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New Order - BBC Radio 1 Live in Concert Audio CD

A fair review of the New Order "BBC Radio 1 Live in Concert" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all New Order reviews here, or go back to the New Order tabs.

New Order Band: New Order
Title: BBC Radio 1 Live in Concert
Rating:
Release Date: 2000-10-31
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Touched by the Hand of God 2: Temptation 3: True Faith 4: Your Silent Face 5: Every Second Counts 6: Bizarre Love Triangle 7: Perfect Kiss 8: Age of Consent 9: Sister Ray

Some Order in the Chaos
In many ways - during the era chronicled on this live set - the group was as visionary in studio production as Kraftwerk, but did not seek out perfection on stage. From post-punk to the grooves of funk, New Order redefined the clubland sound worldwide through uniquely intricate and cutting-edge work in the studio. . . which oftentimes was hailed and reviled - equally - by fans.

Recorded at the Glastonbury Festival on June 19, 1987, the nine tracks delve early in the dance beats - Touched by the Hand of God, Temptation, True Faith, Your Silent Face - before slowing things down with the metallic-groove and intriguing lyrics of Every Second Counts. The bouncy Bizarre Love Triangle paves the path for a final flurry of raw soundscapes from a trio of numbers; Perfect Kiss, Age of Consent and a cover of the classic Velvet Underground improvisational track, Sister Ray, which has an incredible edginess for a performance in such a large venue.

The seemingly abrupt ending to the final selection sums everything up; the band tugs and tears at the listener's emotions and then - poof - are visually gone, but not from the heart or soul.













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Barney and crew party hard and make beats
It's a pretty good disc. As another reviewer noted, like many live albums the appear of this might be lost on the casual fan. Again, as others noted it sounds like Bernard Sumner is wasted, and as he never had a strong voice. . . it's probably not their best show of the tour. Recorded live in Glastonbury '87, it's not the usual BBC session disc in a studio with a live audience, but a regular concert.

The other New Order BBC discs (Peel Sessions and In Session)feature better performances and better sound, but this has a strong and attractive setlist. The recording isn't the best, either--the lead bass guitar is a bit drowned out, and Barney's drunken playing and lyric-spewing are downers. But it's not bad. If you want to hear these songs in a live setting, it's a good deal. There's a different quality in some of these tracks away from the cold, tinnier studio sound. Material from Brotherhood appears alongside Age of Consent, Temptation, and a cover of Sister Ray.

The disc first appeared in 1991, presumably it was remastered or something in the later editions (this one from 2000). I'd recommend the other two New Order BBC albums before this as they sound better and the band is tighter, but still a good disc for fans. However, the set list and the era do sell this one.


Raw emotion and cool electronics
The people who dislike this album fall into two seemingly opposing categories: Joy division fans who don't like Bernard Summer's higher voice and synthesizer usage, and New Order fans who think every performance should soudn just like the studio. This album is what made me fall in love with New Order once again. No man this is New Order singing with a heavy Manchester Accent putting forth all the passion and emotion their lyrics hold. You know how when that song you like is on the radio, but you always seem to tune into the middle part of the song. Then one day you hear a odd but familiar intro, and you finally realize that you are goign to hear the song the whole way through and it's awesome. That is what this album is like. My favorite track on this is Perfect Kiss, which is played in entirety, both verses and the little canto at the end of the second verse with the most elaborate and moving performance of Stephen Morris's Frog Croakings. My only complaint is wanting more.


Lousy voice makes it all hard to listen to...
That being said, given the fact the singer never had a tremendous voice in singing in such a bland way, that concert performances are generally not as well played as original versions, and that these performances add nothing to the original versions in terms of interesting reinterpretations, this performance is dreadful. To be fair, I'm not a major New Order fan, but I always liked "True Faith" and "Bizarre Love Triangle", and found others alright. I've read the band were taking drugs heavily during this 1987 tour. Perhaps this is why the singer's hardly difficult singing is off-tune and lazy throughout. I had to return this awful album. Buy "Substance" or the "International Hits", maybe even Joy Division's "Permanent".


A different view of New Order
New Order on stage is a vastly different proposition than their fussy, perfect production studio albums. I never had the chance to see New Order perform live, and having listened to this I'm sorry I never did. The music has a whole different feel live. The spontaneousness actually makes some of their songs more tuneful. The only regret is that the album contains only nine cuts, drawn heavilly from their 1986 album "Brotherhood. " That said, this one is definately for fans only. Like most live albums, the appeal is likely to be lost on casual listeners.


You can see a complete list of all New Order discography, or go back to the New Order tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.

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