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Wednesday 16 January 2008

INTO THE VOID


11th February sees the Region 2 DVD release of Anton Corbijn's CONTROL; a biopic covering the all-too short life of Joy Division singer Ian Curtis. For many of us, JD were a vital band, with their cold, intense music often reaching incredible heights; both live, and in the studio. The DVD will include a commentary track from Corbijn, a making-of featurette, Joy Division's 'Atmosphere' music video (directed by Corbijn) and a photo gallery and trailer. I've just started reading 'Touching From A Distance'; a book written by Curtis' widow Deborah upon which the film is based, and will be taking a look at the DVD, the book and JD in general through February. I'll also be remembering the two occasions I caught Joy Division live; the second of which was the penultimate gig before Ian Curtis committed suicide. It's a heartbreakingly sad story, but also one of celebration, as we remember a band who were often touched by greatness.

I'll always remember Pete Murphy from Bauhaus explaining that on certain nights, it felt like there was an extra band member on stage whose presence could be felt when everything gelled and the band were on fire. Bauhaus had that certain something, along with The Jam, The Clash, The Banshees and a select number of other bands I was privileged to see. Joy Division were one of those groups. To be continued...

4 comments:

  1. Wow you saw Joy Division live? God the memories you must have...you should do some posts on the great gigs you have seen.
    Haven't seen the film yet but am looking forward to it. What did you think of 24 HOUR PARTY PEOPLE?
    Also the eternal question for you...UNKNOWN PLEASURES or CLOSER???

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  2. Thanks for your comments, Jeremy. I do plan on doing some posts on some of the gigs I've seen in the near future. Loved 24 HOUR, which I'll be covering as a tie-in to my JD coverage and I'd have to plump for CLOSER I think.

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  3. Let me be the second poster envious of your seeing Joy Division live. I've no idea what to say, except....You lucky basta*d.

    I liked the film Control a lot, but was slightly let down by it. I guess I was just hoping it'd be a bit more about the actual band, and not solely Ian Curtis (even though I already knew the picture was going to be somewhat of a biopic). Ah well.

    Looking forward to your future posts on the film.

    Oh, and I'm also going with CLOSER....

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  4. Thanks for your comments, cg. I'm greatly looking forward to getting my hands on the CONTROL DVD, though I'm sorry I didn't get chance to see it on the big screen.

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