107-479: Joy Division were an English post-punk band formed in Salford in 1976. The group consisted of vocalist, guitarist and lyricist Ian Curtis , guitarist and keyboardist Bernard Sumner , bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris . Sumner and Hook formed the band after attending a June 1976 Sex Pistols concert. While Joy Division's first recordings were heavily influenced by early punk rock , they soon developed
214-428: A new wave revival. Their music ranged from the atonal tracks of bands like Liars to the melodic pop songs of groups like The Sounds . They shared an emphasis on energetic live performance and used aesthetics (in hair and clothes) closely aligned with their fans, often drawing on fashion of the 1950s and 1960s, with "skinny ties, white belts [and] shag haircuts". There was an emphasis on "rock authenticity" that
321-502: A 1987 interview with Option , Morris said that they "just thought the songs were sort of sympathetic and more uplifting than depressing. But everyone's got their own opinion." Deborah Curtis recalled that only with the release of Closer did many who were close to the singer realise "[h]is intentions and feelings were all there within the lyrics". The surviving members regret not seeing the warning signs in Curtis's lyrics. Morris said that "it
428-568: A bass guitar. They formed a band with Terry Mason, who had also attended the gig; Sumner bought a guitar, and Mason a drum kit. After their schoolfriend Martin Gresty declined an invitation to join as vocalist after getting a job at a factory, the band placed an advertisement for a vocalist in the Manchester Virgin Records shop. Ian Curtis , who knew them from earlier gigs, responded and was hired without audition. Sumner said that he "knew he
535-568: A combined set with Alan Hempsall of Crispy Ambulance and Simon Topping of A Certain Ratio singing on the first few songs. When Topping came back towards the end of the set, some audience members threw bottles at the stage. Curtis's ill health led to the cancellation of several other gigs that April. Joy Division's final live performance was held at the University of Birmingham 's High Hall on 2 May, and included their only performance of " Ceremony ", one of
642-548: A cover of Nolan "N.F." Porter 's "Keep on Keepin' On" at a Manchester recording studio. The band spent late March and April 1978 writing and rehearsing material. During the Stiff/Chiswick Challenge concert at Manchester's Rafters club on 14 April, they caught the attention of TV music presenter Tony Wilson and manager Rob Gretton . Curtis berated Wilson for not putting the group on his Granada Television show So It Goes ; Wilson responded that Joy Division would be
749-508: A dense (and often playful) style of criticism that drew on philosophy, radical politics and an eclectic variety of other sources. In 1978, UK magazine Sounds celebrated albums such as Siouxsie and the Banshees' The Scream , Wire's Chairs Missing , and American band Pere Ubu 's Dub Housing . In 1979, NME championed records such as PiL's Metal Box , Joy Division's Unknown Pleasures , Gang of Four's Entertainment! , Wire's 154 ,
856-454: A failing marriage, depression , and epilepsy . As the band's popularity grew, Curtis's health condition made it increasingly difficult for him to perform; he occasionally experienced seizures on stage. He died by suicide on the eve of what would have been the band's first North American tour in May 1980, aged 23. Joy Division's second and final album, Closer , was released two months later; it and
963-532: A foundation for the new pop movement and the later alternative and independent genres. Post-punk is a diverse genre that emerged from the cultural milieu of punk rock in the late 1970s. Originally called "new musick", the terms were first used by various writers in the late 1970s to describe groups moving beyond punk's garage rock template and into disparate areas. Sounds writer Jon Savage already used "post-punk" in early 1978. NME writer Paul Morley also stated that he had "possibly" invented
1070-438: A genre of music than a space of possibility", suggesting that "what unites all this activity is a set of open-ended imperatives: innovation; willful oddness; the willful jettisoning of all things precedented or 'rock'n'roll ' ". AllMusic employs "post-punk" to denote "a more adventurous and arty form of punk". Reynolds asserted that the post-punk period produced significant innovations and music on its own. Reynolds described
1177-576: A hub for this scene and provide it with its namesake. A pioneering punk scene in Australia during the mid-1970s also fostered influential post-punk acts like The Birthday Party , who eventually relocated to the UK to join its burgeoning music scene. As these scenes began to develop, British music publications such as NME and Sounds developed an influential part in the nascent post-punk culture, with writers like Savage, Paul Morley and Ian Penman developing
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#17328585565271284-708: A large output of music. By 1980–1981, many British acts, including Maximum Joy , Magazine, Essential Logic, Killing Joke , the Sound , 23 Skidoo , Alternative TV , the Teardrop Explodes , the Psychedelic Furs , Echo & the Bunnymen and the Membranes also became part of these fledgling post-punk scenes, which centered on cities such as London and Manchester. However, during this period, major figures and artists in
1391-502: A more cerebral and ghostly sound. According to Sumner "the music was loud and heavy, and we felt that Martin had toned it down, especially with the guitars". The group did not typically interact with the audience during concerts. According to Paul Morley, "During a Joy Division set, outside of the songs, you'll be lucky to hear more than two or three words. Hello and goodbye. No introductions, no promotion." Curtis would often perform what became known as his "'dead fly' dance", as if imitating
1498-531: A more commercial new wave sound (such as Gang of Four), while others were fixtures on American college radio and became early examples of alternative rock , such as R.E.M. One band to emerge from post-punk was U2 , which infused elements of religious imagery and political commentary into its often anthemic music. Online database AllMusic noted that late '80s bands such as Big Flame , World Domination Enterprises , and Minimal Compact appeared to be extensions of post-punk. Some notable bands that recalled
1605-457: A music shop window seeking a replacement drummer. Stephen Morris , who had attended the same school as Curtis, was the sole respondent. Deborah Curtis, Ian's wife, stated that Morris "fitted perfectly" with the band, and that with his addition Warsaw became a "complete 'family ' ". To avoid confusion with the London punk band Warsaw Pakt, the band renamed themselves Joy Division in early 1978, borrowing
1712-442: A notch with Jimi Hendrix , he realised "it wasn't about little catchy tunes ... it was what you could do sonically with a guitar." Despite their short career, Joy Division have exerted a wide-reaching influence and achieved widespread critical acclaim. John Bush of AllMusic argues that Joy Division "became the first band in the post-punk movement by ... emphasizing not anger and energy but mood and expression, pointing ahead to
1819-432: A pact long before Curtis's death that, should any member leave, the remaining members would change the band name. The band re-formed as New Order , with Sumner on vocals; they later recruited Morris's girlfriend Gillian Gilbert as keyboardist and second guitarist. Gilbert had befriended the band and played guitar at a Joy Division performance when Curtis had been unable to play. New Order's debut single, "Ceremony" (1981),
1926-569: A particular drum beat would do something to him. He'd go off in a trance for a bit, then he'd lose it and have an epileptic fit. We'd have to stop the show and carry him off to the dressing room where he'd cry his eyes out because this appalling thing had just happened to him." Sumner wrote that Curtis was inspired by artists such as the Doors, Iggy Pop , David Bowie , Kraftwerk , the Velvet Underground and Neu! . Hook has also related that Curtis
2033-406: A seizure; his arms would "start flying in [a] semicircular, hypnotic curve". Simon Reynolds noted that Curtis's dancing style was reminiscent of an epileptic seizure, and that he was dancing in the manner for some months before he was diagnosed with epilepsy. Curtis' diagnosis made live performances difficult for the band. Sumner later reflected in 2007, "We didn't have flashing lights, but sometimes
2140-552: A sparse sound and style that made them one of the pioneering groups of the post-punk genre. Their self-released 1978 debut EP An Ideal for Living drew the attention of the Manchester television personality Tony Wilson , who signed them to his independent label Factory Records . Their debut album Unknown Pleasures , recorded with producer Martin Hannett , was released in 1979. Curtis struggled with personal problems, including
2247-555: A variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-rock influences. Inspired by punk's energy and do it yourself ethic but determined to break from rock cliches , artists experimented with styles like funk , electronic music , jazz , and dance music ; the production techniques of dub and disco ; and ideas from art and politics, including critical theory , modernist art , cinema and literature . These communities produced independent record labels , visual art, multimedia performances and fanzines . The early post-punk vanguard
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#17328585565272354-488: Is different to other drummers. To me, a drummer in the band is the clock, but Steve wouldn't be the clock, because he's passive: he would follow the rhythm of the band, which gave us our own edge." By Closer , Curtis had adopted a low baritone voice, drawing comparisons to Jim Morrison of the Doors (one of Curtis's favourite bands). Sumner largely acted as the band's director, a role he continued in New Order. While Sumner
2461-504: Is not with what Reynolds left out of Rip It Up ..., but, paradoxically, that too much was left in". Ogg suggested that post-punk pertains to a set of artistic sensibilities and approaches rather than any unifying style, and disputed the accuracy of the term's chronological prefix "post", as various groups commonly labelled "post-punk" predate the punk rock movement. Reynolds defined the post-punk era as occurring roughly between 1978 and 1984. He advocated that post-punk be conceived as "less
2568-580: The Melody Maker review, Chris Brazier said that it "has the familiar rough-hewn nature of home-produced records, but they're no mere drone-vendors—there are a lot of good ideas here, and they could be a very interesting band by now, seven months on". The packaging of An Ideal for Living —which featured a drawing of a Hitler Youth member on the cover—coupled with the nature of the band's name fuelled speculation about their political affiliations. While Hook and Sumner later said they were intrigued by fascism at
2675-527: The Substance compilation in 1988, including several out-of-print singles. Permanent was released in 1995 by London Records , which had acquired the Joy Division catalogue after Factory's 1992 bankruptcy. The comprehensive box set Heart and Soul was released in 1997. Joy Division took time to develop their style and quickly evolved from their punk roots. Their sound during their early inception as Warsaw
2782-607: The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame . On 4 June 1976, childhood friends Bernard Sumner and Peter Hook separately attended a Sex Pistols show at the Manchester Lesser Free Trade Hall . Both were inspired by the Pistols' performance. Sumner said that he felt the Pistols "destroyed the myth of being a pop star, of a musician being some kind of god that you had to worship". The following day Hook borrowed £35 from his mother to buy
2889-459: The Art of Noise , would attempt to bring sampled and electronic sounds to the pop mainstream. Post-punk artists such as Scritti Politti's Green Gartside and Josef K 's Paul Haig , previously engaged in avant-garde practices, turned away from these approaches and pursued mainstream styles and commercial success. These new developments, in which post-punk artists attempted to bring subversive ideas into
2996-461: The Banshees and Wire were experimenting with sounds, lyrics, and aesthetics that differed significantly from their punk contemporaries. Savage described some of these early developments as exploring "harsh urban scrapings", "controlled white noise " and "massively accented drumming". In November 1977 Siouxsie and the Banshees' first John Peel Session for BBC radio 1 marked the transition to post-punk when they premiered "Metal Postcard" with space in
3103-409: The Banshees. Standard musical fixtures of early gothic rock bands included "high-pitched post-Joy Division basslines usurp[ing] the melodic role" and "vocals that were either near operatic and Teutonic or deep, droning alloys of Jim Morrison and Ian Curtis." Joy Division have been dramatised in two biopics. 24 Hour Party People (2002) is a fictionalised account of Factory Records in which members of
3210-517: The Blacks , and Lizzy Mercier Descloux pursued a formula described by Lucy Sante as "anything at all + disco bottom". Other no wave-indebted artists such as Swans , Rhys Chatham , Glenn Branca , Lydia Lunch , the Lounge Lizards , Bush Tetras , and Sonic Youth instead continued exploring the early scene's forays into noise music 's abrasive territory. The original post-punk movement ended as
3317-576: The British post-punk scene in the late 1970s. The genre later flourished into a more widespread and international movement of artists who applied the spirit of psychedelic rock to new sounds and techniques. Other styles such as avant-funk and industrial dub also emerged around 1979. Midwestern groups such as Pere Ubu and Devo drew inspiration from the region's derelict industrial environments , employing conceptual art techniques, musique concrète and unconventional verbal styles that would presage
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3424-664: The Buzzcocks, Penetration and John Cooper Clarke . Tony Tabac played drums that night after joining the band two days earlier. Reviews in the NME by Paul Morley and in Sounds by Ian Wood brought them immediate national exposure. Mason became the band's manager and Tabac was replaced on drums in June 1977 by Steve Brotherdale, who also played in the punk band the Panik. Brotherdale tried to get Curtis to leave
3531-622: The Grapevine Records head John Anderson's insistence on adding synthesiser into the mix to soften the sound, and asked to be dropped from the contract with RCA. Joy Division made their recorded debut in June 1978 when the band self-released An Ideal for Living , and two weeks later their track "At a Later Date" was featured on the compilation album Short Circuit: Live at the Electric Circus (which had been recorded live in October 1977). In
3638-732: The Jerks , Mars , DNA , Theoretical Girls , and Rhys Chatham instead experimented with noise, dissonance and atonality in addition to non-rock styles. The former four groups were included on the Eno-produced No New York compilation (1978), often considered the quintessential testament to the scene. The decadent parties and art installations of venues such as Club 57 and the Mudd Club would become cultural hubs for musicians and visual artists alike, with figures such as Jean-Michel Basquiat , Keith Haring and Michael Holman frequenting
3745-413: The Joy Division sound". The album cover was designed by Peter Saville , who went on to provide artwork for future Joy Division and New Order releases. Unknown Pleasures was released in June and sold through its initial pressing of 10,000 copies. Wilson said the success turned the indie label into a true business and a "revolutionary force" that operated outside of the major record label system. Reviewing
3852-887: The Pop Group and the Slits had begun experimenting with dance music, dub production techniques and the avant-garde, while punk-indebted Manchester acts such as Joy Division, the Fall , the Durutti Column and A Certain Ratio developed unique styles that drew on a similarly disparate range of influences across music and modernist art. Bands such as Scritti Politti , Gang of Four , Essential Logic and This Heat incorporated leftist political philosophy and their own art school studies in their work. The unorthodox studio production techniques devised by producers such as Steve Lillywhite , Martin Hannett , and Dennis Bovell became important element of
3959-554: The Raincoats ' self-titled debut , and American group Talking Heads ' album Fear of Music . Siouxsie and the Banshees, Joy Division, Bauhaus and the Cure were examples of post-punk bands who shifted to dark overtones in their music, which would later spawn the gothic rock scene in the early 1980s. Members of Siouxsie and the Banshees and the Cure worked on records and toured together regularly until 1984. Neo-psychedelia grew out of
4066-413: The album for Melody Maker , writer Jon Savage described the album as an "opaque manifesto" and declared it "one of the best, white, English, debut LPs of the year". Joy Division performed on Granada TV again on 20 July 1979, and made their only nationwide TV appearance on 15 September on BBC2 's Something Else . They supported the Buzzcocks in a 24-venue UK tour that began that October, which allowed
4173-574: The art school tradition found in the work of artists such as Roxy Music and David Bowie . Reynolds noted a preoccupation among some post-punk artists with issues such as alienation , repression , and technocracy of Western modernity . Among major influences on a variety of post-punk artists were writers William S. Burroughs and J. G. Ballard , avant-garde political scenes such as Situationism and Dada , and intellectual movements such as postmodernism . Many artists viewed their work in explicitly political terms. Additionally, in some locations,
4280-455: The b-sides of "Heroes" and Low albums, was a "music looking at the future". Morris cited the "unique style" of Velvet Underground's Maureen Tucker and the motorik drum beats, from Neu! and Can . Morris also credited Siouxsie and the Banshees because their "first drummer Kenny Morris played mostly toms" and "the sound of cymbals was forbidden". Hook said that "Siouxsie and the Banshees were one of our big influences ... The way
4387-428: The band and join the Panik, and even had Curtis audition. On 18 July 1977, Warsaw recorded five demo tracks at Pennine Sound Studios, Oldham . Uneasy with Brotherdale's aggressive personality, the band fired him soon after the sessions. Driving home from the studio, they pulled over and asked Brotherdale to check on a flat tyre; when he got out of the car, they drove off. In August 1977, Warsaw placed an advertisement in
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4494-452: The band appear as supporting characters. Tony Wilson said of the film, "It's all true, it's all not true. It's not a fucking documentary," and that he favoured the "myth" over the truth. The 2007 film Control , directed by Anton Corbijn , is a biography of Ian Curtis (portrayed by Sam Riley ) that uses Deborah Curtis's biography of her late husband, Touching from a Distance (1995), as its basis. Control had its international premiere on
4601-631: The band recorded their second album, Closer , with Hannett at London's Britannia Row Studios . That month they released the " Licht und Blindheit " single, with "Atmosphere" as the A-side and "Dead Souls" as the B-side, on the French independent label Sordide Sentimental . A lack of sleep and long hours destabilised Curtis's epilepsy, and his seizures became almost uncontrollable. He often had seizures during performances, which some audience members believed were part of
4708-516: The band to quit their regular jobs. The non-album single " Transmission " was released in November. Joy Division's burgeoning success drew a devoted following who were stereotyped as "intense young men dressed in grey overcoats". Joy Division toured Europe in January 1980. Although the schedule was demanding, Curtis experienced only two grand mal seizures, both in the final two months of the tour. That March,
4815-484: The band. On 27 December, during the drive home from a gig at the Hope and Anchor in London, Curtis had his first recognised severe epileptic seizure and was hospitalised. Meanwhile, Joy Division's career progressed, and Curtis appeared on the 13 January 1979 cover of NME . That month the band recorded their session for BBC Radio 1 DJ John Peel . According to Deborah Curtis, "Sandwiched in between these two important landmarks
4922-570: The bands associated with the movement turned away from its aesthetics, often in favour of more commercial sounds. Many of these groups would continue recording as part of the new pop movement, with entryism becoming a popular concept. In the United States, driven by MTV and modern rock radio stations, a number of post-punk acts had an influence on or became part of the Second British Invasion of " New Music " there. Some shifted to
5029-713: The break-up of his pioneering punk band the Sex Pistols , citing his disillusionment with punk's musical predictability and cooption by commercial interests, as well as his desire to explore more diverse territory. In May, Lydon formed the group Public Image Ltd with guitarist Keith Levene and bassist Jah Wobble , the latter who declared "rock is obsolete" after citing reggae as a "natural influence". However, Lydon described his new sound as "total pop with deep meanings. But I don't want to be categorised in any other term but punk! That's where I come from and that's where I'm staying." Around this time, acts such as Public Image Ltd,
5136-432: The broad umbrella of " new wave ", with the terms being deployed interchangeably. "Post-punk" became differentiated from "new wave" after their styles perceptibly narrowed. The writer Nicholas Lezard described the term "post-punk" as "so multifarious that only the broadest use ... is possible". Subsequent discourse has failed to clarify whether contemporary music journals and fanzines conventionally understood "post-punk"
5243-404: The charts. Far Out magazine claimed a 2010s revival of the genre as having "claws firmly in the past, with many of the original post-punk bands such as The Fall and Bauhaus hailed as gods". Referring to bands such as Denmark's Iceage , England's Eagulls , Savages and Sleaford Mods , Canada's Ought , America's Preoccupations , Protomartyr and Parquet Courts . Further stating "This
5350-539: The compilation double-7" EP A Factory Sample , the first release by Tony Wilson's record label, Factory Records . In the NME review of the EP, Paul Morley praised the band as "the missing link" between Elvis Presley and Siouxsie and the Banshees . Joy Division joined Factory's roster, after buying themselves out of the RCA deal. Gretton was made a label partner to represent the interests of
5457-407: The concerns of a largely white, male, working-class population and abandoned its continued reliance on established rock and roll tropes, such as three-chord progressions and Chuck Berry -based guitar riffs . These artists instead defined punk as "an imperative to constant change", believing that "radical content demands radical form". Though the music varied widely between regions and artists,
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#17328585565275564-438: The creation of post-punk music was closely linked to the development of efficacious subcultures , which played important roles in the production of art, multimedia performances, fanzines and independent labels related to the music. Many post-punk artists maintained an anti-corporatist approach to recording and instead seized on alternate means of producing and releasing music. Journalists also became an important element of
5671-540: The critical community—American critic Greil Marcus characterised "Britain's postpunk pop avant-garde" in a 1980 Rolling Stone article as "sparked by a tension, humour and sense of paradox plainly unique in present-day pop music" —as well as media figures such as BBC DJ John Peel , while several groups, such as PiL and Joy Division, achieved some success in the popular charts. The network of supportive record labels that included Y Records , Industrial, Fast, E.G. , Mute , Axis/4AD , and Glass continued to facilitate
5778-839: The culture, and popular music magazines and critics became immersed in the movement. In the mid-1970s, various American groups (some with ties to Downtown Manhattan 's punk scene, including Television and Suicide ) had begun expanding on the vocabulary of punk music. During the punk era, a variety of entrepreneurs interested in local punk-influenced music scenes began founding independent record labels, including Rough Trade (founded by record shop owner Geoff Travis ), Factory (founded by Manchester -based television personality Tony Wilson ), and Fast Product (co-founded by Bob Last and Hilary Morrison). By 1977, groups began pointedly pursuing methods of releasing music independently, an idea disseminated in particular by Buzzcocks ' release of their Spiral Scratch EP on their own label as well as
5885-428: The debut albums of those bands layered the foundations of post-punk. Simon Reynolds ' 2005 book Rip It Up and Start Again is widely referenced as post-punk doctrine, although he has stated that the book only covers aspects of post-punk that he had a personal inclination toward. Wilkinson characterised Reynolds' readings as "apparent revisionism and 'rebranding ' ". Author/musician Alex Ogg criticised: "The problem
5992-426: The drugs and made him have the attack." Tony Wilson , reflecting upon Ian Curtis's seizures while performing live with Joy Division. In contrast to the relatively polished sound of their studio recordings, Joy Division typically played loudly and aggressively during live performances. The band were especially unhappy with Hannett's mix of Unknown Pleasures , which reduced the abrasiveness of their live sound for
6099-447: The early 1980s, Downtown Manhattan's no wave scene transitioned from its abrasive origins into a more dance-oriented sound, with compilations such as ZE Records ' Mutant Disco (1981) highlighting a newly playful sensibility borne out of the city's clash of hip hop , disco and punk styles, as well as dub reggae and world music influences. Artists such as ESG , Liquid Liquid , The B-52s , Cristina , Arthur Russell , James White and
6206-906: The emerging music. Labels such as Rough Trade and Factory would become important hubs for these groups and help facilitate releases, artwork, performances, and promotion. Credit for the first post-punk record is disputed, but strong contenders include the debuts of Magazine (" Shot by Both Sides ", January 1978), Siouxsie and the Banshees (" Hong Kong Garden ", August 1978), Public Image Ltd (" Public Image ", October 1978), Cabaret Voltaire ( Extended Play , November 1978) and Gang of Four (" Damaged Goods ", December 1978). A variety of groups that predated punk, such as Cabaret Voltaire and Throbbing Gristle , experimented with tape machines and electronic instruments in tandem with performance art methods and influence from transgressive literature , ultimately helping to pioneer industrial music . Throbbing Gristle's independent label Industrial Records would become
6313-471: The experimental seriousness of earlier post-punk groups, the club-oriented scene drew some suspicion from denizens of the movement but also achieved commercial success. Artists such as Gary Numan , Depeche Mode , the Human League , Soft Cell , John Foxx and Visage helped pioneer a new synthpop style that drew more heavily from electronic and synthesizer music and benefited from the rise of MTV . In
6420-584: The final mix of " Atrocity Exhibition " he was disappointed that the abrasiveness had been toned down. He wrote; "I was like, head in hands, 'Oh fucking hell, it's happening again ... Martin had fucking melted the guitar with his Marshall Time Waster . Made it sound like someone strangling a cat and, to my mind, absolutely killed the song. I was so annoyed with him and went in and gave him a piece of my mind but he just turned round and told me to fuck off." Joy Division were scheduled to commence their first US/Canada tour in May 1980. Curtis had expressed enthusiasm about
6527-652: The guitarist and the drummer played was a really unusual way of playing". Hook drew inspiration from the style of bassist Jean-Jacques Burnel and his early material with the Stranglers ; he also credited Carol Kaye and her musical basslines on early 1970s work of the Temptations . Sumner mentioned "the raw, nasty, unpolished edge" in the guitars of the Rolling Stones , the simple riff of " Vicious " on Lou Reed 's Transformer , and Neil Young . His musical horizon went up
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#17328585565276634-472: The house until he caught a train to Manchester the following morning. Early on 18 May 1980, having spent the night watching the Werner Herzog film Stroszek and listening to Iggy Pop 's 1977 album The Idiot , Curtis hanged himself in his kitchen. Deborah discovered his body later that day when she returned. The suicide shocked the band and their management. In 2005, Wilson said: "I think all of us made
6741-430: The last songs written by Curtis. "Basically, we want to play and enjoy what we like playing. I think that when we stop doing that, I think, well, that will be time to pack it in. That will be the end." Ian Curtis, Radio Lancashire interview, 1979. Hannett's production has been widely praised. However, as with Unknown Pleasures , both Hook and Sumner were unhappy with the production. Hook said that when he heard
6848-487: The mistake of not thinking his suicide was going to happen ... We all completely underestimated the danger. We didn't take it seriously. That's how stupid we were." Music critic Simon Reynolds said Curtis's suicide "made for instant myth". Jon Savage's obituary said that "now no one will remember what his work with Joy Division was like when he was alive; it will be perceived as tragic rather than courageous". In June 1980, Joy Division's single " Love Will Tear Us Apart "
6955-690: The movement, including particular brands of krautrock , glam , art rock , art pop and other music from the 1960s. Artists once again approached the studio as an instrument , using new recording methods and pursuing novel sonic territories. Author Matthew Bannister wrote that post-punk artists rejected the high cultural references of 1960s rock artists like the Beatles and Bob Dylan as well as paradigms that defined " rock as progressive , as art, as 'sterile' studio perfectionism ... by adopting an avant-garde aesthetic". According to musicologist Pete Dale, while groups wanted to "rip up history and start again",
7062-408: The music was still "inevitably tied to traces they could never fully escape". Nicholas Lezard described post-punk as "a fusion of art and music". The era saw the robust appropriation of ideas from literature, art, cinema, philosophy , politics and critical theory into musical and pop cultural contexts. Artists sought to refuse the common distinction between high and low culture and returned to
7169-613: The name from the sexual slavery wing of a Nazi concentration camp mentioned in the 1955 novel House of Dolls . On 14 December, the group recorded their debut EP , An Ideal for Living , at Pennine Sound Studio and played their final gig as Warsaw on New Year's Eve at the Swinging Apple in Liverpool. Billed as Warsaw to ensure an audience, the band played their first gig as Joy Division on 25 January 1978 at Pip's Disco in Manchester. Joy Division were approached by RCA Records to record
7276-478: The next band he would showcase on TV. Gretton, the venue's resident DJ, was so impressed by the band's performance that he convinced them to take him on as their manager. Gretton, whose "dogged determination" was later credited for much of the band's public success, contributed the business skills to provide Joy Division with a better foundation for creativity. Joy Division spent the first week of May 1978 recording at Manchester's Arrow Studios. The band were unhappy with
7383-412: The opening night of Director's Fortnight at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival , where it was critically well received. That year Grant Gee directed the band documentary Joy Division . Joy Division have influenced many bands, including their contemporaries the Cure and U2 . In 1980, U2 singer Bono said that Joy Division were "one of the most important bands of the last four or five years". Joy Division
7490-424: The original era during the 1990s included Six Finger Satellite , Brainiac , and Elastica . In the early 2000s, a new group of bands that played a stripped down and back-to-basics version of guitar rock emerged into the mainstream, led by Interpol , Franz Ferdinand , The Strokes , and The Rapture . These bands were variously characterised as part of a post-punk revival , as well as a garage rock revival and
7597-510: The performance. The seizures left him feeling ashamed and depressed, and the band became increasingly worried about Curtis's condition. On 7 April 1980, Curtis attempted suicide by overdosing on his anti-seizure medication, phenobarbitone . The following evening, Joy Division were scheduled to play a gig at the Derby Hall in Bury . Curtis was too ill to perform, so at Gretton's insistence the band played
7704-405: The period as "a fair match for the sixties in terms of the sheer amount of great music created, the spirit of adventure and idealism that infused it, and the way that the music seemed inextricably connected to the political and social turbulence of its era". Nicholas Lezard wrote that the music of the period "was avant-garde, open to any musical possibilities that suggested themselves, united only in
7811-557: The pop mainstream, began to be categorised under the marketing term new pop . Several more pop-oriented groups, including ABC , the Associates , Adam and the Ants and Bow Wow Wow (the latter two managed by former Sex Pistols manager Malcolm McLaren ) emerged in tandem with the development of the New Romantic subcultural scene. Emphasizing glamour, fashion and escapism in distinction to
7918-605: The post-punk movement by several years. A variety of subsequent groups, including the Boston -based Mission of Burma and the New York-based Talking Heads, combined elements of punk with art school sensibilities. In 1978, the latter band began a series of collaborations with British ambient pioneer and ex- Roxy Music member Brian Eno , experimenting with Dadaist lyrical techniques, electronic sounds, and African polyrhythms . San Francisco 's vibrant post-punk scene
8025-439: The post-punk movement has been characterised by its "conceptual assault" on rock conventions and rejection of aesthetics perceived of as traditionalist , hegemonic or rockist in favour of experimentation with production techniques and non-rock musical styles such as dub , funk , electronic music , disco , noise , world music , and the avant-garde . Some previous musical styles also served as touchstones for
8132-482: The rim of a crater." According to music critic Jon Savage, "Joy Division were not punk but they were directly inspired by its energy". In 1994 Sumner said the band's characteristic sound "came out naturally: I'm more rhythm and chords, and Hooky was melody. He used to play high lead bass because I liked my guitar to sound distorted, and the amplifier I had would only work when it was at full volume. When Hooky played low, he couldn't hear himself. Steve has his own style which
8239-425: The rise of melancholy alternative music in the '80s." The band's dark and gloomy sound, which Martin Hannett described in 1979 as "dancing music with Gothic overtones", presaged in part the gothic rock genre. While the term "gothic" originally described a "doomy atmosphere" in music of the late 1970s, the term was soon applied to specific bands like Bauhaus that followed in the wake of Joy Division and Siouxsie and
8346-458: The same name . In 2005 both New Order and Joy Division were inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame . Post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick ) is a broad genre of music that emerged in 1977 in the wake of punk rock . Post-punk musicians departed from punk's fundamental elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a broader, more experimental approach that encompassed
8453-505: The scene began leaning away from underground aesthetics. In the music press, the increasingly esoteric writing of post-punk publications soon began to alienate their readerships; it is estimated that within several years, NME suffered the loss of half its circulation. Writers like Paul Morley began advocating "overground brightness" instead of the experimental sensibilities promoted in the early years. Morley's own musical collaboration with engineer Gary Langan and programmer J. J. Jeczalik ,
8560-400: The scene. According to Village Voice writer Steve Anderson, the scene pursued an abrasive reductionism that "undermined the power and mystique of a rock vanguard by depriving it of a tradition to react against". Anderson claimed that the no wave scene represented "New York's last stylistically cohesive avant-rock movement". British post-punk entered the 1980s with support from members of
8667-452: The self-released 1977 singles of Desperate Bicycles . These DIY imperatives would help form the production and distribution infrastructure of post-punk and the indie music scene that later blossomed in the mid-1980s. As the initial punk movement dwindled, vibrant new scenes began to coalesce out of a variety of bands pursuing experimental sounds and wider conceptual territory in their work. By late 1977, British acts such as Siouxsie and
8774-643: The sense that it was very often cerebral, concocted by brainy young men and women interested as much in disturbing the audience, or making them think, as in making a pop song". Many post-punk artists were initially inspired by punk's DIY ethic and energy, but ultimately became disillusioned with the style and movement, feeling that it had fallen into a commercial formula, rock convention, and self-parody. They repudiated its populist claims to accessibility and raw simplicity, instead of seeing an opportunity to break with musical tradition, subvert commonplaces and challenge audiences. Artists moved beyond punk's focus on
8881-440: The single " Love Will Tear Us Apart " became their highest-charting releases. Between July and October 1980, the remaining members, with the addition of keyboardist and guitarist Gillian Gilbert , regrouped under the name New Order . They were successful throughout the next decade, blending post-punk with electronic and dance music influences. In 2023, both Joy Division and New Order were nominated as one act for induction into
8988-547: The sound and serrated guitars, creating a music being "cold, machine-like and passionate at the same time". Mojo editor Pat Gilbert said, "The first truly post-punk band were Siouxsie and the Banshees", noting the influence of the band's use of repetition on Joy Division . John Robb similarly argued that the first Banshees gig was "proto post-punk", comparing the rhythm section Public Image Ltd's Metal Box , which would be released three years later. In January 1978, singer John Lydon (then known as Johnny Rotten) announced
9095-448: The term himself. At the time, there was a feeling of renewed excitement regarding what the word would entail, with Sounds publishing numerous preemptive editorials on new musick. Towards the end of the decade, some journalists used " art punk " as a pejorative for garage rock-derived acts deemed too sophisticated and out of step with punk's dogma . Before the early 1980s, many groups now categorised as "post-punk" were subsumed under
9202-560: The time, Morris believed that the group's dalliance with Nazi imagery came from a desire to keep memories of the sacrifices of their parents and grandparents during World War II alive. He argued that accusations of neo-Nazi sympathies merely provoked the band "to keep on doing it, because that's the kind of people we are". On 20 September 1978, Joy Division made their television debut performing " Shadowplay " on So It Goes , with an introduction by Wilson. In October, Joy Division contributed two tracks recorded with producer Martin Hannett to
9309-832: The top ten in the UK, while Idles ' Ultra Mono , Fontaines D.C. 's Skinty Fia and Wet Leg 's self-titled debut all reached number one on the UK album charts. This scene is rooted in experimental post-punk and often features vocalists who "tend to talk more than they sing, reciting lyrics in an alternately disaffected or tightly wound voice", and "sometimes it's more like post-rock ". Several of these bands, including Black Country, New Road, Black Midi and Squid, began their careers by playing at The Windmill , an all-ages music venue in London 's Brixton neighbourhood. Many of them have also worked with producer Dan Carey and have released music on his DIY label Speedy Wunderground. Oldham Too Many Requests If you report this error to
9416-589: The tour, but his relationship with his wife, Deborah, was under strain; Deborah was excluded from the band's inner circle and objected to Curtis being close to Belgian journalist and music promoter Annik Honoré , whom he met on tour in Europe in 1979. He was also anxious about how American audiences would react to his epilepsy. The evening before the band were due to depart for America, Curtis returned to his Macclesfield home to talk to Deborah. He asked her to drop an impending divorce suit, and asked her to leave him alone in
9523-515: The way that it was discussed in later years. Music historian Clinton Heylin places the " true starting-point for English post-punk" somewhere between August 1977 and May 1978, with the arrival of guitarist John McKay in Siouxsie and the Banshees in July 1977, Magazine 's first album, Wire 's new musical direction in 1978 and the formation of Public Image Ltd . Music historian Simon Goddard wrote that
9630-679: Was "crucial". There are "devices of distance" in his production and "the sound is an illusion of physicality". Curtis was the band's sole lyricist. He typically composed his lyrics in a notebook, independently of the eventual music to evolve. The music itself was largely written by Sumner and Hook as the group jammed during rehearsals. Curtis's imagery and word choice often referenced "coldness, pressure, darkness, crisis, failure, collapse, loss of control". In 1979, NME journalist Paul Rambali wrote, "The themes of Joy Division's music are sorrowful, painful and sometimes deeply sad." Music journalist Jon Savage wrote that "Curtis's great lyrical achievement
9737-425: Was all right to get on with and that's what we based the whole group on. If we liked someone, they were in." Buzzcocks manager Richard Boon and frontman Pete Shelley have both been credited with suggesting the band name "Stiff Kittens", but the band settled on "Warsaw" shortly before their first gig, a reference to David Bowie 's song " Warszawa ". Warsaw debuted on 29 May 1977 at the Electric Circus, supporting
9844-431: Was always two-thirds of the way through a set ... it came to a point where in the last year, you'd watch the group and suddenly you'd feel Ian may be dancing great and suddenly really great. Hooky and Barney would be looking nervously at the stage and you could see what was going through their minds ... for something was happening within a set, doing what he did, that actually took him to that point, that actually overcame
9951-508: Was an influence on Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark , and on Tears for Fears . Other acts that cite Joy Division as an influence include Soundgarden , the Proclaimers , Mogwai , Hüsker Dü , and Future Islands . Rapper Danny Brown named his album Atrocity Exhibition after the Joy Division song, whose title was partially inspired by the 1970 J. G. Ballard collection of condensed novels of
10058-661: Was centered on such groups as Chrome , the Residents , Tuxedomoon and MX-80 , whose influences extended to multimedia experimentation, cabaret and the dramatic theory of Antonin Artaud 's Theater of Cruelty . Also emerging during this period was downtown New York's no wave movement, as well as a short-lived art and music scene that began in part as a reaction against punk's recycling of traditionalist rock tropes, often reflecting an abrasive and nihilistic worldview. No wave musicians such as The Contortions , Teenage Jesus and
10165-430: Was described as fairly generic and "undistinguished punk-inflected hard-rock". Critic Simon Reynolds observed how the band's originality only "really became apparent as the songs got slower", and their music took on a "sparse" quality. According to Reynolds, "Hook's bass carried the melody, Bernard Sumner's guitar left gaps rather than filling up the group's sound with dense riffage and Steve Morris's drums seemed to circle
10272-403: Was formed from the last two songs written with Curtis. New Order struggled in their early years to escape the shadow of Joy Division, but went on to achieve far greater commercial success with a different, more upbeat and dance-oriented sound. Various Joy Division outtakes and live material have been released. Still , featuring live tracks and rare recordings, was issued in 1981. Factory issued
10379-496: Was only after Ian died that we sat down and listened to the lyrics...you'd find yourself thinking, 'Oh my God, I missed this one'. Because I'd look at Ian's lyrics and think how clever he was putting himself in the position of someone else. I never believed he was writing about himself. Looking back, how could I have been so bleedin' stupid? Of course he was writing about himself. But I didn't go in and grab him and ask, 'What's up?' I have to live with that". "I saw three attacks, and it
10486-512: Was particularly influenced by Iggy Pop's chaotic stage persona. The group were inspired by Kraftwerk's "marriage between humans and machines", and the inventiveness of their electronic music. Joy Division played Trans-Europe Express through the PA before they went on stage, "to get a momentum". Bowie's " Berlin Trilogy " elaborated with Brian Eno , influenced them; the "cold austerity" of the synthesisers on
10593-574: Was released, which hit number thirteen on the UK Singles Chart . In July 1980, Closer was released, and peaked at number six on the UK Albums Chart . NME reviewer Charles Shaar Murray wrote, " Closer is as magnificent a memorial (for 'Joy Division' as much as for Ian Curtis) as any post- Presley popular musician could have." Morris said that even without Curtis's death, it is unlikely that Joy Division would have endured. The members had made
10700-425: Was represented by groups including Siouxsie and the Banshees , Wire , Public Image Ltd , the Pop Group , Magazine , Joy Division , Talking Heads , the Raincoats , Gang of Four , the Cure , and the Fall . The movement was closely related to the development of ancillary genres such as gothic rock , neo-psychedelia , no wave , and industrial music . By the mid-1980s, post-punk had dissipated, but it provided
10807-458: Was seen as a reaction to the commercialism of MTV-oriented nu metal , hip hop and "bland" post-Britpop groups. Because the bands came from countries around the world, cited diverse influences and adopted differing styles of dress, their unity as a genre has been disputed. By the end of the decade, many of the bands of the movement had broken up, were on hiatus, or had moved on to other musical areas, and very few were making significant impact on
10914-646: Was sonically conservative because of its refusal to use studio technology to create sonic space. The producer instead aimed to create a more expansive sound on the group's records. Hannett said, "[Joy Division] were a gift to a producer, because they didn't have a clue. They didn't argue". Hannett demanded clean and clear "sound separation" not only for individual instruments, but even for individual pieces of Morris's drumkit. Morris recalled, "Typically on tracks he considered to be potential singles, he'd get me to play each drum on its own to avoid any bleed-through of sound". Music journalist Richard Cook noted that Hannett's role
11021-565: Was the group's primary guitarist, Curtis played the instrument on a few recorded songs and during a few shows. Curtis hated playing guitar, but the band insisted he do so. Sumner said, "He played in quite a bizarre way and that to us was interesting, because no one else would play like Ian". During the recording sessions for Closer , Sumner began using self-built synthesisers and Hook used a six-string bass for more melody. Producer Martin Hannett "dedicated himself to capturing and intensifying Joy Division's eerie spatiality". Hannett believed punk rock
11128-576: Was the perfect time for post-punk to return, against a backdrop of hideous geopolitical happenings such as the financial crash of 2008, the ascendence of Donald Trump and the Brexit vote." During the late 2010s and early 2020s, a new wave of UK and Irish post-punk bands gained popularity. Terms such as "crank wave" and "post-Brexit new wave" have been used to describe these bands. The bands Black Country, New Road , Squid , Dry Cleaning , Shame , Sleaford Mods , and Yard Act all had albums that charted in
11235-466: Was the realisation that Ian's illness was something we would have to learn to accommodate". Joy Division's debut album, Unknown Pleasures , was recorded at Strawberry Studios , Stockport , in April 1979. Producer Martin Hannett significantly altered their live sound, a fact that greatly displeased the band at the time; however, in 2006, Hook said that in retrospect Hannett had done a good job and "created
11342-587: Was to capture the underlying reality of a society in turmoil, and to make it both universal and personal," while noting that "the lyrics reflected, in mood and approach, his interest in romantic and science-fiction literature ." Critic Robert Palmer wrote that William S. Burroughs and J. G. Ballard were "obvious influences" to Curtis, and Morris also remembered the singer reading T. S. Eliot . Deborah Curtis also remembered Curtis reading works by writers such as Fyodor Dostoevsky , Friedrich Nietzsche , Jean-Paul Sartre , Franz Kafka , and Hermann Hesse . Curtis
11449-413: Was unwilling to explain the meaning behind his lyrics and Joy Division releases were absent of any lyric sheets. He told the fanzine Printed Noise , "We haven't got a message really; the lyrics are open to interpretation. They're multidimensional. You can read into them what you like." The other Joy Division members have said that at the time, they paid little attention to the contents of Curtis's lyrics. In
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