Album of the Day

On this day in 1978, Joy Division played its first live show at Pip's Disco in Manchester, England; the following year, the quartet's debut arrived on Factory Records. With producer Martin Hannett adding an edgy ambiance to the group's disconsolate post-punk, UNKNOWN PLEASURES is an alternative music landmark, cited by such outlets as Q and NME as one of the greatest British albums of all time. Ian Curtis' affectless delivery and Peter Hook's melodic bass work give a strange allure to songs like “She's Lost Control,” “New Dawn Fades” and “Shadowplay,” and while Curtis' 1980 suicide gave Joy Division's music a fatalistic aura, UNKNOWN PLEASURES has a stark power that suggests a band ready to conquer the world.