New Order Album: “Substance”

The word "essential" has been used to describe just about every CD available for sale on Amazon by one reviewer or another, but if any album deserves this description its Substance 1987 by New Order.

During the 80's, New Order crafted a unique and wonderful sound combining the fretty guitar work and almost-spoken vocals of Bernard Sumner, the absolutely wicked, high range lead bass guitar playing of Peter Hook, Stephen Morris's near-machine like drumming, and Gillian Gilbert's swirling keyboards.

Danceable, introspective, almost despondent, New Order somehow created brilliant, emotional songs through vocals and instrumental playing almost entirely lacking in any emotion, and, in so doing, laid the groundwork for much of today's dance music.

No one who appreciates wonderful music, then, should allow themselves to be unfamiliar with New Order, which is why this CD is a perfect purchase as it includes all of their best work.

Everything is here - the brilliantly written Ceremony ("Note for whom wheels are turning / Turn again and turn towards this time...."), the drug induced lyrics of Temptation ("Oh, you've got green eyes / Oh, you've got blue eyes, Oh, you've got grey eyes..."), the infamous, detached Blue Monday who's drum machine created beat sounds only slightly less machine-like than Bernard Sumner's vocals on the same, The Perfect Kiss, a beautiful, complicated multi-layered song combining just about every element of New Order's sound, the classic Bizarre Love Triangle ("Every time I see you falling / I get down on my knees and pray") and the sublime True Faith ("I used to to think that the day would never come / I'd see the light in the face of the morning sun...")

And that's just disc 1. Disc 2 has the b-sides from the above songs. About half of the b-sides from these tracks are instrumental / dub versions of the a-sides on disc 1 - a few are actually improvements on the a-sides, while about half the tracks are original b-sides. The standout track here is "1963", later released as a single, an emotive take on Marilyn Monroe's relationship with JFK ("Johny, don't point that gun at me / there's so many ways our lives have changed / but please I beg don't do this to me").

In short, this is album contains all of the best work by the band that is, in my humble opinion, probably the greatest band to come along in the last 20 years, so buy it, buy it with confidence knowing that you can't go wrong here, and buy it now - you won't regret it.

This early new order compilation compiles the full length 12" singles from 1981 to 1987. The opening track "Ceremony" still sounds very Joy Division-like, tying perfectly into their past with Ian Curtis (Lead singer of Joy Division that took his life in 1980). This chronologically organized compilation shows the impressive string of singles new order released. The hypnotic "Everything's Gone Green", the moving "Thieves like us", the danceable "Perfect Kiss" and the classics "Blue Monday", "Bizarre Love Triangle" and "True Faith". The 2nd CD doesn't really cut the mustard fully, they are b-sides after all. There are some great tracks here though. "In a Lonely Place", the opener is the companion track to "Ceremony", very haunting. "The Beach" and "Kiss of Death", great instrumental remixes of "Blue Monday" and "Perfect Kiss" respectively and "1963", the b-side of "True Faith". All in all a worthwhile compilation. The 2-cassette version is also worth looking out for; it includes as extra tracks dub-mixes of "Subculture", "Shellshock" and "Bizarre Love Triangle"

I've listened to this more times than I've told my Dad that I love him. Maybe my priorities are wrong but this album is practically a family member. A genius overview of New Order's early and mid-career that they should have stuck to on later compilations. The songs here are classics. Some of the best dance music ever made, some of the best rock and roll ever made and some of the best pop ever made with some of the best song titles ever. All put togther with something so sadly lacking in today's ugly world..a little thing called..class.

A masterpiece.

This is an absolutely beautiful compilation that will keep your mind body and soul moving through every drum beat and musical cord. Consisting mostly of their well-known hits, the first disc is truly an awesome listen. There isn't a bad song on it! The first tracks, Ceremony, Everything's Gone Green, and Temptation, are lesser known (at least they were to me), but they did not at all pale in comparison to Bizare Love Triangle in True Faith, my personal favorites songs by the group. My favorite by any group, actually. Oh, and if you think that the lyrics in this version of Ceremony are hard to understand, try listening to the original version, which was performed by Joy Division. The second disc consists mostly of B-sides and remixes. Though a lot of people didn't like the second disc too well, I still think its a great addition to the collection. Granted it's not as good as the first, but some of the instrumental remixes, such as that for Thieves Like Us and The Kiss of Death are just beautiful. And with a few awesome sounding B-sides, such as 1963 and Mesh, even the second disc proves to be a must have! An excellent compilation overall. I know I can only give 5 stars, but I really wish I could give ten! Because this one is really over the top!

Its pretty simple. If you don't own "Substance 1987" go buy it right now. If you are a New Order or Joy Division fan, or just simply a fan of great music, this CD should be in your collection. For me, the highlight of this disc is a new version of "Bizarre Love Triangle." The original version found on Brotherhood and the remix found on the Greatest Hits CD are both good, but they don't compare to Substance's. Found here, "Bizarre Love Triangle" is almost three minutes longer than the other versions and features a cleaner, more upbeat sound. This song is gorgeous and is what made me fall in love with New Order in the first place. (It also reminds me of my first girlfriend...) However, this is by no means the only reason to buy Substance. The recordings of "True Faith" and "Perfect Kiss" are not exclusive to this disc but are still outstanding songs. "Temptation" is another standout, and "Blue Monday", probably New Order's most popular song, is also featured here. "Ceremony" is another song worth noting. Originally written by Joy Division although not released until the Heart and Soul box set, New Order's version is actually far better than Joy Division's. Sung in Barney Sumners' patented monotone, this is one of the most haunting and melodic songs ever recorded by either band. Disc Two, which features remixes like "The Beach", an instrumental version of "Blue Monday", and "The Kiss of Death", a remix of "The Perfect Kiss", as well as B-Sides, still has some amazing moments. The entire two-disc set is worth buying just for "In a Lonely Place". This chilling song was another song originally written by Joy Division but was never fully recorded. Disturbing, unnerving, and amazing. You owe it to yourself to get this CD.