Joy Division, 'Unknown Pleasures' One of the Best Albums From 1979

I absolutely love music. I listen to it on my way to work, on my way home, while I write, and when I make art. One of my most favorite bands to listen to is Joy Division specifically; their most famous album, Unknown Pleasures. An iconic album with great drum hits, bass lines, guitar, and keyboard riffs, all accompanied by Ian Curtis’s deep rich voice. Because of Joy Division, I have gotten into many other music groups. Such as Iggy Pop, The Sex Pistols, and many other artists. Now, some of you may have already seen either the album art or this iconic shirt. However, you may also be asking, “What the heck is Joy Division? Who are they?”

Joy Division is a post-punk band from Salford, England. Their members are: drummer Stephen Morris, bassist Peter Hook, guitarist and keyboardist Bernard Sumner, and lead vocalist and songwriter Ian Curtis (who is one of the most influential, talented, and by far my personal favorite singer). With lyrics that discuss alienation, mental illness, pain, sadness, and just the deep darkness of guilt. As you can imagine, I fell in love with this album and its dark moody themes. During England’s punk rock explosion, from 1976 to 1980, they took punk rock into a new direction. The Sex Pistols focused on the loudness and noise of their music, while The Clash wrote songs that were political statements. However, those two groups took the energy of punk rock and pointed it outwards, Joy Division pointed that energy inwards.

By looking inwards, Ian Curtis took his songwriting to a new level, for the time, an example would be the opening track “Disorder.” The opening verse talks about wanting to feel normal or feel a basic idea of normality. However, with the struggle to feel the sensations dedicated to a normal stable life, the interest in feeling normal is lost. That is what “Disorder” is talking about, wanting emotional peace with one’s self, but not being able to. For a lot of people with depression, such as myself, getting out of bed is a really hard thing to do. Even when we want to join the rest of the world, life gets hard. When Joy Division was working on Unknown Pleasures Ian Curtis was suffering from depression and epilepsy, which caused him to take his life in 1980.

Overall, I think Unknown Pleasures is a masterpiece, even when listening to it today. Joy Division’s short lifespan and small discography have left an impact for future generations of music listeners and makers. If you haven't listened to this influential band, please do so for you will not regret it!