"I think everything's falling apart!"

Joy Division live @ The Warehouse, Preston, UK

28th February 1980

Courtesy of Graham Duff

May 2017 remastered

Track list:

01. Incubation
02. Wilderness
03. Twenty Four Hours
04. The Eternal
05. Heart and Soul
06. Shadowplay
07. Transmission
08. Disorder
09. Warsaw
10. Colony
11. Interzone
12. She's Lost Control

Duration: 00:50:42
Quality: 9+/10
Sources: "Shadowplay" CD bootleg / Master reel or 1st copy

JoyDiv's comment:
Ian, most unusually, was very talkative on stage - primarily to fill in the time while order was restored by the roadies (they had some PA problems due to interference with the beer pump!!). Despite the problems, or because of them, the tape of this concert is probably one of the most interesting bootlegs.

Wallflower's comment:
Joy Division's equipment infamously failed them during this show. It's evident during "Twenty-Four Hours" that the bass amp is shorting out. It then goes completely dead during "The Eternal". Distracted, Ian only sings the first verse of the song before it crawls to a slow stop. Bernard suggests to the band that they play "Heart and Soul," since they can do it without the bass. The band play a sloppy, guitar-less version of the song before the momentum of the gig stops completely dead for like two whole minutes as the band can attempt to fix their equipment. You can hear a lot of talking in the background. Rob Gretton and several of the venue hands sound like headless chickens running around. Apparently they were trying to play everything through the bass amp, but the band eventually get the other amps back on, so there's no need. Hilariously, a woman announces through Ian's microphone: "Anyone from Burnley, the coach is going in five minutes." What a fiasco. FINALLY, when the equipment turns back on, Ian, in a rare moment of interaction with the audience, asks for any requests. The resounding answer is "Shadowplay". From then on, the gig continues as normal.

Ignoring the aspects of the gig that make it infamous, the performance itself is all over the place. The setlist is very nice, combining the punkier songs of old and the synth songs of new. "Incubation" is debuted at this gig - one of only three live versions! We get unique versions of "The Eternal" and "Heart and Soul". After the equipment fails, the band clearly becomes frazzled - there are many mistakes on "Disorder," "Transmission," and "Interzone" especially. The ironic thing is that this recording comes from the soundboard and is definitely one of the best sound quality live recordings Joy Division ever had.

Great show, overall...the songs are still there, which is the most important thing.

Here's a decoding of what happened after "Heart and Soul" here:

Ian: I think everything's falling apart.
Someone #1: …if you don't put my book!
Bernard Sumner: Alright, lads! So Hooky's absent through the bass amp. It's not working. Hey, 'Arry! Everything's fucking bust so we're playing everything through the bass amp. Hooky!
Audience member #1: Yay!
Someone #2: Bass. Bass amp. Bass amp. Fucking...fucking have it.
Bernard Sumner: Hang on a minute, we've got it back on again...
Audience member #2: For fuck's sake...
Someone #2: Yeah.
Audience member #2: What a fucking prick!
Woman: Anyone from Burnley, the coach is going in five minutes.
Ian: Q.
Rob Gretton: What's going on? Fucking Christ, what's going on?
Peter: Hold on!
Ian: Hold on!
Rob Gretton: Yeah, but what's going on?
Someone #3: Shadowplay.
Ian: Any requests?
General Audience: SHADOWPLAY! Disorder, Colony!
Ian: Shadowplay.
General Audience: Disorder!
Someone #4: There's no way to fix it!
Rob Gretton: Hooky, Hooky, Hooky! What's happening?
Peter Hook: We don't know!
Rob Gretton: Come to your mic.

*Bass to Shadowplay comes in, audience cheers

Enjoy!

More info about concert: Joy Division Central

Download:

Mega (~310 Mb)

WeTransfer (~310 Mb / Will be deleted on 5 June, 2017)

Do not redistribute in MP3 or any other lossy format

Never sell for monetary gain (and do not redistribute to people who might!)

PS
Dear guest, if you have any of JD's master-tapes or rare bootlegs - please(!) write a comment.

Cheers.