New Order – Power Corruption and Lies (Collector's Edition)

"On a thousand islands in the sea, I see a thousand people just like me"Like lots of people, much of my early musical tutelage came from the record collection of my brother. He was quite a bit older than me, at work, and so after school I would invade his stereo and play his vinyl. He was a big ska fan, and I would bounce on his bed listening to Madness and their kind. One day though, there was a new record in his collection, housed in a highly unusual sleeve, black with hints of color, blocks cut away to resemble a floppy-disk. It looked too exquisite not to be played, and so I gave it a spin. And then I listened to it again, but much, much louder. I scoured the sleeve for information on the band, but there was nothing, no pictures, just this object of beauty."Blue Monday" by New Order is more or less bulletproof - you would be hard-pressed to find someone with anything negative to say about it. It punches hard, Sumner's vocal somewhat detached from the hammer blows of the beat and the cascades of keyboard and bass. Despite the various reinterpretations, the original is still the best. The 1988 rendering smothered the musical holes in sound, not realising how it's the gaps in the composition that give the track its power. The 1995 version went totally the other way, missing the point altogether by taking out the thump, replacing it with contemporary percussion, like repainting the Mona Lisa in a Fred Perry shirt. The original works, but not by design, just simply because it does.Power, Corruption Lies, their second studio album, contains Blue Monday's slightly scruffier little brother, "5 8 6", a fascinating track providing as it does the missing link to their most famous song. Using the same drum beats and sequencing, it is every bit as exciting, more contained and heightened by an outstanding guitar solo, simplistic and childlike but utterly wonderful. In fact, much of PCL shares this simplistic approach; most songs formed around uncomplicated melodies and sequenced patterns. Opener "Age of Consent" forms around its opening guitar line, whilst "The Village" is full of repetition (and all the better for it)."Your Silent Face" is the perfect blend of the slow, ponderous New Order of Movement and the new, spikier sounds of Lowlife, waterfalls of keyboards, sequencers chirping like sparks from a broken cable. The album then comes to a rather depressing conclusion with petulant ‘Leave Me Alone', sung by Sumner with great conviction. The rambling guitar lines that close the album are breathtaking, drifting into the concluding bass.The second CD on this release is somewhat of a disappointment. "Blue Monday" of course makes an appearance, as does its flip-side ‘The Beach'. ‘Confusion' is the original version, not the re-done track recorded for Substance, both sides of the original 12" included (one for the first time on CD). ‘Thieves Like Us' is a long, rambling single, with a stretched intro and rather fruity lyrics. ‘Murder', the other single, is completely different, a ram-raid of organic drum patterns, clipped guitars and sound effects. Also of note is the gorgeous ‘Lonesome Tonight', an excellent track even if Sumner does hawk up a lump of phlegm halfway through it.Power, Corruption and Lies is not really given any justice on this release. The most notable omissions are the excellent Peel Sessions recorded around this period, which showcase the development of these songs. It's a shame as this album, out of all the re-issues, feels strangely incomplete and, despite the worth of the main album, the least attractive to purchase. Original Release: 82% This edition: 72%