Ian Curtis passing: 30 years ago today

very true Bong. much edgier and much harder live. i read somewhere that they really didn't like how things turned out in the studio but went with it regardless.

What people don't usually know is what a really good band they were live. Much harder sound. The second album by Martin was brilliant. No Martin/No U2. Very influential on the next wave of bands that hit this shore, including Magazine and Wire.

He was a true poet, with the guts to tell the truth.
Joy Division cut through cut through all the bullshit and hit you where it hurts.
From my perspective they had something truly unique. Majesty. But it was a true collaboration between all of them, including Martin Hannett, their producer.
Strangely enough, the rest of the band say they never really listened to Ian's lyrics at the time, and only understood in retrospect how dark the place he was in.
Yet the music and lyrics are seamless.

curtis was great, though undoubtedly the most somber guy in britain. for me, however, the crux of jd was that disjointed drum sound. there's a great scene in "24 hour party people" where the mad-genius producer, martin hannett, records the drummer playing alone on a rooftop while the rest of the band is playing in the studio below. wild stuff.

Joy Division were great, after Ian Curtis “left”, New Order never reached that intensity anymore. You should be able to find Anton Corbijn’s film “Control” (2007) on dvd (at least for region 2).

I recall, I went through agonizing months of obligatory military service back in 1980 and Dark Wave music perfectly reflected my state of mind, so I liked to play Joy Division on cassette, now and then. Another occasion for “normal” people to suspect I’d gone bonkers =8^o (oh well, I’d heard that before in school and college when listening to the likes of Beefheart, Gong or Henry Cow.)

great band, tragic story. had the pleasure of seeing them live in 78. what a show!. RIP

There is the Heart and Soul 4 disc set that has a bunch of extra songs and other versions. There are a couple of live albums as well. I don't know if that is all there is but I just looked in my iTunes and I found 6 JD albums total as well as a Warsaw album which is what they were before they were Joy Division. These guys were really something special. If you haven't seen the movie about Ian Curtis called Control it is worth checking out as well.

If there is one sure fire way to create a legacy it is to make us wonder what could have been.

amazing indeed