Band: New Order
Album: Substance
Why Rolling Stone gets it right: New Order's bass-heavy dance music is jaunty and fun and set the soundtrack for much of the 1980s.
Why Rolling Stone gets it wrong: I'm not a dance music fan, so I'm not the man to ask.
Best song: "Bizarre Love Triangle" is great.
Worst song: "Sub-culture" isn't awesome.
Is it awesome?: It's a great dance record, it's not a great record overall.
Here's a fact no one cares about: All but one of the albums numbered 361-370 are albums I didn't have on my iPod going into this project. I only owned two of them (the Rage record and the Strokes record).
With that said, it's hard to know be somewhat familiar with a couple of New Order records, specifically this classic hits compilation. It's been played in every 80s movie ever and those of us weened on those movies (mostly replayed on cable) have these songs all around.
The band was formed in the demise of Joy Division. Peter Hook, Stephen Morris and Bernard Sumner decided to carry on in the aftermath of Ian Curtis' suicide.
New Order, like Joy Division, never spoke to me on a large level. I can certainly appreciate it as dance music, but anyone who has seen me dance knows I'm not a dancer.
Still, if you're having a dance party, there are few albums better to get than this one. Put on "Blue Monday," "Thieves Like Us," "Ceremony" and "Bizarre Love Triangle." The party will thus be started.
