Peter Hook says New Order touring with only Bernard Sumner as an original member is “quite rich” amid past lawsuits
Peter Hook has criticised Bernard Sumner for announcing that he’s set to perform live with New Order as the band’s only original member.
On June 19th, New Order took to social media to confirm that Stephen Morris and Gillian Gilbert would be taking a hiatus from performing with the band due to health reasons.
The Manchester icons shared, “New Order are very happy to be playing Primavera in Chile in November marking the band’s first performance there in seven years.”
Despite this, New Order added, “Due to personal health reasons, Stephen and Gillian won’t be touring for the foreseeable future and will not be joining for this show. Bernard, Phil and Tom are really sorry that Stephen and Gillian can’t join us this time, but unfortunately the circumstances make it impossible.”
In recent days, rumours had begun to circulate that this outcome was on the cards after Hook claimed Morris and Gilbert were no longer part of the band in a recent interview.
While speaking to Rock Daydream Nation, which aired on YouTube on June 28th, Hook revealed, “It’s quite interesting because supposedly Barney is touring in New Order on his own this year because Steve and Gillian have left. So, now, Barney is New Order, which is quite interesting, and he’s actually booked a gig in Chile that he will be playing as the only member of New Order.”
The bassist then shared his gripe with New Order continuing with just Sumner, adding, “Which is quite rich because they actually sued me for passing myself off as New Order when we were doing the court case, they brought a case against me for passing myself off as New Order and Joy Division at the same time, which is pretty good going isn’t it that.”
Hook then joked, “I’m wondering if we should pass a case against him for passing himself off as New Order, because he’s doing it on his own,” before saying of the version of the band that existed in the wake of his departure, “I didn’t think they were anything were like New Order when they were pretending to be New Order.”
In a further dig, Hook shared, “Barney, Steve and Gillian proved when they became New Order that a lot of the songs sounded nothing like New Order, it sounded like a bad lieutenant and bad electronic, but maybe that was them getting their own ways. Maybe that was their taste, maybe that was what they were hinting at when they didn’t want me to play.”
On the new look New Order, the bassist said, “With just Barney in it, I cannot imagine y’know with it, but I suppose he gets the Dracula effect of being able to suck on the blood of the young session men.”
Elsewhere, in the same interview, Hook looked ahead to the band’s induction at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ceremony later this year, but insisted a one-off reunion isn’t on the cards, stating, “I’d rather die than play with them bastards.”
He also doesn’t believe the other members will be in attendance, claiming, “Supposedly, the others have not said if they are going or not, but if they’ve split up as New Order, then obviously I don’t think they’ll be going will they from what I’ve heard. Unless my sources are wrong.”
While Hook claimed that “they’ve split up as New Order”, the band did write in their statement that the absence of Morris and Gilbert is only for “the foreseeable future” rather than permanent.
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