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4.11 AVERAGE
4.11 AVERAGE
Hooky oh Hooky.. this book managed to make me laugh till my stomach hurt and nearly cry as well.
Hooky, aka Peter Hook, needs no introduction. He is the bassist of Mancunian bands Joy Division and New Order, bands who have managed to make music spanning from the darkly gorgeous tones of Atmosphere and Shadowplay to the fluorescent crystalline tones of Blue Monday and Fine Time (lovely song btw).
He covers Joy Division's history from its early inception as Stiff Kittens and Warsaw; also adding in humourous ( if somewhat far-fetched stories) anecdotes about his bandmates, up till the tragic death of Ian Curtis and Joy Division.
Hooky is a brilliant curator, although the book, in all honesty, does tend to lean towards painting Bernard Sumner as a wimpy whiner and Hooky himself as long-suffering. I'll definitely be looking forward to reading Barney's acount of Joy Division.
Hooky, aka Peter Hook, needs no introduction. He is the bassist of Mancunian bands Joy Division and New Order, bands who have managed to make music spanning from the darkly gorgeous tones of Atmosphere and Shadowplay to the fluorescent crystalline tones of Blue Monday and Fine Time (lovely song btw).
He covers Joy Division's history from its early inception as Stiff Kittens and Warsaw; also adding in humourous ( if somewhat far-fetched stories) anecdotes about his bandmates, up till the tragic death of Ian Curtis and Joy Division.
Hooky is a brilliant curator, although the book, in all honesty, does tend to lean towards painting Bernard Sumner as a wimpy whiner and Hooky himself as long-suffering. I'll definitely be looking forward to reading Barney's acount of Joy Division.
I've been a book rut.
I had been reading this one for months and it was sluggish to say the least. I felt like Hook made too many references to bands I've never heard of, clubs that were just names, SO MANY PEOPLE, rather than try to communicate the era to someone who didn't already know everything about it.
After months (and unfruitfully traveling to Alaska with this one!) I put the book down, read something else, and when I back picked it up, it was incidentally a turning point in this one and I couldn't put it down. So, Something like 2-3 stars for the first 1/2, 5 stars for the 2nd half and I'll be generous here and average it up to four because the book design is fantastic, black edge painting and all.
I had been reading this one for months and it was sluggish to say the least. I felt like Hook made too many references to bands I've never heard of, clubs that were just names, SO MANY PEOPLE, rather than try to communicate the era to someone who didn't already know everything about it.
After months (and unfruitfully traveling to Alaska with this one!) I put the book down, read something else, and when I back picked it up, it was incidentally a turning point in this one and I couldn't put it down. So, Something like 2-3 stars for the first 1/2, 5 stars for the 2nd half and I'll be generous here and average it up to four because the book design is fantastic, black edge painting and all.
Not a fan of Peter Hook before, still not a fan. But I'll say that, in spite of some weird choices with pacing and structure, his bloke-y lad style of writing actually makes for a decently engaging and digestible book. Worth a read.
dark
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
reflective
medium-paced
A great, lucid walk through a fascinating band and time. Hook's writing style and voice is very seductive.
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
This was a good but not great read in spite of some less than stellar writing (I'm sure Peter Hook doesn't really consider himself a writer either). I didn't care for the anecdotes about pranks so much (they are probably a lot more amusing if you were involved) and found some of the stories about other famous people / bands they interacted with annoying as well. I loved hearing the story, first hand, however of how the band developed and particularly the two sections where he suggests you listen along to the albums while you read the story of the recording of each song.
dark
funny
reflective
medium-paced
Brilliantly narrated by Peter Hook, funny at times, sad at others. Never considering myself a die hard Joy Division fan, although I loved a few of their songs, and (predictably) found Ian Curtis' story and eventual suicide compelling. This book is written a fellow band member and a friend, Peter's youth, punk, who-gives-a-fuck attitude, all come across with genuine conviction, empathy, understanding and incredulity for his younger self.
Sped through this book, despite being on my shelf semi started for months. A great read.
Sped through this book, despite being on my shelf semi started for months. A great read.