Are New Order the world's FUNNIEST band?

Bout time I darkened the doors of the sane side with a thread.

It occurs to me that no band make me laugh like New Order. Be it Hooky's audience abuse/general sarcasm, or Barney's wicked little couplets (and audience abuse/general sarcasm), or Steve's inability to give a sensible answer to ANYTHING, Or Gillian's soft northern lass act, Or Phil's hair, Or the machines penchant for epic fail......it all bloody top class comedy. I mean Primus amuse the hell out of me, and Madness have their (somewhat forced) moments.....but they just pale beside the comic genius of New Order.

I wonder sometimes when I see the amount of downright offensively abusive, yet ultimately harmless banter that occurs in the other place, and have to wonder if some of us aren't attracted to the band by their silliness and sarcyness and their utterly sideways attitudes to stuff. For me it's certainly a factor.....but not half as big a factor as a man who turns his bass up too far and plays it beautifully wrongly over thundering drum and synth grooves ;)

Did you hear about the errrr Ethiopian prostitute.........

I wholeheartedly concur, a big driving factor for me to collect each bootleg, is to collect said banter. I also enjoy the on stage quips, or obscure interviews.

Most of the Manchester bands have amused me at some time or other because essentially they didnt really care about peoples opinions of them.

No. They probably think they are, because they must laugh at how badly they treat the fans and the money they make off it.

I think there's a lot of truth in this. I certainly have pissed myself laughing at them over the years. They're great characters and if your sense of humour fits with theirs then it's a big part of the attraction.

As Steve said in the Blackpool DVD, New Order fans are pretty loyal types. There has to be more to this than the music. I think the Factory kudos, the Hacienda lunacy, the Saville artwork, the Gretton anarchy all created a wonderful and unique mix which gave the band and the music a gravitas and an appeal which has helped them over the years.

Not many sets of fans would put up them but we expected that things would be chaotic and could go anywhere and that became part of the joy.

Each gig was "fingers crossed - this will be interesting". What time would they come on? How pissed was Barney going to be? Would the gear work? What would the set list be? How long would they play? All that was part of the masochistic pleasure of seeing them.

Certainly more appealing to me than a U2 where you could write the set list AND the banter down from any gig on that tour. Here comes the flag!

Recent years that's gone but particularly in the early 80's you had no idea what was going to happen.

Doncaster Rotters remember sitting next to the mixing desk openly recording the gig within touching distance of Gretton who wasn't in any way bothered. Set finished, lights went up, huge fight broke out on dancefloor. Gretton headed downstairs, band came back on and I thought "Ah - good idea - get 'em back on and calm things down". Encore is TEMPTATION! That'll work then! Brilliant.

for me yes. they just seem to be themselves not trying to be funny or amusing like madness

why i love the bootlegs too, all the quips and what have you.

Uncle Liam wrote: No. They probably think they are, because they must laugh at how badly they treat the fans and the money they make off it.

Sling yer hook then, go on, fuck off, right out of it, back over the fence .....now keep going or I'll phone yer mam!

Cos you see the easy solution is the one you and I both went for.....don't buy the snakeoil. COnsider it to be financial Darwinism.....by spending money to hear clicky, distorted copies of tunes they already own (all wrapped up in recycled shitewips with the wrong picture on it).....the tragic fan will have less money to spend on crack, lead based salad dressing and radium shampoo.

Doctor? wrote: .....but not half as big a factor as a man who turns his bass up too far and plays it beautifully wrongly over thundering drum and synth grooves ;)

Simon Simpson wrote: There has to be more to this than the music. I think the Factory kudos, the Hacienda lunacy, the Saville artwork, the Gretton anarchy all created a wonderful and unique mix which gave the band and the music a gravitas and an appeal which has helped them over the years.

Not many sets of fans would put up them but we expected that things would be chaotic and could go anywhere and that became part of the joy.

Great thread and some great appreciation of what makes New Order a cut above. :D

"sorry if you were expecting any uhh.....joy division songs(crowd cheer)...but not really...were not playing any"

-Barney 12-13-1980

I've always felt that if this was all footie, NO woulda been a pro team made up of fans and punters who really couldn't care less about the money, it was all about footie and having the best time.

The joke's worn thin though I'd say.

My fave quip, on 316 after Blue Monday- 'God, that goes on for fucking ages that!'

Oasis are the funniest band though.

I'm a great appreciator of Steve's wry & dry sense of humour. First class wit, that man. But they've all got a finely-tuned sense of the absurd that definitely sets them apart.

Hooky and Barney have a delightful turn of phrase. Glasgow Disk 2 has some of the best.

KLF and Jarvis Cocker are other honourable mentions.

Come on,it's got to be Coldplay surely.They think they're good.& don't know they're up their own arses

kel wrote: Come on,it's got to be Coldplay surely.They think they're good.& don't know they're up their own arses

That's different, that's decidedly a case of laughing AT them not with them.

Besides, don't be a wanker, didn't your mum tell you not to mock the afflicted?

Uncle Liam wrote: No. They probably think they are, because they must laugh at how badly they treat the fans and the money they make off it.

yeah what a bunch of bastards. i mean none of them even showed up at the new order online day.

FtotheDoubleOff wrote: My fave quip, on 316 after Blue Monday- 'God, that goes on for fucking ages that!'

Oasis are the funniest band though.

hahaha

[orange]State of Love and Trust [/orange] wrote:

Uncle Liam wrote: No. They probably think they are, because they must laugh at how badly they treat the fans and the money they make off it.

yeah what a bunch of bastards. i mean none of them even showed up at the new order online day.

Surely you know by now that it's not worth the fuckin effort?

Concentrate on all the happy legions who DO appreciate such things, instead of whining-for-Engerland boy there.

Besides, I rather think he has some very odd ideas about how much money each of them will be getting out of these re-issues.

Anyway, fuck that, did you vote yes?

To degrate New Order to clowns? Pardon moi, mersi!

Yes, they may be funny but behind their lunatic absue and inability to properly communicate is the horror of drug or alcohol consupmtion... So there are your conclusions

|| | ||| 6217|| 8 || 3 wrote: To degrate New Order to clowns? Pardon moi, mersi!

Yes, they may be funny but behind their lunatic absue and inability to properly communicate is the horror of drug or alcohol consupmtion... So there are your conclusions

Horror?

If it were horrible, people wouldn't do it. Church is horrible, Being off your nut isn't.

|| | ||| 6217|| 8 || 3 wrote: To degrate New Order to clowns? Pardon moi, mersi!

Yes, they may be funny but behind their lunatic absue and inability to properly communicate is the horror of drug or alcohol consupmtion... So there are your conclusions

Eh?

What conclusions?

Also what does "mersi" mean?

just don't see it. funny bands would be frank zappa and weird al.

Zappa is funny, but it's a different kind of funny. While Dinah-Mo-Hum may well cause me to nearly pass out laughing, it's just not the same as.....

"It's cost me an awful lot of money in guitar picks this, so could you applaud a bit louder".

or "we'll show you indifference, we're from Manchester, Home of cunts".

Weird Al?

one of two mildly mirthsome moments over the years.

Nick King wrote:

|| | ||| 6217|| 8 || 3 wrote: To degrate New Order to clowns? Pardon moi, mersi!

Yes, they may be funny but behind their lunatic absue and inability to properly communicate is the horror of drug or alcohol consupmtion... So there are your conclusions

Eh?

What conclusions?

Also what does "mersi" mean?

Eh, parlez vous francais? Under influence, you fall into delirium that produces abnormal speech, language abuse and circus attics. Yes, if that's what you want. Take you off substance abuse and you'll become as stern as the pope of Rome.

ABsolutely- their humor comes from being themselves rather than the "d'you wanna hear a joke" variety. It comes through in their music, their stories, and their whole attitude in general. Add to that their associations with Rob Gretton, Tony Wilson, etc, and you've got real opportunity for some funny shit to happen. Of course, carrying a bag of puke through airport security and Barney's 'down goes Fraiser' moment in Glastonbury add to it- there's something for everyone, whatever your preference. Also, IMO, New Order's not the band for you if you tend towards judginess about matters of alcohol and drug use.

Of Course! Remember when barney fell on his arse at Hultsfred 2002? Heres some examples

^ hahahahaha

Thanks for posting these Michael! Don't know how I haven't seen these before- thought I'd exhausted YouTube. I guess theyre not technically "rarities" but they'd fit right in on Glasgow Disc 2...

Yet another thing I love about NO- it takes a real sense of humor to not worry about embarassing yourself in front of thousnds of people

I always liked the genuineness (not a real word eh Nash?) of the band. That they didn't fit in the cookie cutter mold of a how bands are 'suppose to be'...

I'm not sure if they were the funniest band, but it was funny how they constantly thumbed the industry (and fans) though not going entirely out of thier way intentionally trying to do so. They never really lost themselves to become rock-gods, as so many other bands try to attain... and it was all real, not some stage front like all the emo bands of today

nataliet wrote: Thanks for posting these Michael! Don't know how I haven't seen these before- thought I'd exhausted YouTube. I guess theyre not technically "rarities" but they'd fit right in on Glasgow Disc 2...

Yet another thing I love about NO- it takes a real sense of humor to not worry about embarassing yourself in front of thousnds of people

I concur, theres many hidden gems on youtube, perhaps the next dvd, which im sure there will be one, should have us set up the bonus disc. Theres also tons of more quotes about the net, if you dig long enough. Or you could be a lazy twat like me and go here http://www.new-order.net/no/facs/livequotes.html

They can get away with whatever because the music is good.

I concur, theres many hidden gems on youtube, perhaps the next dvd, which im sure there will be one, should have us set up the bonus disc.

Sounds like a great idea- it could be set up in chapter categories such as:

1. New Order show their love and respect for the audience
2. Spills, thrills, and near misses
3. Is Bernard wearing underwear? You decide.
4. Altercations involving Hooky's bass
5. Freaky dancin'
6. Lyrics improvised using "balls" and "cock"
7. Interview classics

nataliet wrote:

I concur, theres many hidden gems on youtube, perhaps the next dvd, which im sure there will be one, should have us set up the bonus disc.

Sounds like a great idea- it could be set up in chapter categories such as:

1. New Order show their love and respect for the audience
2. Spills, thrills, and near misses
3. Is Bernard wearing underwear? You decide.
4. Altercations involving Hooky's bass
5. Freaky dancin'
6. Lyrics improvised using "balls" and "cock"
7. Interview classics

Im expecting new order play at home will also be released.

Eh, parlez vous francais? Under influence, you fall into delirium that produces abnormal speech, language abuse and circus attics. Yes, if that's what you want. Take you off substance abuse and you'll become as stern as the pope of Rome.

Or the Pope of anywhere else, for that matter....

In vancouver 2001:

fan: Play Ceremony!

BS: No, we're not going to play Ceremony tonight...

fan: why not?

BS: CAUSE CEREMONY SUCKS!!!