More about: New OrderPeter HookPeter Hook And The Light
The band respond to former bassist's legal claim
New Order have spoken about former bassist Peter Hook's new legal battle with the band, where he suing them for £2.3million over royalties.
Since they parted ways 2007, 'Restless' and 'True Faith' stars New Order later reunited with a new bassist for a tour before releasing the brilliant new album Music Complete in 2015. Hooky meanwhile, has been touring varying setlists consisting of the back catalogue of Joy Division and New Order with his band The Light.
Affairs between the two parties have been less then civil since, with Peter Hook telling Gigwise that frontman Bernard Sumner was a 'twatto' who 'stole New Order from me'.
Now, Hooky is suing his 'former friends' in the band for £2.3million, accusing them of setting up a new company without him to handle the band's income after he left the group. A judge has ruled that it will go to a full trial.
"Obviously the band are disappointed that Peter is pursuing this claim in this particular way," the band have told NME. "The reports so far take a number of things out of context. Peter still, for instance, receives his full share of all back catalogue royalties. This dispute relates only to the share of income he takes from our work without him since 2011."
They added: "Not much more we can say as nothing has been decided by the Court on the facts other than he has a right to proceed with the claim, so this matter is still in play."
Watch Peter Hook perform and explain the key Joy Division and New Order tracks below
Hook's barrister Mark Wyeth QC says: "It was as though George Harrison and Ringo Starr had got together at George’s house one Friday night and had acted together to divest Paul McCartney of his shareholding in the Beatles, and didn’t tell Yoko about it either."
He added: "This is not about musical direction or musical differences or personality clashes, but first and foremost about wrongdoers taking control of a company and stripping it of its property.
"Mr Hook seeks restoration of the company’s misappropriated property, property it has held for more than 20 years."
Hook then issued a statement: "I'm naturally delighted with the decision made on my application to the High Court in London last week. It found in my favor and justifies the stance I have taken. The Judge made a number of important points when giving his judgment and rejected a lot of the Defendants' submissions.
"Both sides' costs in this case are very substantial. I was obviously pleased that the Judge ordered the Defendants to pay mine. I'm very happy with the outcome and it bodes well for the future. I am grateful to my legal team for the hard work which went into achieving this judgment."
Meanwhile, Hooky will be performing the entire of Joy Division and New Order's Substance at gigs next year. See dates below, and full dates and tickets are avilable here.
Peter Hook & The Light will play:
15 SEP Barrowlands, Glasgow, UK
16 SEP O2 Apollo, Manchester, UK
17 SEP O2 Forum, London, UK
12. 'The Eternal': This is suggestive of the musical direction that Joy Division were expanding towards. In this penultimate track on their second album, the band show a mature edge, and introduce unusual samples to create an other-worldly, but majestic cut.
11. 'A Means To An End': Proof that Peter Hook's cyclical riffs have a trance-like quality that absorbs the listener, allowing us to meander closer to Ian Curtis' intriguing lyrics.
10.'Twenty Four Hours': There's a desolate feel in this track, which alludes to the depression Curtis was experiencing. The melody that accompany his poetic and introspective lyrics is equally moving.
9. 'New Dawn Fades': The same descending bass riff is looped throughout this track, while Curtis' vocals rise with a wide, expansive atmosphere. The guitar solo at the end has a majestic Led Zeppelin-esque power.
8. 'Transmission': NME places this as No.20 of the greatest indie anthems of all time, and it shows the band at their most anthemic and danceable.
7. 'Disorder': Taken from the 1979 debut album Unknown Pleasures, released via Factory Records, this is quintessential listening for anyone into post punk pioneers.
6. 'Digital': This shows Joy Division at their punkiest. It's Buzzcocks-esque fun with such angular riffs that it's easy to imagine a room full of punks losing themselves and throwing each other around the room while this song plays.
5. 'Shadowplay': A catchy repetitive bass riff, and occasional flashy solos on the lead guitar, interact to create a poignant sound that feels very informed by the post-industrial financial decay of Northern England in the time of Thatcher.
4. 'Isolation': This is a highlight from their second album, Closer. The LP wasn't released until after Curtis passed away, but it showed the band hadn't succumbed to that difficult second album narrative that so many bands today appear to suffer, and ensured they'll be remembered as one of the greatest bands of all time.
3. 'Candidate': A dark and experimental track that evokes Curtis' influence Jim Morrison at his angriest and bluesiest. It's got a slow tempo and has an intensely emotional bleak, Gothic, and psychedelic sound.
2. 'She's Lost Control': Bassist Peter Hook's tendency to play high melodies on the bass informs a lot of Joy Division's sound and he's at his catchiest here. In combination with Curtis' simple lyrics (which document a girl having an epileptic seizure - a condition Curtis himself famously struggled with) it creates a powerful and ominous mood.
1. 'Love Will Tear Us Apart': This is their most well-known and influential song, ranking among Echo And The Bunnymen's 'Killing Moon' as one of the greatest alternative pop songs ever. Its sheer, miserably majesty is unparalleled - setting the template for the dizzying heights that alternative pop was capable of reaching. A true masterpiece.
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