JOY DIVISION Vinilo y CD

Review: In January 1980, Joy Division toured Europe as they prepared to enter the studio to record their second album Closer. This recording from Amsterdam's legendary hippy hangout Paradiso catches them right at those crucial musical crossroads, building on the success of the hulking rhythms of Unknown Pleasures and heading towards the proto-electronic influences that would shape that second album (and the even more seminal career of New Order beyond that). As well as pre-studio outings for Closer tracks like 'She's Lost Control', 'Atrocity Exhibition' and 'A Means To An End', there's also a relatively rare airing of what would become their sonic talisman, 'Love Will Tear Us Apart', alongside the - as ever - frighteningly heavy debut LP material.

Review: Joy Division's iconic track Love Will Tear Us Apart' gets a special treatment with this limited edition 12" LP on glow-in-the-dark vinyl. The 12" remix of the song offers a new perspective on the classic, allowing listeners to experience its haunting beauty in a fresh light. This release is idea for fans and collectors alike, offering a unique and memorable way to enjoy one of post-punk's most enduring and influential songs. What else us there to say? Get a beautiful looking copy of one of alternative music's most important song ever.

Review: Warner has worked on a run of Joy Division reissues this month and after their most famous "Love Will Tear Us Apart" comes "Transmission" which is not far behind. A 2020 Digital Remaster reboots the sounds but retains the grit and urgency of the original, which is a surging post-punk anthem filled with angst but also a sense of vulnerability and melancholy that makes it so much more enduring. "Novelty" on the flip has a broken beat line, gauzy guitar riffs and is underpinned by an excellent insistent baseline that never lets up.

Review: All of Joy Division's biggest hits have been remastered and reissues by Warner this month. This particular heavyweight wedge of 12" vinyl offers "Atmosphere", which interestingly enough was first put in March 1980 by the Sordide Sentimental label as a France-only single under the title "Licht und Blindheit". Like "Transmission" or "Love Will Tear Us Apart", it is an essential tune with a real moodiness in the production rom Martin Hamnett. Curtis's vocals have a sense of finality to them that was to prove all too real when he committed suicide not long after recording it. 1979's "She's Lost Control" is an other archetypal, angular groove with the jittery drums that made the band so essential.

Review: What is left to be written about the debut Joy Division album that hasn't been written already? Well, not much except to say if you've never heard it, you must. This is the more raw of the two studio albums, powered mainly by the foundations laid down by bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris. But although the rudimentary electronic experimentalism of its successor Closer are missing - with the possible exception of 'She's Lost Control' - Martin Hannett's production job creates an uneasy world of magical reverbs and echoes that lure in the listener. From its iconic, Peter Saville sleeve to classic songs like 'Shadowplay' and 'Interzone' - which started life as a cover of Nolan Porter's Northern Soul cult hit 'Keep On Keeping On' - this is the template that effectively launched a thousand bands, from indie and post punk to goth and beyond.

Review: It's hard to untangle this hopelessly sad anthem from the equally tragic death of Joy Division singer Ian Curtis, but if we had to put a bet on it we'd say it would still be hailed as the masterpiece it is now without those unfortunate events. Coming, as it did, after the two albums from the band, it's the perfect half way house between their powerful, guitar-powered sound and the futuristic synthesiser waves that informed New Order not long after. Plus, it's a heartbreakingly brilliant song with lyrics that have spoken to subsequent generations without fail.

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FINAL TRACKLISTING & RUNNING ORDER TBC: 1 Joy Division - Transmission,
2 Joy Division - Love Will Tear Us Apart, 3 Joy Division - Isolation,
4 Joy Division - She''s Lost Control, 5 Joy Division - Atmosphere, 6 New Order - Ceremony,
7 New Order - Temptation, 8 New Order - Blue Monday, 9 New Order - Thieves Like Us,
10 New Order - The Perfect Kiss, 11 New Order - Bizarre Love Triangle,
12 New Order - True Faith, 13 New Order - World In Motion, 14 New Order - Regret,
15 New Order - Crystal, 16 New Order - Krafty,
17 New Order - Hellbent (Brand New Recording),

OVERVIEW: Despite an incredibly short recording career Joy Division remarkably have stood the test of time in terms of influential British bands. Their dark, brooding sound has inspired more artists than could be listed and their continued adoration today is testament to the forward thinking yet inward projected music and lyricism of a young band on the brink of success yet unsure of how to deal with it. With the sad passing of Ian Curtis, from the ashes rose New Order; the same core band but with a new fresh approach to their chosen career path. Loud, colourful and full of life.

''Total'' is a chronological look at the two bands most important tracks, covering Joy Division staples such as Love Will Tear Us Apart, and the resonating Atmosphere. New Order bring to the table Blue Monday, Bizarre Love Triangle and True Faith. Also included is a brand new never released New Order track ''Hellbent''.

PROMOTION: Stephen Morris and Bernard Sumner will both be doing limited promo for this release. More information to come but aiming for BBC Breakfast, Radio 2, 6Music and key regionals.

PRESS: Full print campaign focussing on broadsheet titles and key music press. Also full online campaign focussing on broadsheet/magazine pages and key blogs.

RADIO: Manchester based regional radio advertising on XFM

TV: National TV ad campaign, commencing with approximately £40k spend in week one.

MARKETING: TV ads, Radio Ads, Press Ads, Online activity.

Review: Originally known as Stuff Kittens, then Warsaw, the legendary U.K. post-punk band Joy Division emerged from Manchester in the late 1970s, their middle moniker chosen in honour of a David Bowie-Brian Eno track, "Warszawa. This album, recorded at the time but never released, includes five bonus demo tracks recorded at Pennine Studios in Manchester on July 18, 1977, featuring Steve Brotherdale on drums. The first 11 tracks were laid down during a recording session in early May 1978, shortly after 'Interzone' and 'Transmission' - later to become Joy Division classics - had been incoporated into their set, the formere emerging from a cover of Northern Soul classic 'Keep On Keepin' On', the band adding original lyrics to create a unique sound. 'Transmission', written during the final rehearsal week, begins with a line from Alistair Crowley's The Book of Thoth, adding to what is already a fascinating collection of early takes of songs that would later gain iconic post-punk status.

Review: It could have all been so different when you think about it. One of the UK's most critically acclaimed, celebrated and mourned bands, Joy Division, were originally toying with the idea of calling themselves Stiff Kittens after first getting together. This then changed to Warsaw, after David Bowie's track, 'Warsawa', and it's under this guise they broke into the common conscious, supporting The Buzzcocks, Penetration and John Cooper Clarke at Electric Circus in 1977. Reviews from that show - by music journalist leg-ends Paul Morley and Ian Wood - would ignite the hype. A debut album was planned for RCA Records, 11 tracks that would go on to be known simply as The RCA Sessions. Here they are now, as originally intended, some of which eventually made it onto Joy Division records, others didn't, but all clearly showing musicians defining their sound and place in the scene.