Brotherhood (New Order album)

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Brotherhood
Studio album by
Released29 September 1986 (1986-09-29)
Recorded1986
Studio
Genre
Length37:07
LabelFactory
ProducerNew Order
New Order chronology
Low-Life
(1985)
Brotherhood
(1986)
Substance
(1987)
Singles from Brotherhood
  1. "State of the Nation"
    Released: 15 September 1986
  2. "Bizarre Love Triangle"
    Released: 3 November 1986

Brotherhood is the fourth studio album by the English rock band New Order, released on 29 September 1986 by Factory Records. It contains a mixture of post-punk and electronic styles, roughly divided between the two sides. The album includes "Bizarre Love Triangle", the band's breakthrough single in the United States and Australia; it was the only track from the album released as a single and as a video (although "State of the Nation" was added to most CD editions).

The album sleeve, created by Peter Saville, is a photograph of a sheet of titanium–zinc alloy.[2] Some early releases came in a metallic sleeve.[citation needed]

Music[edit]

Brotherhood saw the band further exploring their mix of post-punk and electronic styles, with the track listing being conceptually divided into "disco and rock sides".[3][4] Stephen Morris stated that the album "was kind of done in a schizophrenic mood that we were trying to do one side synthesizers and one side guitars", which he retrospectively stated "didn't quite work".[5]

In a 1987 interview with Option, Morris commented that the "mad ending" to "Every Little Counts" – which sounds like a vinyl record needle skipping the groove – is similar to the ending of The Beatles' "A Day in the Life".[6] Morris said: "What we should have done is make the tape version sound like the tape getting chewed up. The CD could have the sticking sound."[6]

Influences of Richard Wagner's "Prelude" to Das Rheingold can be heard throughout the track "All Day Long." New Order have subsequently used the piece as a concert opener.

Critical reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
The A.V. ClubA−[4]
Blender[7]
Entertainment WeeklyA−[8]
Pitchfork9.5/10[9]
Q[10]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[11]
Select3/5[12]
Uncut[13]
The Village VoiceA[14]

Reviewing Brotherhood for the Los Angeles Times, Steve Hochman wrote that New Order "makes atmospheric grooves with more finesse than any contemporary computer-rocker."[15] In his "Consumer Guide" column for The Village Voice, Robert Christgau selected the album as a "pick hit" and said: "The tempos are a touch less stately, the hooks a touch less subliminal. Bernard Albrecht's vocals have taken on so much affect they're humane. And the joke closer softens up a skeptic like me to the pure, physically exalting sensation of the music."[14]

In a 1993 retrospective review, Q critic Stuart Maconie described Brotherhood as "often overlooked, nestling as it does between two superior studio albums", and ultimately "more for the initiated than the first-time buyer."[10] John Bush of AllMusic was more favourable, writing that "for better and worse, this was a New Order with nothing more to prove – witness the tossed-off lyrics and giggles on 'Every Little Counts' – aside from continuing to make great music."[3] David Quantick of Uncut noted "an increased tension between the frequent beauty of the music and the band's Northern self-consciousness" and concluded: "This was New Order becoming New Order and if anyone was entitled to not be Joy Division, they certainly were."[13] The A.V. Club's Josh Modell called Brotherhood "an unsung great of the catalog that's dwarfed a bit by its massive single".[4]

Track listing[edit]

All tracks are written by New Order, except where noted

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."Paradise"3:50
2."Weirdo"3:52
3."As It Is When It Was"3:46
4."Broken Promise"3:47
5."Way of Life"4:06
Side two
No.TitleLength
6."Bizarre Love Triangle"4:22
7."All Day Long"5:12
8."Angel Dust"3:44
9."Every Little Counts"4:28
Total length:37:07
CD edition bonus track
No.TitleLength
10."State of the Nation"6:32
Total length:43:39

Notes

  • Most CD copies, with the sole exception of Qwest Records' 1988 release, feature the 12" version of "State of the Nation" as a bonus track (although it is not listed as such). It is identical to the version found on Substance. It runs for 6:32, making the album's new total running time approximately 43:39.
2008 Collector's Edition bonus disc
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Bizarre Love Triangle" (Shep Pettibone Remix) 6:44
2."1963"
5:32
3."True Faith" (Shep Pettibone Remix)
  • New Order
  • Hague
9:02
4."Touched by the Hand of God" 7:05
5."Blue Monday '88" 7:07
6."Evil Dust" 3:45
7."True Faith" (Eschreamer Dub) (incorrectly listed as "True Faith (True Dub)")
  • New Order
  • Hague
7:52
8."Blue Monday '88" (Dub) (incorrectly listed as "Beach Buggy") 7:18
Total length:54:25

Notes

  • "True Faith" (Eschreamer Dub) and "Blue Monday '88" (Dub) are only incorrectly listed on the disc itself. The booklet included with all five re-issued 2008 Collector's Edition New Order Factory Records studio albums correctly identifies them.

Personnel[edit]

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Brotherhood.[16]

Charts[edit]

Chart performance for Brotherhood
Chart (1986) Peak
position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[17] 15
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[18] 69
European Albums (Music & Media)[19] 50
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[20] 22
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[21] 33
UK Albums (OCC)[22] 9
UK Independent Albums (MRIB)[23] 1
US Billboard 200[24] 117

Release history[edit]

  • UK LP – Factory Records (FACT 150)
  • UK Music cassette – Factory Records (FACT 150C)
  • US LP – Qwest (25511-1)
  • US cassette – Qwest (9 25511-4)
  • Canada CD – Factory Records / PolyGram (830,527-2)
  • UK CD (1993 re-release) – London Records (520,021-2)

References[edit]

  1. ^ Ulyatt, Jonathan (28 September 2014). "Peter Hook & The Light @ Shepherds Bush Empire, London – 27/09/2014". Gigwise. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  2. ^ Hall, Chris (1 September 2003). "Peter Saville : Designed By Peter Saville : Graphic Sex". Spike Magazine.
  3. ^ a b c Bush, John. "Brotherhood – New Order". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  4. ^ a b c Modell, Josh (10 November 2008). "New Order". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 21 August 2015.
  5. ^ Pessaro, Fred (3 September 2015). "Rank Your Records: New Order's Stephen Morris Rates the Band's Pioneering Catalog". Noisey. Retrieved 19 June 2016.
  6. ^ a b Woodard, Josef (November–December 1987). "Out From The Shadows: New Order". Option: 77.
  7. ^ Sheffield, Rob (February 2009). "Let's Dance". Blender. Vol. 8, no. 1. p. 66. Archived from the original on 11 January 2013. Retrieved 8 October 2013.
  8. ^ Howe, Sean (7 November 2008). "New Order: Reissues". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 19 June 2016.
  9. ^ Ewing, Tom (10 November 2008). "New Order: Movement / Power, Corruption and Lies / Low-Life / Brotherhood / Technique [Collector's Editions]". Pitchfork. Retrieved 20 September 2011.
  10. ^ a b Maconie, Stuart (May 1993). "Smile!". Q. No. 80. pp. 66–72.
  11. ^ Gross, Joe (2004). "New Order". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 582–583. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  12. ^ Harrison, Andrew (August 1993). "Republish". Select. No. 38.
  13. ^ a b Quantick, David (24 September 2008). "New Order – Reissues". Uncut. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  14. ^ a b Christgau, Robert (3 February 1987). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  15. ^ Hochman, Steve (2 November 1986). "Coming To Order". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 8 April 2022.
  16. ^ Brotherhood (liner notes). New Order. Factory Records. 1986. FACT 150.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  17. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 215. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  18. ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 0752". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  19. ^ "European Hot 100 Albums" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 3, no. 41. 18 October 1986. p. 17. OCLC 29800226 – via World Radio History.
  20. ^ "Charts.nz – New Order – Brotherhood". Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  21. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – New Order – Brotherhood". Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  22. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  23. ^ Lazell, Barry (1997). "New Order". Indie Hits 1980–1989: The Complete U.K. Independent Charts (Singles & Albums). Cherry Red Books. ISBN 0-95172-069-4. Archived from the original on 6 June 2011. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
  24. ^ "New Order Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 3 July 2019.

External links[edit]