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188 of 199 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great, but not perfect, August 15, 2005
This review is from: Heart & Soul (Audio CD)
What can you say about Joy Division? They aren't for everyone, that's for sure. A lot of folks cannot get past Ian Curtis' voice, and I understand that; sometimes even I throw up my hands and ask, "Why in the world didn't Martin Hannett tell Ian to do another take? Surely they could have gotten him to sing just a wee bit more in tune."
But on the other hand, sometimes the weird, flat voice is actually good for the track - sometimes, the ghostly, haunted lyrics benefit from Curtis' ghostly, haunted, slightly atonal vocal style. So overall, most of the studio recordings work very well. Live, however, there are a lot of moments that are almost excruciating to the ears. On top of that, the fact that the three musicians in the band were all amatuers themselves made for exciting but inconsistent performances.
WHY THIS BOX SET IS GOOD: Remastered versions of the two proper studio albums "Unknown Pleasures" and "Closer." Both these albums remain stunning landmarks of "post-punk" music. The musical style of this band was quite distinctive - bass often carried the melody and the guitar functioned more as the true rhythm instrument. Drum parts tended toward machine-like grooves, but played by a human being. All in all, a unique approach that could only have been developed by guys who truly didn't know better; unaffected by any sort of technical proficiency, Joy Division had to forge their songs with the most rudimentary tools. Miraculously, they managed to create an influential and sophisticated sound with few obvious antecedents.
In addition to the two albums, this also includes almost all their singles and outtakes. Plus, you get some stuff that was never officially released, including three tracks from their unreleased 1978 "Warsaw" album.
WHY IT'S NOT SO GOOD: For the most part, the alternate versions on Disc 3 are not that impressive. On some of them, the vocals are downright horrible. And as far as Disc 4 goes, this is the worst sounding offically released live material I've heard by this band. Even the Preston Warehouse CD sounds better! Even worse, the first 14 tracks suffer from a very common audio flaw in bootlegs: the original tape recorder must have been running at slow speed, and when they remastered it for this CD, the playback deck must have been playing at normal speed. The result: everything is speeded up and the pitch is more than a half-step sharp. WHY DIDN'T ANYONE OVERSEEING THIS PROJECT NOTICE THAT THE RECORDING WAS CLEARLY NOT AT PROPER SPEED???
Now I am going to have to tape this CD, and then play it back again using my variable speed tape deck. How ridiculous!
The only material on the live CD that was recorded at proper speed is the last 5 songs. Overall, this live CD is a big disappointment.
Also, the packaging of this box set is pretty shoddy. The cover is made of what feels like cheap manila paper. I'd had my copy for one day and I already noticed wear and tear on the binding.
WHAT THIS BOX SET IS MISSING:
1) 7 out of ten songs from the "Complete BBC Sessions" CD.
2) 8 of the 11 songs recorded for RCA in 1978 for the unreleased "Warsaw" album. (now available on a CD which includes the group's earliest recordings from 1977)
3) The original "Warsaw" demo - 5 songs recorded in July 1977; incredibly primitive, amatuerish punk. The songs aren't especially good, but it is startling to hear this stuff and realize this is how J.D. started.
4) The live material from "Still" - the full set from J.D.'s last show ever.
5) An excellent live version of a very early song called "At A Later Date" originally released on a Factory Records compilation called "Short Circuit - Live at the Electric Circus."
6) An alternate version of "Love Will Tear Us Apart" that was originally released on the b-side of the "Love Will Tear Us Apart" 12" single.
Given the omissions and the crappy-sounding live stuff, I can't give this 5 stars, as much as I adore this band.
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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
As close as we're likely to get, September 23, 2001
This review is from: Heart & Soul (Audio CD)
Yes, there was definitely too much of a lag between the European release and the US release of this one -- so much so that I myself had to take advantage of the fact that I was living in Spain to get my hands on this one a couple of years ago. Even still, after all this time I'm still somewhat at a loss for words to describe "Heart and Soul," so that's a good sign. One thing that I can say is that everything about this box set is just beautiful, from the packaging to the lyrics to the songs themselves. The cost may be a bit off-putting right now, but it's probably the most thorough anthology that's likely to come around, so it's well worth it. You get all the tracks from "Unknown Pleasures," "Closer" and "Substance" (though not "Still") -- plus some assorted live and demo versions that had been previously unreleased. The albums and the compilation are standards, of course. Some of the demos are pretty much hit-or-miss, and I've heard that the sound mixes and even the playing itself at Joy Division concerts were often pretty bad. But even with the diminished sound quality, the live tracks here (particularly the ones from The Factory in Hulme -- roughly the first half of disc 4) have this rollicking, transcendental power that makes current bands like Nickelback, Staind and Fuel, not to mention the pretense behind most of the genre of "emo," seem like adolescent journal entries put to bland rock arrangements in comparison. And there are a few songs toward the end (the live "Autosuggestion" and particularly "Ceremony" and "In a Lonely Place" -- the latter two from the last recording session before Ian Curtis's suicide) where you can really hear how close he was to the final breakdown. Personally, I haven't been able to listen to these few songs since Madrid. Then there's a booklet containing all the lyrics, listings of releases and recording sessions and even books, a couple of stream-of-consciousness articles on what Joy Division were all about and a more straightforward, strictly journalistic account from "Mojo" (courtesy of good ol' Jon Savage, one of the compilers). The photos are pretty eye-catching, too -- particularly the vidcaps. Sure, some stuff got left on the cutting-room floor (the typo-ridden liner notes acknowledge this). Sure, you may never hear their version of "Louie Louie." And, sure, the songs and the lyrics and the packaging all whisper that eternal "What if. . . ?" When you're talking about a band like Joy Division (and especially a man like Ian Curtis), there will always necessarily be more questions than answers. At the very least, "Heart and Soul" tips the ratio a bit more in our favor.
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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Lightning In A Bottle, October 1, 2002
This review is from: Heart & Soul (Audio CD)
It is a testament to the brilliance of Joy Division that so few (obviously literate) people can find sufficient words to describe them. I would argue that Joy Division cannot be described in layman's terms alone. Joy Division is an experience.
In a day when so many indie rockers pose against brick walls and train tracks, staring into space to give the impression that they are burdened by the weightiness of their own introspection, it is almost hard to view Joy Division in contemporary terms. But Joy Division WERE powerful and WERE thought provoking, yet never pretended to be more than they actually were: a quartet of lads from Manchester/Macclesfield.
A listener unfamiliar with JD might hear the music and conjure up all sorts of images in his minds eye, from spike haired punks to black eyed goths, of the band's appearance. Upon opening the excellent book included with Heart and Soul, he would be stunned to see four rather normal looking individuals. But Joy Division were anything but normal and the music exposes that starkly. Rather than display their angst through silly tattoos, ragged garments or ridiculous piercings, Joy Division channeled 100% of their emotion into their music.
Thousands have vainly attempted to follow in the footsteps of Curtis, Sumner, Hook, and Morris. There is not a single recording of Joy Division that isn't brimming with brilliance, and some songs ("Atmosphere," "Novelty," "Disorder," and several others) are true genius. ("Genius" is an overused word in relation to popular music, but Joy Division's work truly qualifies.)
This collection is a must for any Joy Division fan. For those who want something with depth and insight, yet devoid of pomp and pretension, Heart and Soul is the perfect solution.
Do not pass this collection by.
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