Peter Hook & The Light – The Studio October 5, 2017

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Growing up in the rain soaked dole-age of 1980s Northern England…a school kid was often asked one important question… Are you New Order or Smiths ?  The answer potentially could break up playground fights. Certainly the latter I embraced obsessively and still do, they reflected two very different visions of a post industrial downtrodden Manchester and so you chose your side wisely, but if you really clever, you knew who Joy Division were.

Upon first listening to Unknown Pleasures was like opening a locked attic door and discovering a different world, one which was unfamiliar, bleak, industrial and undeniably Gothic.

 For bragging rights Peter Hook has many to choose from, member of two of the most important bands to come out of the UK and with Blue Monday having the biggest selling 12″ single of all time but to name a few.

 Tonight was billed as “Substance“, taking material from both Joy Division and New Orders compilation albums of that name. Recent performances in Australia had suggested setlists weighted in JD’s favour, delving deeper into their other albums material, namely Closer and Unknown Pleasures. So what about tonight?

 The show started promptly at 9pm with the venue looking pretty much full. The audience comprising of middle aged, mostly men and judging from the accents, largely British. 

 Kicking off with New Order’s Dreams Never End from their 1981 debut LP Movement– the sound needed a little tweaking with Hook’s vocals lost in the mix- Then onto Procession, again Hook’s vocals a little lost. But this soon got sorted out, and just in time for, what we witnessed was a barrage of hit after hit from New Order Substance. Sticking closely to the albums track listing, starting with Ceremony, we were truly spoiled.  Temptation drew a huge singalong from the crowd, then the Big One, probably the most recognizable drum machine pattern in history, Blue Monday.

 The band comprising of Hook’s son Jack on 2nd bass, Andy Poole on synths & triggering the complex computer backing sequences, Paul Kehoe on Drum and Davis Potts on Guitar/2nd vocal duties.

All credit to Potts who really owned Bernard Sumner’s guitar parts and nailed the tone perfectly with his Blond Telecaster. Occasionally he took lead on songs, and when he did it like Sumner was in the room himself.  The dual bass thing really worked, with Jack taking a lot of the low end and Hook taking charge when it suited with his signature high fretted bass lines, sometimes playing in unison.

 Special mention for the huge crowd response to Bizarre Love Triangle and True Faith, every word sung back to him with unbridled passion.

 A little inbetween song banter saw Hook pointing to a front section of the audience and threatening to throw them out himself if they didn’t behave in true Salford Doorman manner.

 A short set intermission after the song 1963 saw the band come out to a moodier lighting setup and with this they sliced into the back catalogue of Joy Division. Starting with No Love Lost, again credit to Potts whose guitar effects were spot on creating the unique soundscape of those early songs.

A raucous version of Warsaw transported us back to angrier times of punk, and with Leaders Of Men and Digital the JD material definitely favouring Hooks low vocal range. There were some moments where his vocals were lost again, but it really didn’t matter- we all helped him sing along. 

When he played the fan favourite Transmission, he had the crowd in his hands as they manically chanted Dance, Dance, Dance to the Radio.

 A quick dedication to the victims of the recent Las Vegas events saw them played Atmosphere and then closing their set with Manchester Anthem Number One,  Love Will Tear Us Apart.

 Hook, full of sweat, pointed his bass in the air, placed it down on the riser and let it feedback, then tore off his shirt and threw it into the crowd. He looked happy and so he should be- legacy intact. 

 Matthew Lord

13th Floor photographer Chris Zwaagdyk had intended to shoot the show but when he arrived he was faced with a release that basically relinquished his rights to his photos. Since he, and most other folks who shoot shows are not paid for their work (just like most of us involved in the peripheries of the music business), he decided this was not to his liking and elected to leave. The 13th Floor supports him fully.

This is what Chris set through:

See the release that was presented at the door…essentially they wanted full use of hi res digital images, with no commitment to recognition full commercial use
We all left. Sorry I can’t deliver images for you tonight.
Cheers
Chris

The 13th Floor
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