A few weeks ago, after Bez had triumphed in Celebrity Big Brother, I dug out my DVD of 24 Hour Party People. Yet it wasn't the crackpipe high-jinks of the Happy Mondays that stuck in the mind, it was the majestic, timeless music of Joy Division and New Order.
Rather frighteningly, Bernard Sumner turns 50 next year and New Order are still going strong. Krafty is their first single for over four years and as soon as Peter Hook's trademark bassline slinks into earshot, you know you're in classic New Order territory. Sumner's vocals are as wistful and as plaintive as ever and glide over the singalong chorus. It's more guitar based than the synth sound of old, but fans of albums such as Republic and Get Ready won't be disappointed.
They may never quite hit the same heights as they did in their heyday, but Krafty is yet another enjoyable addition to New Order's impressive canon of work.
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