New Order
Sydney Opera House Forecourt, Sydney, NSW
Friday, March 14th
In 2025, New Order may be coasting on past glories, but what glories they are. The revered UK band haven’t released a new album since 2015’s Music Complete (although there was a one-off single, “Be a Rebel”, in 2020), but with a back catalogue brimming with some of the greatest post-punk and synth-pop of the last few decades, there’s no shortage of classics to thrill crowds with in a live setting.
Despite releasing music that sounds designed to be best enjoyed in a dingy nightclub, tonight’s spectacular setting is the Forecourt of the Sydney Opera House, which New Order bend to their will by turning the venue into a feverish outdoor dance party powered by a formidable laser and light and show and a barrage of danceable hits, including 1985’s “Sub-Culture”, 1986’s “Bizarre Love Triangle”, and 1987’s “True Faith”.
Credit: Ken Leanfore
Frontman Bernard Sumner’s singing might be a bit warbly – he’s a great example of a singer who makes the most of a limited range – but he and the rest of the band (drummer Stephen Morris, keyboardist Gillian Gilbert, guitarist Phil Cunningham, and bassist Tom Chapman – the latter taking over from original member Peter Hook, who left the band acrimoniously in 2007) do an incredible job breathing life into songs from across their 45-year career.
Although excellent latter songs like “Plastic” from Music Complete and 2001’s “Crystal” slot in seamlessly to the setlist, it’s the older tracks that predictably get the audience going crazy, from early guitar-based classics (“Ceremony”, “Age of Consent”) to what is arguably the most influential indie dance song of all time (1983’s “Blue Monday”, still an absolute banger and the best-selling 12-inch single ever).
Credit: Ken Leanfore
Giving the show the air of a complete career overview is New Order’s decision to top and tail the performance with songs from Joy Division (Sumner and Morris’s pre-New Order band, for any newbies unaware of the band’s history), beginning with “Transmission” and ending with the timeless “Love Will Tear Us Apart”, which acts as both a celebration of New Order’s past and a fitting tribute to late Joy Division frontman Ian Curtis.
It’ll be a shame if no more New Order music reaches the world, but tonight’s joyous show provides comfort by reminding us that the band have already given us so much to cherish.
Check out New Order’s upcoming tour dates here.
