As much as I write about Radiohead, surprisingly, they aren't my favourite band. That spot goes to Joy Division, the Manchester quartet who, despite their general diy attitude, and lack of musicianship, change the lives of all who listen to them. Granted, many find the band overratted, commenting that no one would even remember them if it wasn't for the tragic suicide of singer Ian Curtis. If that were the case then, with all due respect, people would still be listening to Hawthorne Heights.
My discovery of Joy Division was a long time coming, I was a huge fan of Interpol, and Editiors, two bands that are unfairly seen as knock offs to the original which is reductive and misses the magic that those two bands bring to the table. For more on them listen to Turn on the Bright Lights by Interpol, and The End Has a Start by Editors. Even Radiohead were a gateway of sorts, as Thom Yorke and Coin Greenwood would mention the band in interviews. So I finally gave in an got Unknown Pleasures from my dad, who was only too happy to oblige being one of those typical musical anorachs that grew up in the eighties.
So the hype was huge at this point, but the intro was small, just a drumbeat, then a bass riff, eventually joined by a simple guitar, and a 12 year obsession was born.
