Back in 2010, I went to the Palais Theatre in St Kilda to see Peter Hook and his band perform Unknown Pleasures, the first Joy Division album. This song was worth the price of admission alone! I’d never been a big Joy Division fan in my younger days, but I can remember the first time I heard this song. I was a Mod in the early ’80s and, at a gathering, Graham, then editor of Start fanzine, played it. It blew me away. It was just so powerful. Amongst all the songs played at Mod parties, this one always seemed to get played. It was part of the soundtrack of our lives in Melbourne.
Later, when I became a DJ at places like Barbarella’s, Beehive and the Lizard Lounge, this record stayed on my playlists. One of my brief romances in the early ’80s had the lyrics taped to her bedroom wall. The fact that she lived in the heart of St Kilda somehow made it seem even more poignant. And what lyrics! All these years after its release, it still has the power to generate emotion. I saw Peter Hook and the Light again quite recently, and “Love Will Tear Us Apart” remains the highlight of their set.
Nowadays, I have a lot more time for Joy Division. I think it started when I began playing the Substance compilation, which had been sitting at the back of my record collection for a very long time.
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