New Order - Movement [Black Vinyl LP]

New Order's debut studio album Movement was originally released on November 13, 1981, by Factory Records. Recorded in the wake of Joy Division frontman Ian Curtis' suicide the previous year, the album is a continuation of the dark post-punk sound of Joy Division's material, increasing the use of synthesizers while still being predominantly rooted in rock. All three members took turns at singing before finally deciding that Bernard Sumner should take the main vocalist's role with Peter Hook as back-up, though he sang lead on "Dreams Never End" and "Doubts Even Here." The introduction in October 1980 of Gillian Gilbert, Stephen Morris's girlfriend, lightened the burden on Sumner who had to play guitar and keyboards and sing, and enabled the band to pursue a more electronic approach. This 2025 pressing features remastered audio from 2019 previously only available in the 'Movement Definitive Edition' boxset.

The album consists of eight original tracks, with "Dreams Never End" and "Truth" both penned in a writing session in the summer of 1980. The eight-song collection moves through droning post-punk textures shot through with emerging electronic elements. "Dreams Never End" opens with Peter Hook's distinctive vocal, while "Truth" and "Senses" establish the album's melancholic atmosphere. "ICB" stands for 'Ian Curtis Buried', as confirmed by Peter Hook, serving as a haunting tribute. "The Him" and "Doubts Even Here" showcase the band's struggle between their Joy Division roots and their search for a new identity, while "Chosen Time" and the closing "Denial" reveal glimpses of the electronic direction they would eventually embrace.

In the decades since its release, retrospective critical reception has been very positive, with reviewers praising the album as a middle ground between the band's work as Joy Division and their subsequent alternative dance material. The album charted at number one on the UK independent albums chart in 1981. This black vinyl reissue delivers the 2019 remaster with clarity, capturing producer Martin Hannett's atmospheric production techniques. The pressing reveals the transitional nature of the album, documenting a band finding their footing while honoring their past.

• Format: Black Vinyl LP
• Standout tracks: "Dreams Never End," "Truth," "ICB"
• Pressing details: 2019 remastered audio, originally released November 1981
• Genre/style: Post-Punk, New Wave, Synth-Pop, Alternative Rock
• UPC: 5021732836359

This remastered pressing captures New Order at their most vulnerable and transitional, offering a powerful document of a band emerging from tragedy to forge their own path.

* The Spotify track list may not exactly represent the tracks and audio of this LP edition.

Track List:

Side A:

1. Dreams Never End
2. Truth
3. Senses
4. Chosen Time

Side B:

1. ICB
2. The Him
3. Doubts Even Here
4. Denial