I wouldn't think twice if I was asked to perform on a KISS tribute
album, or to cover a Rolling Stones song for some collection. But
trying capturing that Joy Division aura in an honorific way would
be entirely challenging. "A Means To An End, The Music of Joy
Division" (AutoTonic, 1995) does an exceptional job of securing a
bit of Joy Division
The singular highlight of the CD was Moby's rendition of "New Dawn
Fades." Moby NEVER releases anything that doesn't blow the mind.
On this track in particular, Moby unfolds this astounding
combination of heavy, dark guitars and emotional lyrics that is so
unlike anything Moby has ever done before--it is rare beauty.
Also not to be overlooked are Low's "Transmission" and Girls
Against Boys "She's Lost Control", which both capture the hollow
and raw sound that underlied Joy Division. This brings me to the
real selling point of this collection: it's not full of "modern-
rock" versions of JD songs (like what was done on "If I Were A
Carpenter"), but rather an attempt of these artists to gather up
what they can find of Joy Division, capture that essense in fruit
bottles (no holes in the lid), and release it on this CD.
There's not an unfortunate quality to be found on this CD. One of
the major pleasures of the disc is that most of the contributors
are bands you haven't heard of before (like Further,
Starchildren,and godheadSilo) . If you've ever felt compelled to
face dark brightness of Joy Division, you should find it pleasant
what these latter-day muses have conjured up.
