Bucket List Band - New Order

I love New Order. I love Joy Division.
I was only 7 when Ian Curtis died, so ever getting to see Joy Division live was not an option. New Order, on the other hand, was an option, it just never came to be. You know, those bands and moments that just don't line up and for one reason or another you don't get the opportunity to see live? For me, that ended on Sunday, July 6, 2014, when I saw New Order in concert at The Paramount Theater in Seattle.
I won't bore you with my back story with this band. How they came to be a part of my musical world. How I grew to love them more in my 20s and beyond than I did in my teens. I will jump to the point at hand - THE SHOW!

First ~ I was given the great honor of attending this show by my dear friends Stephanie & Dale. They graciously took me to this show as an early birthday present/celebration. If it weren't for them, this incredible night would not have happened. So a quick THANK YOU to them for sharing and spending this special night with me.

The Paramount is such a beautiful venue. I've never been to a General Admission show there, however, so I wasn't sure what to expect. But we were able to get in and stake our spots on the floor - pretty much dead center, 3 people away from the rail. Umm, YEAH!

The opening act was a band called Run Run Run, out of Los Angeles. They came on at 8pm and put on what seemed like a good show. I say "seemed like" because their instruments were so loud, we couldn't hear the vocals. I'm not sure if it was just our being so close, or if the vocals were hard to hear for everyone else as well. I will say, the music was great! And I will definitely check them out to see if the vocals are just as good.

Just before 9pm, New Order took the stage. The energy from the crowd as the band walked out was electric. And it didn't lighten up. Opening up with "Elegia" turned into an emotional experience for me. We were seeing New Order, sure. And that in itself was magical. But as I watched Bernard Sumner playing his guitar, my eyes gazed back upon Stephen Morris at his drum kit and the reality of what, or rather WHO, I was looking at hit me. Here were 2 of the 4 members of Joy Division, right in front of me. These men who once backed up Ian Curtis. That realization, along with the beauty of the song, brought tears to my eyes.
Or course they were joined by the incredible Gillian Gilbert, along with Phil Cunningham and Tom Chapman.

Throughout the show, the band were ON. They sounded great ~ vocally, instrumentally, they were on point all night. They had video screens behind them that showed, at times, short movies made to go along with songs, as well as, clips from the videos for songs they were performing.

The crowd cheered along, clapped along, and sang along. The big hits, like "True Faith," "Blue Monday," "Bizarre Love Triangle," along with some others brought the biggest cheers and crowd participation. Once they broke into Joy Division songs for the encore, the crowd once again erupted, particularly during the closer, "Love Will Tear Us Apart."

For me, the highest points of the night were "Elegia," "Ceremony," "Your Silent Face" (the performance and the video that accompanied it, which mentioned amFAR), "True Faith," "Temptation," and watching Bernard Sumner dance. The Joy Division high was when they performed "Atmosphere." That song is my all-time favorite JD song. It is amongst my all time favorite songs from any band. It can put me in tears if I'm in the right mood, and hearing it live - even if it wasn't Ian singing (Bernard is an incredibly close second if someone else is going to sing it) put me in that teary mood. I. LOVED. IT.

Performing a mix of big hits, cult classics, and even something new, New Order came to entertain, and entertain they did. I, personally, could not have asked for a better night. I don't go to many live shows anymore, so when I do, they are always pretty special. I have to say, though, that this show was one of the greatest I've ever been to. I don't know that I will ever see New Order live again and I'm ok with that. This show was the perfect introduction to NO live and will always stay with me as the perfect little package it was.

Thank you again to the wonderful friends I got to share this moment with. And thank you to New Order for giving me a night to remember.

Here is the official setlist:
Elegia
Crystal
Regret
Singularity
Ceremony
Age of Consent
Your Silent Face
Californian Grass
Bizarre Love Triangle
5 8 6
Plasic
True Faith
The Perfect Kiss
Blue Monday
Temptation

Encore (all Joy Division songs):
Transmission
Atmospere
Love Will Tear Us Apart

Thank you for reading.