And here is my NewOrderStory... I arrived at the venue by 20:00 and considering the gig was scheduled for 21:00, I supposed it would be too late for me to get a good place upfront. To my surprise, the place was nearly empty and it didn’t start crowding anytime soon, which made me remember why most good acts skip our city. A band like New Order playing and the place isn’t packed to the roof? The gates didn't open until 21:00 and the show didn't begin until 22:00 sharp. And what a show did New Order put on! Reading other people’s reviews here in New Order Online, I thought New Order was becoming a bunch of lazy old farts. But that’s not what I saw.
They put an effort on every song and all of then were really great. They jammed on every song, adding guitar parts or keyboard lines even to Blue Monday and BLT. No one-man Temptation this time! Highlights for me were Love Vigilantes, for the surprise and Transmission, which sounded even better than usual. The only song that didn’t feel right to me was Guilt, that sounded really baffled, for the pre-recorded stuff like the backing vocals to Crystal or any keyboard parts were a bit down in the mix, specially on that song, At least from where I was, like 10 feet away from the center of the stage. Oh, and you won’t believe that: only one woop from Bernard in the entire set! The recording of this show could make a really great bootleg, even better than Reading 93, my personal favorite.
The only letdown of the night was really the crowd, which made me feel like I was the only New Order fan around. Most people there seemed to think that New Order last record was Substance and that they were doing a reunion tour. I even think the band should play more new stuff to show people how much they still kick ass. Why playing only one song from Get Ready or Republic and nothing from Tecnique (Oh, I forgot Turn!)? Of course I like the old records, but up until now, the best New Order record for me will always be the next one. But that’s just me!