New Order's eagerly awaited forthcoming album 'Waiting For The Sirens Call', was aired for the first time on Tuesday 11th January at The Soho Hotel in central London. The playback was hosted by the band's record company, Warner UK and offered to press and media but not for review purposes. No copies of the album or track listings were provided but a few song titles were disclosed.
The Soho Hotel is an upmarket gaff tucked away on a mews in the middle of London's West End. I must have walked within 50 yards of its front door many times without ever realising it was there. Bizarrely, one of the closest boozers to the place is the Slug and Lettuce on Wardour Street, the scene of many New Order fans drinking sessions over the last couple of years. On arrival, the reception staff guided me, an uninvited guest, down to a plush bar in the Hotel's basement. A few Warner’s staffers were sitting around on red cushion strewn sofas picking at trays of food with the distinctive sound of you-know-who filling the room. The track playing, ‘Turn’, as I nervously ordered a bottle of beer from the free bar, was the one spun by Hooky at Turnmills before Xmas. It occurred to me that if I was booted out at this point I wouldn't have heard anything new!.
I spotted a lady with the air of someone who was in charge and this turned out to be Jayne Houghton who handles the band's PR. After a brief chat, Jayne kindly arranged for me to attend the next play back, which was starting at 3pm. There had already been one play back before this which was just finishing as I arrived. Around half an hour later the bar had filled up with around 40 guests and we were then ushered into another room for the play back. A brief intro was given by the new MD of Warner UK, Korda Marshall, who told us how he had queued up as an 18 year old to buy Unknown Pleasures and how enthusiastic he was about the new album. The main part of the album he focused on was the collaboration with Ana Matronix of Scissor Sisters on the track ‘Jetstream’. I also learnt that the band had postponed an interview with Q magazine the day before to review the mix of this track which had been submitted by the NY singer. Korda announced that the single ‘Krafty’ is out on March 7th rather than the 14th as has been reported recently.
I can only describe the room as like a small cinema, with rows of leather armchairs facing a large screen. To provide some visual entertainment while the album was being played a projector at the back of the room shone slowed down black and white film footage from old movies e.g. we listened to track two while watching a scene from Kes. A different film clip accompanied each track and Korda made it clear that these had nothing to do with the album, Peter Saville is preparing the artwork for the CD jacket at the moment.
As for the album, well, it's signature New Order, it's what we've been waiting for and IMHO it’s their best work since Technique. A real step forward from ‘Get Ready’, although tracks like ‘Turn My Way’ and ‘Primitive Notion’ offer clear sign posts as to the direction the band wanted to follow. The record is a mix of guitar based songs and more electronic tracks with the synths gently shining through and blended into the guitars in the way that only New Order seem able to do. It felt like a real return to the classic New Order sound I grew up on with all the secret ingredients in place. Hooky’s bass runs everywhere, Barney’s vocals and lyrics are as melancholy and enigmatic as ever, that fractured guitar sound is reinforced by Phil and those perfect drum patterns laced all around it. Somehow they’ve taken elements of Technique and morphed it into something more mature, a more 21st century sound.
New New Order records have always tended to have a strange slow burning impact on me, I hear the melody on first listen but it doesn’t REALLY grab me, then I’ll play it again and slowly but surely it becomes totally addictive and I can’t get the song out of my head. WFTSC is straight out of that field, the tunes are there but slightly hidden behind layers of guitars and keys, waiting to be discovered. Oddly, I can’t recall much about individual tracks, like it was brilliant but all over too quickly and I just wanted Warners to play it again. Like, 27 more times please. 72 hours after the playback and I feel like the junkie who’s been given his first fix in ages, rediscovered the craving and now denied access to any more for two months. It’s gonna be a long wait.
After some chit-chat with a Warners Marketing guy I left the Hotel feeling uplifted and excited about what 2005 has in store for New Order disciples and equally warmed by the promotional NO Scarf provided by Warners. Now how much would David Sultan bid for one of those on ebay?!
