Substance: Inside New Order
Coming Up and Coming Down
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4.5 • 35 Ratings
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- £6.99
Publisher Description
‘This book will delight both New Order-ites and general rock readers’ Mojo
A ROLLICKING, NO-HOLDS-BARRED ACCOUNT OF NEW ORDER'S ENTIRE HISTORY.
Two acclaimed albums and an upcoming US tour – Joy Division had the world at their feet. Then, on the eve of that tour, the band’s troubled lead singer, Ian Curtis, killed himself. The next time they got together, they were a new band.
That band was New Order – their label was Factory Records, their club The Haçienda. Their distinctive sound paved the way for the dance music explosion that followed, earning them the reputation as one of the most influential bands of their generation, and changing the course of popular music.
Following on from his bestselling titles The Haçienda and Unknown Pleasures, Peter Hook has written a rollicking, no-holds-barred account of the band's entire history. Substance is packed with never-before-seen detail, discographies and technical information. This is possibly the most entertaining memoir ever written by a British musician.
‘There are stories here that make Ozzy Osbourne looks like Mother Teresa’ Sunday Express
‘A rollicking read’ Record Collector
‘Rock writing rarely tells us properly what a band treading water or in slow decline feels like from the inside. Hook does so memorably’ Guardian
‘As mammoth and downright idiotic as the band deserves … something hilariously daft happens on nearly all of Substance’s 750 pages’ Classic Pop
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this lengthy but never boring memoir, Hook (Hacienda: How Not to Run a Club) covers the highlights and lowlights of performing in the new wave band New Order. After the suicide of Ian Curtis, the charismatic front man of Joy Division, Hook and the band's other remaining members formed the equally iconic New Order. Though it was different in terms of sound and feel, New Order was equally acclaimed and influential. In lesser hands, Hook's attention to meticulous detail could be a recipe for a ponderous, sleep-inducing tome, but his lively prose and wit keeps readers bouncing through the book. Sordid tales of drugs, groupies, and debauchery, such as the time the band released a donkey into the Pogues' dressing room, balance out the gear minutiae, stories behind classic songs such as "Blue Monday," the ups and (mainly) downs of running a club, songwriting, and losing millions of dollars. Hook breaks up the narrative with random lists ("Ten Most Interesting Medical Problems I Got Working In a Band," "Ten Best Bass Riffs"). The often egotistical Hook still manages to be a charming and funny storyteller.
Customer Reviews
Hooky's Book
Great book for anyone interested in music business generally as well as a New Order fan. Gives credit to adversaries where it's due so has a balanced feel, as well as being critical on himself.