New Order – ‘Power, Corruption and Lies’
“They must be looked at for a length of time in order to penetrate them, and their conscientiousness, their simple truth – you take these in entirely, and then you return” – these words were written by Émile Zola about the French artist Henri Fantin-Latour in the latter part of the 19th century. However, the quote is equally as applicable to Power, Corruption and Lies, the second studio album from New Order, which uses a Fantin-Latour painting of flowers as the basis for its cover artwork.
The Manchester band really came into their own on this record, moving on from the melancholy of Joy Division and the hangover of that sound that came on their first effort, Movement. From the first few seconds of the bassline on the opening track, ‘Age of Consent’, it is clear that the band are moving towards a pop-infused, more danceable sound, fully embracing the colour and indulgence of the decade.
Like Latour’s work, though, the more time you spend with Power, Corruption and Lies, the more details reveal themselves. Although the opening track’s pop sound draws listeners in initially, as the album moves into the haunting ‘We All Stand’, it becomes apparent that this record is not merely another vapid and commercial 1980s pop album.
Although lead singer Bernard Sumner’s lyrics leave more than a little to be desired, especially in comparison to the poetic genius Ian Curtis, who had fronted the group during the Joy Division years, the musical backing more than makes up for it. The basslines of Peter Hook are on top form and make up some of the most enjoyable parts of tracks like ‘Ecstasy’. The drumming of Stephen Morris and his partnership with Gillian Gilbert on synthesiser make up the backbone of this record. This is perhaps most noticeable on ‘5 8 6’, a mid-album highlight and overall one of the strongest tracks on the release. Starting with a dark and suspenseful synth, with Hooky’s bass occasionally chiming in, the track soon erupts into a fully-fledged synthpop assault as Sumner’s voice kicks in.
Whilst not the most beloved track on the album, ‘5 8 6’ captures the zeitgeist of New Order’s sound, recognising their moody post-punk roots but moving forward into new avenues and embracing the beauty of dance music. The song is a signifier that New Order have arrived and they are going to do things on their own terms, in keeping with the ethos of Tony Wilson’s Factory Records, who released this album. How many other groups would release one of the best-selling singles of all time, ‘Blue Monday’, and then decide to omit it from their album?
As the album progresses, New Order retains their newfound synth-pop sound, incorporating it into the gentle romance of ‘Your Silent Face’ before diving back into the bass-heavy dance-influenced goodness of ‘Ultraviolence’.
While the band may be at risk of leaning too heavily into the synth influence on the penultimate track, ‘Ecstasy’, which features a robotic, synthesised version of Sumner’s voice that borders on cringeworthy at points, the quality of the song is clawed back by Hook’s excellent bass-line.
The closing track, ‘Leave Me Alone’, is a calmer, more melodic song than that which it follows. It is an excellent number with a particular melancholy to it, yet it does not fall into the trap of feeling like a re-hashed Joy Division song – as much of the material on Movement did. However, if Movement was the sound of a band finding their feet after a radical change, Power, Corruption and Lies is the sound of a band who knows who they are and what they want to achieve.
