Joy Division

For many, first-wave punk was the sound of liberation. Chainsaw guitars, locomotive drums and screaming singers delivered brutal street poetry about the times. It saved us from a lifetime of dull progressive rock, snooze-worthy singer-songwriters and six-string heavy metal. For certain die-hards, ’70s punk is the only punk. For them, both the music and the […]

As recently established here, the 45 RPM record was the greatest medium for punk rock. It’s compact, it’s affordable and brevity’s of essence—distill all of your best moments in three minutes or less. You can also master these seven-inch beauties hot, perfect for loud music. Then you have the picture sleeves. With punk being so […]

Actor Dylan Minnette is known for two things. The first is his portrayal of Clay Jensen, the heroic but flawed high school teen in the acclaimed Netflix drama, 13 Reasons Why. The other is his participation in the alt-rock band Wallows. The trio’s effected-guitar sounds range from languid to melancholy, bringing a new consciousness toward […]

Emo music is often relegated to the past. With bands such as the All-American Rejects and My Chemical Romance dominating the airwaves in the mid-aughts, it was certainly more popular then when compared to present day, but that doesn’t mean the genre is necessarily dead. There are numerous artists heralding a new era of emo, […]

By 1979, punk was firmly established. Seemingly, a million new bands formed weekly, releasing great singles seconds later. But some of the old guard were starting to feel constrained by angry teenage ramalama. Where else punk could go? These are the best punk-rock albums of 1979. As bands such as the Clash and the Damned […]

Unknown Pleasures, the gloriously bleak debut album by Manchester post-punk band Joy Division arrived exactly one month before lead singer Ian Curtis’ 23rd birthday and 11 months before he would hang himself by the neck and die. June 15, 1979. 40 years ago. Curtis would see a small amount of positive critical reception and modest […]

British shoe company Doc Martens released a series of shoes and shirts celebrating two of the U.K.’s legendary post-punk bands, Joy Division and New Order. READ MORE: Hear “The Rover” from Interpol’s upcoming sixth album, “Marauder” The manufacturer is issuing limited-edition versions of their 1460 style boots with graphics from three respected album covers: Joy […]

[Photo by: The Velvet Underground/Facebook] Last month marked 50 years since the Velvet Underground released their monumental second album, White Light/White Heat. Issued Jan. 30, 1968, the six-song cornerstone of lo-fi, experimental proto-punk did little (commercially) for the band upon release, but formed long-lasting waves of influence in the budding worlds of punk, noise, indie […]

Sure, our first choice for picking up a rad tee would be at a show after waiting in the merch line for what seems like forever. But Urban Outfitters is bringing us some classic designed rock, metal and alternative tees, and we can’t get enough of them. Check out 10 of our favorites below! Read […]

[Photo credit: Dorothy] Every music genre can attempt to be traced back to its starting point, and designers at Dorothy released an intricate map that looks at the history of alternative music and its many, many branches. Check out the full chart below. (via Wired) Read more: The 5 great eras of pop-punk, from the ’70s to […]

Moving Units are teaming up with AP to premiere their cover of “Warsaw” by Joy Division featuring Justin Pearson (Retox, Head Wound City). The track will drop on July 29 and is free to the public via Three One G Records. You'll be able to download it right here. The track represents the theme of Moving Units' next […]

To celebrate the 35-year anniversary of Joy Divison's “Love Will Tear Us Apart,” the band will be releasing various efforts from their catalog on heavyweight 180-gram vinyl. Unknown Pleasures and Closer will be available on June 29, while Still and an expanded version of Substance will hit the shelves on July 24. Read more: Joy Division bandmates, family members upset over sale of Ian Curtis’ kitchen […]

Rock legends New Order have inked a new deal with U.K. indie label Mute, setting their sights on a new release, presumably their tenth full-length album, for 2015. While the group's 2013 effort, Lost Sirens, is counted amongst their nine studio releases, it consisted of eight tracks recorded during the production of 2005's Waiting for the Sirens' Call, marking […]

You may not have realized this, but your ticket to the APMAs on July 21 also grants you access to the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame And Museum in Cleveland for that day. AP managing editor Scott Heisel takes you inside the Rock Hall to show you just a few of the amazing artifacts […]

Saturday, April 19, marks the seventh annual Record Store Day, a yearly celebration that takes place the third Saturday of April and packs independent record stores across the nation—and now, the world—full of exclusive releases and hungry customers. Sure, RSD has its problems—telling shops when they can open their doors and threatening to blackball record […]

Late Joy Division singer Ian Curtis became the topic of music news this week, when his former kitchen table sold on eBay in the UK for £8,400, or nearly $13,500 U.S. Though music memorabilia sales are not uncommon, this particular instance has become a controversial one. The table itself (seen below) was in the very kitchen where Curtis […]

A video game designed to make you feel bad. That is precisely what creator Gordon Calleja is aiming for with Will Love Tear Us Apart, a new, free-to-play, browser-based game inspired by the Joy Division classic “Love Will Tear Us Apart.” For the uninitiated, Joy Division were one of the most influential acts of the late 1970s post-punk […]

Because sometimes editors sit in a room, look through each others’ music libraries and exclaim, “Wow! That’s a lot of Nelly.” Because I heard our editor in chief singing “Brown Eyes” by Lady Gaga last week, and because sometimes we need taken down about five notches on the arrogance scale, last week, we scoured each […]

William Control Silentium Amoris This writer is a record reviewer, not a court reporter, which means he still doesn’t know if the jury is still out regarding what fans of punk/hardcore-based outfits think when those players immerse themselves in electronics-based music. Sure, Skrillex was able to take his jittery programming to the bank—but why is […]

Alt-rock veterans Soul Asylum have recorded an album of punk covers for release sometime in the future on a to-be-determined format. Via Rolling Stone: “While some time-tested punk pioneers were covered (the Stooges with 'TV Eye,' the MC5 with 'Shakin' Street,' etc.), there are quite a few lesser known tunes that were tackled as well, […]