My Top 20 for 1980 No 20

Closer 10 ( 1980 )
Atrocity Exhibition / Isolation / Passover / Colony / A Means To An End / Heart And Soul / Twenty Four Hours / The Eternal / Decades
With the later arrival of New Order, people sometimes forget that Joy Division were already using keyboard textures as early as this. With the sad, tragic demise of the groups frontman Ian Curtis, we'll never now know if Joy Division would have gone on to make a 'blue monday' rock / dance crossover type of breakthrough or whether they'd merely have continued refining their existing sound. Ian was actually the member of the group that brought Kraftwerk to the attention of the others. Bernard in particular saw the possibilites very early on. Given that 'Closer' is a move away from the guitar based 'Unknown Pleasures' to a sound sometimes ignoring guitars completely ( eg, 'isolation' ), chances are Joy Division themselves would indeed have done something 'different' through subsequent releases had they only all stayed alive in order to record and write subsequent releases. 'Atrocity Exhibition' is lyrically dense and intriguing, offers up various treated guitar sounds and for six minutes relies almost entirely on a stop, start 'awkward' drum pattern, bass, and the sound of Ian Curtis vocally. Sure, there is guitar here, but the guitar isn't exactly playing flowing lines of melody and tunefullness. The guitar sounds alien, mixed into the background, sometimes moving closer to the foreground in the purely instrumental passages. It creates an extraordinary sound, actually. 'Atrocity Exhibition' isn't as in your face an album opener as the clattering, startling 'Disorder', but it's a perfect introduction to 'Closer'. A different sound, a different album, a step away, a step forwards - whichever way you want to look at things. 'Isolation' features keyboard lines and bass lines, drums that sound like machines but are actually drums as far as I can tell. No guitar here whatsoever - "i'm ashamed of the person I am" sings Ian, and indeed he was going through a difficult time in his personal life, had become estranged from his wife, become increasingly 'ill'. It never seemed to affect the group as far as studio activities were concerned however. Just gave Ian an extra something to write about. 'Passover' is a piece of brilliance. The opening two songs are both good, decent songs, but not obviously stand-out Joy Division songs. 'Passover' is eerie, scary, very atmospheric. The drum pattern is again a key to the musical build-up of the song, the bass rumbles deeply around the drums, the guitar slashes and is allowed the freedom to do so. The rhythm section has already created such a strong melody and groove, the guitar doesn't have to provide 'the tune', so to speak. The lyrical content is dark and poetic, Ian sings almost matter of factly and the overall effect is quite something.

'Colony' further winds the album up a notch, and offers the first real guitar oriented song on the record. The rhythm section do 'the usual' Joy Division mix of jerky alien rhythms and the guitar blasts and soars, Ian spits out the words, shouts out the lyrics in other places through the song, a song with power. 'A Means To An End' has an almost 'bouncy' sounding bass line, Ian sounds far off, yet still powerfully strong. Credit is again due to producer Martin Hannett, 'Closer' is beautifully recorded and mixed. When Ian raises his voice to sing "I put my trust in you" - and then the guitars joyfully ( yes, joyfully! ) come in, it's really a wonderful thing. The keyboards return for 'Heart And Soul' and 'Closer' continues to offer variety whilst still retaining a fully cohesive mood. The vocals sound different here, the words are almost whispered, but the voice still dominates the song. It's a funny thing, the sheer sound of Ian Curtis, the lyrical presence and vocal presence even with strong melody and striking keyboard lines remains the one element of the song that really reaches you above all else. And he's singing softly. I don't 'understand' what goes on in 'Heart And Soul' or how the song was written or created. It seems almost super-human, this unfathomable thing. It sounds like a great piece of art, let's just say that. '24 Hours' when it rises from quiet to impossibly dense and loud sections is a thrillingly dark blast, falling again to gentle softer sections throughout. The final two songs here deserve an extra special mention. They single-handedly raise a good album and a strong follow-up album into an all-time classic work. "procession moves on, the shouting is over" sings Ian, and 'The Eternal', so aptly named because it perfectly evokes the feeling of both utter dejection and death. Death is eternal. But, there is beauty here. The piano lines add a touch of beauty, a last gasp of life, or alternately, a ray of hope in admist all the gloom. Much gloom, and also one of the most beautiful sad songs i've ever heard. 'Decades' follows 'The Eternal', another piece that progresses at a funeral's pace, but remains utterly captivating. The keyboard lines, the slow gentle bass lines. Ian Curtis "here are the young men, weight on their shoulders", a series of great lines come at you all through 'Decades'. And those keyboard lines, primitive and yet wonderfully beautiful, and desolately sad. "where have they been" sings Ian, the keyboard continues and suddenly you're likely to burst into tears. This is powerful, emotional music, some of the most emotional music you'll ever hear. 'Closer' isn't an expression of joy and happiness, obviously, but these other emotions have rarely, if ever, been captured better.

Readers Comments Simon Brigham slb23@shaw.ca This was my first Joy Division album. I think that this is definately one of the best (and most under-rated) albums of the early 1980's, and IMHO, a step up from UNKNOWN PLEASURES. For me, CLOSER is an album about going down a spiral into depression. I'll write about my very favourite tracks: "Isolation": the drums are upbeat and even danceable, with a synth backing, and few guitars. Ian sings the lyrics matter-of-factly which gives the song a unique edge. "Colony": with a cool drum fill pattern, and slashing guitars, this is one of my favourites on the album. Cryptic lyrics like "As he lays asleep she takes him in her arms. Some things I have to do, but I don't mean you harm" makes the song even more effective and chilling. The only thing I don't like about this song is the repitition of the last lines at the end. "Twenty Four Hours": the dynamics in this song are really powerful, and the lyrics are full of despair. "The Eternal": a slow dirge-like song! , with sparse (but effective) piano melodies, a descending bass line, and vocals/lyrics full of mourning. "Decades": catchy, yet dark at the same time. I really like the harpsichord-like keyboard at the begining, and the slow, mellotron-like keyboard in the middle parts. This is definately one of my favourite albums of the early 80's. 9/10 Brendan switchblade_symphonaire@hotmail.com Was 'The Eternal' about death? It's very easy to conclude that, after hearing the lyrics 'Procession moves on the shouting is over/Praise to the glory of loved ones now gone'. However, I did read a Peter Hook quote somewhere, where he said that Ian wrote it about a 'mongoloid child' who lived in his street, and was 'eternal' because his little world, by the fence, by the wall, under the trees, never changed. That he was a 'burden to keep' for his parents. Was Ian coupling these themes, suggesting that the futility of life is the same, whether you're disabled or not? Was it a simple reference to this child, or was he alluding to what was to come for him a few months later? Rob poomousse@hotmail.com I bought 'Permanent' way back when, barely listened to it..came back a few years later and finally at last listened to Joy Division properly. 'Closer' is an album within which im sure much is to be heard lyrically, yet i must confess at this point I dont have much idea of what the songs are actually about...yet the album sounds so fucking good I'd describe it as 'compelling'...superb stuff. Intense, brooding, depressing...magnificent. He died far too young. A waste. Tom tomtoocool2065@yahoo.com This album is kind of a let-down. Before having heard this, I had only heard Unknown Pleasures, which is a very dark yet emotional masterpiece. It is apparent that Joy Division had transformed from being a post-punk dark new wave guitar band into now being a new wave synthy pop band. These songs are upbeat and peppy! Listen to those drums and synths! I thought I had downloaded (oops) the wrong album for a few minutes here, is this really THE Joy Division? Curtis' vocals are slightly weak throughout the album, I guess you could say he hits a few wrong notes. However, his lyrics are very very powerful. The first 4 songs are pretty much Talking Heads + Franz Ferdinand, and the album progressively gets better and more Unknown Pleasures-ey. A Means to An End is good in some parts. Heart and Soul is the first great track. T! wenty Four Hours starts out absolutely brilliant and remains brilliant. The Eternal features a different kind of 'keyboard' - what sounds like a grand piano, which is a very nice touch. The Eternal would be the ballad of the album. Decades starts out good but then...some sort of organ/synth/accordion bursts in and ruins it. I thought this was a joke at first. They couldn't have been serious, this thing wailing drowns out everything and almost makes you cringe. The drums get upbeat and the album ends on kind of a stale note. As a whole this album sounds very dated. You can definitely tell that it's early 80's with synths, pop beats that you can practically dance to, reminds you of a time when all electronics were big and grey, Gary Numan ruled all and the cars were boxy. Definitely get Unknown Pleasures first, it will blow you away. redtaperecorder redtaperecorder@gmail.com i very much take to heart the words of mark twain that say 'whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.' it is for this reason that i've only just now gotten to know joy division after almost a decade and a half of avoiding them like the plague: every friend whom i considered a 'serious' music listener gushed over this band w/ such religiousity that it instantly made them suspect and off-putting. but then about three weeks ago, quite by accident, while at a friends i heard a cover version of 'love will tear us apart' by nouvelle vague. the melody was so sweet, hypnotic and sad. and the lyrics which spoke so tenderly of a beauty that lies hidden deep w/in resignation -- they were so gentle and poetic, so full of love. i needed to hear what the original version sounded like. and so i got hold of 'substance' and was blown away. i played it on repeat for the better part of a week while, at the same time, immer! sing myself into the story and legend of joy division and ian curtis by way of wikipedia texts, fan sites, lyric websites and youtube videos... it was like nothing i'd ever heard or seen before. the following week i gave 'unknown pleasures' the same treatment and grew more mesmerised. now i'm in the week of 'closer' and feel that i can finally form a true opinion about this group... the only thing i can compare my experience to is the first impressions i had when i first read books like 'crime and punishment' by dostoevsky or 'narcissus and goldmund' by hesse. i agree entirely w/ the poster who said that there is something literary about curtis' lyrics. something epic is happening in these timeless stories that ian tells, while at the same time something is happening w/in you as you ingest the details of his dark existential world. a boy barely into his twenties and yet he speaks with the voice, authority and finality of ! an archangel. the words weild some transformative power which! changes you if you are only willing to sit and really listen. the weight of their emotional meaning touches upon something that we all carry w/in us and awakens them. it touches upon that place which reminds us that w/in this life there will also be death. that feeling you get when you get the news that someone you knew, but not too well, has taken their own life. it reminds you of your own mortality and causes you to understand that the motivations, fears and joys that we all possess run so very deep. it's a glimpse into 'what was and will be'... i can never really know if the delay in my listening to this band and their musical contributions has helped or hurt me in understanding what was really going on w/in its music. all i know is that i'm glad that i've been able to enjoy such amazing art, work that ranks high alongside some of the greatest... Adam adamh1802_2@msn.com Some of the most intense soul weary music ever committed to tape exists here . How can a song called "heart and soul" manage to sound so devoid of both ? In a really amazing way ! It sounds trapped in some kind of musical purgatory . Its an astonishing record a 10/10 , a lot of new bands are starting to be influenced and a new film about ian curtis is on the horizon. Finally the respect Joy division deserved looks finally imminent . gazza garyhess44@hotmail.com I can't even express how much I love this album. Every song is absolute gold, but the one that gets me everytime is 'Atrocity Exhibition'. I don't know what it is, but it feels like you're about to walk right into a nightmare, a thought compounded by Ian Curtis' cry of "this is the way, step inside". I read somewhere, somebody said that you can practically hear the door shut behind you when you start listening to this album. That noise has never sounded better.