9. Joy DivisionUnknown Pleasures
I assumed this one might be a popular choice. The first thing that comes to mind with Unknown Pleasures is that it sounds like it came from out of nowhere. A lot of times you hear music, and you also hear what may have influenced where it came from. But for Unknown Pleasures, that’s hard, man. The sound, the recording, the approach, the compelling voice, the cold but epic guitar, the melodic bassline playing up higher on the neck, and the interesting, mechanical drum sound. As a record it just looks perfect, it sounds perfect, it feels perfect for what it is. It is an actual perfect testament to something even if… who knows if this is what they were intending to make or if they stumbled into it by surrendering to their creative moment. But it paved the way for so many of us in creating a mood, creating a texture, creating a vibe, with music. It’s achingly beautiful, it’s achingly depressing, yet somehow transcendent. I have to imagine that playing this music wasn’t depressing for them, that it must have been awesome! To be playing those guitar lines in ‘New Dawn Fades’, it must have just felt so epic and so great. It’s a touchstone for me, it’s a touchstone for Neurosis. Ian Curtis’s voice is so expressive, so wonderful. It’s a perfect record.
