Cuttings

30 YEARS OF JOY 1979-2009 In June 1979, Joy Division released the bleak masterpiece that is ‘ Unknown Pleasures ', a record so majestic it changed the face of music. NME celebrates its genius Pictures Kevin Cummins There can’t be many people left in the civilised world who haven’t, at one time or another, sat down and discussed the influence of 'Unknown Pleasures' over the last 30 years. But reeling off a list of indebted bands that’s longer than time itself is now only one facet of why Joy Division’s first album is so significant. The story of how Bernard Sumner, Peter Hook, Stephen Morris and Ian Curtis teamed up with their peerlessly innovative producer Martin Hannett to make the album is so fascinating that it has provided the inspiration for more books that most people will read in their lives. That’s to say nothing of the numerous documentaries which have provided a nice little earner on the talking head circuit for anyone who spent more than two wee

  Someone takes these dreams away We thought it was artistic exorcism, but was it sheer unrelenting autobiography? Where did such darkness come from and why did we so willingly enter it? Jon Savage disturbs the tomb of Joy Division and sheds new light on their driven and desperate leader. August 27, 1979 Joy Division are headlining a ridiculous festival in a field outside Leigh, halfway between Liverpool and Manchester. The leading independent labels of both cities – Zoo and Factory – are meeting to showcase their talent: A Certain Ratio, Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark, Echo & The Bunnymen, The Teardrop Explodes. To the local police, this is tantamount to an alien invasion: they’ve closed down the town and are searching everyone on entry for drugs. One of my carload is already in custody. In the twilight, Joy Division start their journey. What you get is this: at the back, a lanky drummer who pounds out rhythms at once intricate yet simple. At climatic moments, Stephen Morris

GETTING AWAY WITH IT When Manchester rock titans BERNARD SUMNER and JOHNNY MARR formed Electronic in 1990, they were determined that their new band would live up to the glories of New Order and The Smith, even if it killed them. Which it very nearly did. By Stephen Dalton AS LIVE DEBUTS GO, THIS IS TURNING OUT to be legendary. A legendary fuck-up, that is. When the call came through five months ago. Electronic thought it would be a good idea to unveil their gleaming rock-disco roadshow in front of 60,000 hyped up Depeche Mode fans at LA's enormous Dodgers stadium. They only had three or four tunes ready but. what the hell, the two shows were five months away. But now that August has rolled around, they still haw only seven or eight numbers at a push. And most of them don't even have names. More importantly, by this point Bernard Sumner barely remembers his own name. He has filled the dressing- room shower basin to the brim with fresh puke before hanging a hand-made sign a