I gave the new New Order album a couple of spins this morning after being a good boy and not listening to any advance streams or leaked files or whatever...and i'm very happy i showed restraint. hearing it in full, on my stereo, while being able to leaf through the liner notes and take in the images and design of the whole thing, was a very rewarding experience to me.

i think the album starts out a little slow and 'beige' - it kinda sounds like what you'd expect from a band whose albums are all more or less uniform in sound and style and who are getting up there in years - but midway through, it grows fangs and starts to bite. you get hints of the bite by the third or fourth song or so, but by the time the album's over, its jaws are clamped down on ya and they're not letting go. the way this record is arranged is almost hypnotic...kind of tra-la-la and pleasant at the beginning, with more energy and melody slowly stirred into the pot as it progresses. nice.

i completely recommend this album, certainly moreso than their last two albums of original material...which isn't to say i don't like their last two albums - i just think this is a really well crafted return to the studio trickery and melodic dance candy that made new order great.

thoughts on this album?

It is one of the 7 discs I bought yesterday, but I've only worked my way through 2 and part of the third. Faith and Pornography come first, and then this one.

I'll be seein' ya on May 3rd and by then I'm sure I will have listened to the album plenty of times.

Moonbeam said:

woo hoo! what else didja get? other than the cure discs, that is...

Anxiety said:

That's it. 6 Cure discs for the 3 sets and then New Order. I was tempted to keep browsing, but I stopped myself.

it's gonna take me a while to catch up with those cure discs.

though it'll be worth it. i really didn't expect to get into 'faith' as much as i did.

I've had this album for about 3 months now and I really love it. It goes perfectly with the last one and they've established a great sound for themselves this millennium. Unfortunately, I got it right before the recent Tori came out and y'all know how obsessed I've been lately. I only had about a week of New Order time and it's been shelved ever since. But I'm gonna come back to it this week before the show and get myself boned up again.

And I totally agree with you Anx about the flow of the album. The first couple tracks sound like middling rock that they could to in their sleep. Nothing great. Nothing special. Serviceable. But with the title track and "Krafty" coming right after, I was like, "Oooh. I can get with this!" And it doesn't let up from there. At first, I thought maybe those first two songs should be mised in and the album should start off with a bang. But I like the idea of it slowly building to a climax. And you don't get much more climactic than "Working Overtime". That song just kicks my ass. I hope we hear it at our show.

I finally listened to this album and like it quite a bit. There weren't any instant jaw-droppers, but the album is quite consistent for me and I like all of the songs. I'm quite pleasantly surprised, seeing as I can't stand half of Get Ready.

Moonbeam said:

You suck.

GangstaFam said:

Yeah, Get Ready's great. I prefer it to this one. Except for the title track, which is the best thing they've done in years. And the last one.

MendesCity said:

I'd say my favorites so far are:

Waiting for the Sirens' Call
Krafty
Guilt is a Useless Emotion
Working Overtime

They'd all make great singles too.

GangstaFam said:

Lazy melodies do not a great New Order album make.

i still don't have this... there has just been so much other stuff out right now that i'm into. but i'm sure i'll get it soon. love me some new order.

Moonbeam said:

Are you kidding! They made their career on lazy melodies.

And don't bottle me, bitch!

I've heard some of it and it's actually pretty good.

NWF said:

Of course it is! What were you expecting?

Moonbeam said:

I hear ya on this. There's some definite filler: J.E.T. and that Dracula one.
But I really love the first 4 or so tracks.

MendesCity said:

I think he was talking about Get Ready.

GangstaFam said:

I don't know. Something disappointing.

NWF said:

Did you not like the last one?

GangstaFam said:

Not really. But now that I'm into the band a little more, I like this one better.

NWF said:

What all do you have so far?

GangstaFam said:

Moonbeam said:

Not a true fan.