Some music is tough to review simply because so much has already been said about it and the songs are already well proven. And so it is regarding this new offering from Warner Music, Total – From Joy Division to New Order. Much more than a ‘best of’ LP, it charts the evolution of these bands from 1976 (Warsaw/Joy Division) to around 2009 when New Order ceased to exist in its recognized form.

There are eighteen tracks on the album; only five of which are by Joy Division, with the rest plucked from New Order’s extensive back catalogue. This highlights the fact that Joy Division weren’t around for all that long, but while they were creating they rose to the top extremely quickly. Consider that Ian Curtis suicided in 1980, and you’ll be stunned to know that in four short years they gave the world songs like “Love Will Tear Us Apart” and “She’s Lost Control”. Joy Division certainly didn’t produce anything particularly joyful. The vibe of the band was dark, right from its name (taken from a Nazi concentration camp prostitution wing, so named in the novel The House of Dolls), to its depression driven lyrics that were penned by Curtis. The beats themselves were pared back and almost simplistic, showcasing that punk served as a huge influence on the band. Although they weren’t considered to be a punk band, touring with the likes of the Buzzcocks meant that the punters expected a certain type of music. Certainly the combination of anarchy and darkness would have been quite satisfying.

What Total also allows us to do is make a direct comparison between the music of the two bands. Hit play on song six, and you hear a discernable lightness. No one needs to tell the listener that this song does not include vocals or lyrics by Ian Curtis. In itself, this is a sad thing but the three remaining members of Joy Division made many good choices. Firstly, they decided they would rename themselves. This allowed Bernard Sumner (vocals), Peter Hook (bass, backing vocals) and Stephen Morris (drums, percussion) to be independent from their past. They weren’t trying to be Joy Division. Secondly, Sumner (as far as we know); didn’t suffer from depression, so the music became noticeably more hopeful and changed from the post-punk genre into dance. New Order produced a plethora of hits, including “Temptation”, “Bizarre Love Triangle” and “Blue Monday”. “Blue Monday” is still the highest selling 12” single of all time, and in this world of downloadable music, it looks as though that record will stay. The influence of other bands can be heard on a number of tracks, notably “Krafty”, which of course, was influenced by Kraftwerk.

Track eighteen is called “Hellbent” and is a previously unreleased song by New Order. If you think back to a song called “Low” by the band Cracker, you’ll have some idea of how the song opens. It’s very contemporary…well more contemporary than previous efforts, and may go some way towards drawing in a new generation of fans. It’s great to hear “Crystal” getting some airplay again on independent radio also. Music aficionados are bombarded with new sounds on a daily basis, and sometimes it’s just good to hark back to a time when the good music stayed around for more than a few short weeks. This LP is a mini history lesson and definitely worth a listen.

8.5/10