Bernard Sumner says Ian Curtis wanted to make “extreme music” with “no half measures”
The story of the British band Joy Division and their late frontman Ian Curtis is a famous one. Following the tragic death of their leader, the tale surrounding the group is one of the most highly mythologised in all of rock music, thanks in no small part to feature films such as Control and 24 Hour Party People.
The band were originally formed as Warsaw in 1976 after future members Bernard Sumner and Peter Hook were galvanised by Sex Pistols’ now-iconic performance at Manchester’s Lesser Free Trade Hall. Fast forward to early 1978, though, and they had changed their name to Joy Division in a bid to avoid being mixed up with respected London punks Warsaw Pakt.
Notoriously, they got their name from that of a sexual slavery wing at a Nazi concentration camp mentioned in the 1955 book House of Dolls. This grim subject material was perfect for the ominous atmosphere and haunting sound that they were starting to construct.
The band were inspired by the doom and gloom of their immediate surroundings. The bleak environments of Manchester and Salford, the bombed-out industrial hubs that had been largely untouched since the war, compounded by having infrastructure crippled by Britain’s sclerotic economic state at the time.
However, aside from these socio-economic factors, the darkly cerebral lyrics were also inspired by the personal and health issues that Curtis was experiencing, namely his failing marriage, clinical depression and extreme epilepsy. Notably, as the quartet expanded their reach and became lauded as one of the country’s most exciting acts, the demands of live arenas made it harder for Curtis to perform due to his epilepsy. As widely reported, he would suffer seizures mid-performance.
Then, just as the band were on the eve of their first North American tour, Curtis chose to end his life in May 1983, aged only 23. Not only did this cement his and the band’s place in history, but it also made the darkness of his lyrics more discernible than ever before, with their remarkably depressing essence having an indelible impact on everybody who hears them.
Whilst it is easy to remember Curtis for the issues he faced and the tragedy of how his life ended, it is crucial to remember that before all else, he was a pioneer. Alongside his bandmates, he helped bring rock music many steps forward whilst also establishing some key blueprints of genres such as post-punk and goth.
His position as a frontiersperson is something his old bandmates are acutely aware of. On the 40th anniversary of their game-changing album Unknown Pleasures in 2019, Bernard Sumner spoke to The Guardian and remembered his late friend and described his desire to make “extreme music”.
“He brought a direction. Ian was into the extremities of life,” Sumner said. “He wanted to make extreme music, and he wanted to be totally extreme on stage, no half measures. If we were writing a song, he would say: ‘Let’s make it more manic! It’s too straight, let’s make it more manic!'”
