult acquired tastes. I knew they were Capital I Important, but I couldn't stand Ian's voice. Not even "Love Will Tear Us Apart"! Then I saw "Atmosphere" on MTV, with Corbijn's incredible video, and that struck a nerve. I bought "Substance"-- and still couldn't get used to it. But after a few years I was hooked, no pun intended.

(As a footnote, I had almost the opposite reaction to Robert Smith's voice, going from liking it to proudly harboring a deep and abiding hatred of all things Cure.)

My reaction to Mark E. Smith was much different. I liked his vocals right away. I won't deny bewilderment at the vast majority of The Fall's songs, but I recognized him as great right away. Perhaps it helped that the first album I bought was "458489", which has more accessible songs.

whenever they do Love will tear us apart his vocal just seem's out of place with too much shouting and whooping

I know. I love Barney but that is not a version I cherish, to say the least. They do justice to "Isolation" though.

It's best to listen to Barney's voice as just another instrument playing in the mix-- like a drum high-hat or a synth wave-- meant to complete the song's structure rather than a front man singing meaningful words. He's a bad singer singing rubbish lyrics-- and somehow he is incontestably one of the greatest singers, and New Order one of the greatest bands, in pop history. Go figure.
 
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