Bernard Sumner and Peter Hook reflect on Joy Division and New Order in new book

In an unusual moment of shared ground, long estranged figures Bernard Sumner and Peter Hook have each taken part in in depth interviews for a major new biography titled Joy Division and New Order: Album by Album. Arriving amid renewed interest in the Manchester trailblazers, the book breaks down their catalogue song by song, examining one of the most important and divided stories in modern music.

Two sides of a divided history

Since Hook exited the band in 2007, relations between the founding members have been widely known to be tense. Even so, both musicians agreed to revisit their journey for the book, tracing the shift from Joy Division’s stark post punk beginnings to New Order’s role as electronic innovators.

Looking back on the difficult period following the death of Ian Curtis, Sumner reflects: “Suddenly we’d lost Ian, so it was a struggle... Then the curtains gradually opened through music itself evolving.”

Hook, meanwhile, gives a more direct take on the pressure inside the group, likening it to being trapped together under strain: “It was like a spaceship that you couldn’t get out of. Put four people in a room doing anything and inevitably, something’s gonna happen.”

A collaborative retrospective

Alongside Sumner and Hook, the biography acts as a wide ranging oral history of the wider creative circle that helped shape the Factory sound and identity. The book includes extended conversations with a number of key figures.

Peter Saville, the iconic designer, explains that Factory Records “never managed to function as a company,” describing it instead as a platform built around artistic ambition.

Stephen Street, who worked closely with the band as a producer, praises their refusal to “caving in” in the years following 1980.

Ana Matronic, best known as the frontwoman of Scissor Sisters, speaks about the lasting emotional impact of New Order’s music.

Michael Johnson, a recording engineer during the band’s evolution, recalls watching them go “off the leash” as drum machines and synthesisers took centre stage on Power, Corruption & Lies.

The reunion question

For many fans, the most anticipated topic is whether a full reunion could ever happen. While New Order have continued since 2011 with bassist Tom Chapman, the Album by Album approach gives both Sumner and Hook space to weigh their shared legacy against decades of personal and legal conflict.

To find out more and purchase a copy, visit the publisher’s page here.