 |  | Skip "Closer", get this one |  |
Of the two official (noncompilation) Joy Division albums - "Unknown Pleasures" and "Closer" - this one is the far better one. Of the 10 songs on the album, the first 9 are great. Only the last song - "I Remember Nothing" - is average, in my opinion. Ian Curtis was in top form on this album, and it shows (in contrast to the Closer album, where supposedly he had lost some interest - there's only one great song ("Isolation"), one decent song ("Heart and Soul"), and the rest is forgettable).
About the songs on this album, I think "Disorder", "Insight", "New Dawn Fades" and "Shadowplay" are the best. Though the version of Disorder here is great, the live version on the "Les Bains Douches" live album is even better. Also, the version of Insight on the "Complete BBC Recordings" compilation is far superior to the version here; it's a bit louder and "spacier" sounding, while on this album it's just a little too quiet and subdued (though still great - it's just a fantastic song). New Dawn Fades is one of those songs that everyone should hear at least once in their life (and preferably more:). It's a little different than their usual songs, in that there's more of a noticeable 70's standard rock influence in some of the guitar work. I like the version of Shadowplay here better than on all the compilation and live CDs (though the bass-heavy version on the "Warsaw" CD is different in a good way).
A lot of people complain about She's Lost Control, saying it doesn't fit in with the rest of the album. I agree a little bit, but it's still an excellent song. I'm torn as to whether I prefer the version here over the version on the "Substance" compilation. They're both very good. By the way, for people new to Joy Division, I think the first album they should get is Substance, then Unknown Pleasures. Joy Division's best songs were released only as singles, and luckily the best of them are on the Substance CD.
It's a shame that nowadays no one makes the kind of intense, serious and intelligent music that Joy Division made. They were definitely a product and reflection of their time (and it was a grim and gloomy time, the late 70's were simply awful). Some recent groups have had pretensions of doing so (and failed miserably), and there have even been some imitators of Joy Division, which is just pathetic. There need to be new groups forging something new and exciting, like Joy Division did, not rehashing the old (and poorly, at that). I'm still hopeful, but I'll also be enjoying listening to Joy Division anyhow.
July 31, 2008| | | It's better than almost everything but... | |
Short and sweet, Unknown Pleasures is not their finest album, IMO. I'd give it 11/10 but Closer gets 111/10. It's perfect in every way. Listen to both back to back and tell me I'm wrong.
But hey, if you're into this band, it's all fanboy/girl argument anyway. We can all agree they're both masterpieces. It's personal preference.
July 19, 2008Joy Division may be considered one of the founding bands of Goth, but I honestly don't see what people found in this. The lyrics, as usual, are drowned out and very difficult to understand and the music and lyrics feel like.. 'varsity garage band does Goth'. Sort of. Granted, I appreciate the blend of dismal pop, but this album just doesn't spark my interest.
June 17, 2008Hey, this is weird! This has pop hooks on it! And it's a Joy Division record! It's actually a lot like the Talking Heads or Devo or something like that, only the lyrics are depressing as hell rather than paranoid and Ian Curtis sounds like Jim Morrison rather than Tom Verlaine. From a songwriter's perspective, this is a better album than Closer, but I think I have to give Closer the edge for sheer catharsis alone. This is more mechanical, cold, and impersonal - except on the intense "New Dawn Fades", when Curtis starts screaming. It also has a damn great guitar part, I'll add. Yes, that is a very good song. So is the resident classic, "She's Lost Control", which perfects the blend of Krautrock, New Wave, and Goth-rock: bleak, but catchy - the same goes for "Disorder" and the melodic single "Candidate". "Shadowplay" is fantastic as well, the closest this band ever came to flat-out punk. Only the last three songs fail to make much of an impact, and god do they suck: "Wilderness" at least has cool lyrics; but there's nothing to save either the chaotic, amelodic "I Remember Nothing" or the all-too-experimental "Interzone". Let's forget all about those and focus on the goods, shall we?
November 18, 2007This is an album that displays emtion in each of its song. Unlike many of todays artist who pose for certain look or stlye, Joy Division were about channeling their emotions through their music. Unknown Pleasures, a landmark album the world was not ready for its time of release and yet still an album that sounds fresh and not dated. From the opening track Disorder to the track I Rememeber Nothing, the album is a sonic venture unlike the world has seen. She's Lost Control alone a track that makes you feel like you are on the edge of losing control. Seeing footage of Ian Curtis perform SLC is simply shocking. As the beat of the Stephen Morris drums fuel the gyrations of what seems to be an Ian Curtis in a state of epilepsy, one can wonder how Ian didnt lose control there and then. Whereas the power of Shadowplay can be summoned up in one lyric "In the Shadowplay acting out your own death.." Unknown Pleasures offers us a view into Joy Divisions world. A dystopia in shades of grey.
November 13, 2006More reviews at Amazon.com ...
