Les Bains Douches - 18 December 1979 [Import]

Product Description
13 tracks mainly recorded at the December 18th show in 1979 at the now legendary Parisian venue, plus tracks recorded in Holland in January 1980. Alchemy. 2003.

Les Bains Douches - 18 December 1979,Joy Division,Msi Music Corp,Rock/Pop

Average customer rating: way better than preston Extraordinary live album The best live JD out there Mesmerizing and intense: the band at the apex of their power 2nd favorite JD album

Les Bains Douches 18 December 1979 Joy Division Manufacturer: Factory Records ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music Hardcore & Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music | Vinyl Records | American Punk | British Punk | Emo | Garage Punk | Hardcore | Post Hardcore | Proto Punk | Punk | Punk Revival | Punk-Pop | Riot Grrl | Ska Punk | Straight Edge General | Live Albums | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music Post-Punk | New Wave & Post-Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music General | Rock | Styles | Music General | Live Albums | Rock | Styles | Music Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music General | Alternative Rock | Indie Music | Stores | Music Similar Items: Preston 28 February 1980 Warsaw Unknown Pleasures Still ASIN: B00005ARQB Release Date: 2001-04-24

Tracks:

1. Disorder
2. Love Will Tear Us Apart
3. Insight
4. Shadowplay
5. Transmission
6. Day Of The Lords
7. 25 Hours
8. These Days
9. A Means To An End
10. Passover
11. New Dawn Fades
12. Atrocity Exhibition
13. Digital
14. Dead Souls
15. Autosuggestion
16. Atmosphere

Album Description

Unavailable for some time, available again at a mid price, this intriguing release captures a complete gig by the band, weeks before the tragic demise of Ian Curtis. Alchemy. 2003.

Album Details

An Excellent Reprocessed Board Tape that More Accurately Captures their Live Intensity Than Anything on their 'official' Live Album, 'still'. Each Band Member Plays as If It's their Last Possible Time on Stage. Ian Curtis was Approaching the End Ofhis Days and Put Every Ounce of Passion and Feeling He Had Into his Vocal Performances. Tracks 10-16 were Recorded in Holland and Just as Great. The Warts and all Are Included Here, but Then, Fans Really Wouldn't Expect Anything Less.

Customer Reviews:

way better than preston.......2006-07-04

wow! i was very impressed with this album having listened to the preston gig first. this is a much better performance and recording, with a better track selection. tracks such as these days (blew me away!), atrocity exhibition (tons of energy), and atmosphere all exceed the studio versions in my mind. i'm usually not one for live albums, but i highly reccomend this album to any joy division fan.

Extraordinary live album.......2005-10-28

While the title of this record would bring a chuckle to the lips of any American teenager, the recordings inside (taken from three live shows) are anything but laughable. The sheer manic energy of this album should amaze any fan of Joy Division. Of note is live take on Atmosphere--whereas the studio single is meticulously engineered and spacious, this version has a primeval energy and warmth that makes up for its lack of deliberation; and this is true for much of the rest of the album--one could almost feel that the members of Joy Division were in the room, trying so hard to reach out to the rest of us.

The best live JD out there.......2005-08-03

Having spent almost 20 years scraping by on the 2nd half of "Still" and various bootlegs of generally hideous quality, I didn't know what to expect when this was released. WHAT A TREAT! Many of these songs work at least as well as the studio versions, and if you're like me and generally prefer a good live version of a tune to studio work, some are definitive versions. "These Days" is absolutely stunning. "New Dawn Fades" also sounds amazing. This stuff is vastly superior in both sound and performance quality to either "Still" or "Preston (whatever date that show was)".

You get a killer selection of titles, including an early, incomplete version of Passover and obscure titles like "Autosuggestion." There's not much inter-song banter, but Ian wasn't that type of frontman really.

Only the first 9 songs are actually from Les Baines Douches; the other stuff is from a Holland show and the sound isn't quite as good, but overall this is an absolute gem for Joy Division fans.

Seriously, it's worth the purchase price just for the incredible version of "These Days." I can listen to that track five times in a row, easy.

Mesmerizing and intense: the band at the apex of their power.......2004-11-04

I hate most live CDs. I hate the sludgy sound, I hate not being able to hear the singer- I hate the mushy production and recording, the obnoxious crowds... I just don't go for bootlegs. As they so often are, Joy Division prove to be the exception here. I obsess over their live material. In part because they were one of those bands that either you don't get at all, or they change your life. Not much middle ground. No middle ground, in fact.

They thrived onstage- and their mesmerizing sound comes through on much of the recorded shows.

Of the shows you can get in here: This would be a keeper. The beekeeper, so to speak. This is one tight show (actually, two tight shows). Of the two Factory re-release CDs of Joy Division live ish (the two that you can buy on amazon- many, many more await you on ebay if you're in it for the crawl...): This is MUCH, MUCH more faithful than the Preston gig. take that as you will. Better sound, more urgency (but less fire) in the vocals, better recording, plus their equipment. is working so they're not playing through Hook's bass amp, a la a couple songs on Preston. Moreover, there's No 8+ minutes of "The Eternal," here...

It's also much more intense than The BBC recordings, which all-too-obviously lack Martin-Zero-Hannett's production skills (as much a part of the band's studio sound and legacy as the other contributors...) and aren't so spectacular.

Anyway- The set lists here are a good mix of Joy Division's maturing styles. Opening up with a fast-paced, raw, break-neck rendition of "Disorder," (a personal fave) and then segueing quickly into the CD's sole low points- A truly awful "LWTUA" (the synthesizer's pitch is WAY to high- like someone's record player is playing the original at pitch 4% faster than it should be. Ugh.) and an disco-ed out version of "Candidate" that alternately bores me to death or bugs me to death (that Galaga-esque disco pow-pow-pow!). So, tracks 2 and 3 I loathe.

The rest of Les Bains veers between rollicking good and sublimely badass! Perhaps the roughest most brutal version of "Shadowplay," I've heard. A frenetic, pulsing "Transmission" that kicks up the intensity. Sumner's guitar playing is pretty choice. One of the few live versions of "Day of The Lords," (the closest JD ever got to Black Sabbath): it's sooooooo damn fine. The sludgy churning guitar and crashing beats with Ian (sometimes plaintive, sometimes furious- "Where will it end?") guiding the insanity. Wow. Great song. Great version.

Tracks 7, 8 and 9 ("24 hours," "These days" and "A Means to an End," respectively) are also great. All are faster than their studio versions, kinda smokin... "a means to an end," is a particularly good one. Ian sings it a little differently. So far the CD is consistently gooder than good.

Now then, only the first 9 tracks are from Les bains Douches. The remaining 7 are from another show they did in Holland, a month or so later. The sound suffers a little bit, especially on "Passover." Short song, not one of their best- drums are kinda quiet... BUT. Things pick up for the remainder of the set. Really great version of "New Dawn Fades," followed an overly long "Atrocity Exhibition." If you like that song- you'll like this very clear version of it. I don't like it, and it's about 6 and a half minutes long. "Digital" and "Dead Souls" more than make up for it, though. Scathing, vicious, and idiosyncratic performances of both tunes! "Autosuggestion," is a song that does little for me. The live version has the vocals buried at first, but the guitar is razorsharp, it builds furiously, around the 1.40 mark... I dig this version more than the studio version that I've heard.

Ends with "Atmosphere," a song that I don't think lends itself to live performances, especially given that they couldn't recreate the full studio sound of it, in its entirety (the shimmery synth sounds and guitar chords). Having said that, this is an admirable attempt at recreating the song that succeeds for the most part. Sublime. A great closer to the CD, and a great closer to a burned Joy Division live-show compilation, should you be moved as I am to do stuff like that.

A final caveat: I recommend this for fans who KNOW THE LYRICS. This is a live set- unless you're familiar with the music or are reading the lyrics from a book... you won't be able to hear some of the words.

2nd favorite JD album.......2004-09-24

The intense atmosphere of Unknown Pleasures outranks it slightly, but only by a smidgen. Here the songs have been completely stripped of any of Martin Hannett's BS, and are allowed to stand on their own two feet.

Songs that I was never all that fond of suddenly make sense on this recording. I could never get why folks of the first punk generation raved about "Shadowplay," which I always thought was the weakest track on UP. On this disc, I finally heard it for the wicked piece of intelligent heavy metal that it is.

The best tracks are actually not the ones at Bains Douches, but the three songs recorded from an Amsterdam gig. All three performances blow the original album versions out of the water. Everything is perfect. Ian's vocals are more desolate than they've ever been. The intrumentals are masterful, particularly the brilliant use of feedback and distortion, which I don't think any band ever manipulated so brilliantly. Even the lo-fi recording adds to the horror--like you stumbled onto an old recording of Satan's house band in your grandmother's attic.

The last chunk of recordings, from another European performance, are less impressive due to poor sound quality. Still, there are some gems, particularly the muscular renditions of "These Days" and "Dead Souls."

Why this album is almost completely unavailable at stores is beyond me.

Average customer rating: Nice quality w/ the choppy crispness...

Les Bains Douches - 18 December 1979 Joy Division Manufacturer: Msi Music ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Hardcore & Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music | Vinyl Records | American Punk | British Punk | Emo | Garage Punk | Hardcore | Post Hardcore | Proto Punk | Punk | Punk Revival | Punk-Pop | Riot Grrl | Ska Punk | Straight Edge Post-Punk | New Wave & Post-Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music General | Rock | Styles | Music Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music Rock | Imports | Stores | Music ASIN: B00005V8AM Release Date: 2001-08-06

Tracks:

1. Disorder
2. Love Will Tear Us Apart
3. Insight
4. Shadowplay
5. Transmission
6. Day of the Lords
7. Twenty Four Hours
8. These Days
9. Means to an End
10. Passover
11. New Dawn Fades
12. Atrocity Exhibition
13. Digital
14. Dead Souls
15. Autosuggestion
16. Atmosphere

Album Description

13 tracks mainly recorded at the December 18th show in 1979 at the now legendary Parisian venue, plus tracks recorded in Holland in January 1980. Alchemy. 2003.

Album Details

Includes the Live at Preston Warehouse Disc in a Limted Numbered Box.

Customer Reviews:

Nice quality w/ the choppy crispness..........2003-10-05

... you'd come to expect from Joy Division. I'm really impressed with this box set. Very good quality for live shows that the band performed very well in. A must for all Joy Division junkies...

Average customer rating: A must for any Joy Division fan A Lively Taste of Joy Division amazing

Les Bains Douches 18 December 1979 Joy Division Manufacturer: Dynamic Italy ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music Hardcore & Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music | Vinyl Records | American Punk | British Punk | Emo | Garage Punk | Hardcore | Post Hardcore | Proto Punk | Punk | Punk Revival | Punk-Pop | Riot Grrl | Ska Punk | Straight Edge General | Live Albums | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music Post-Punk | New Wave & Post-Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music General | Rock | Styles | Music General | Live Albums | Rock | Styles | Music Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music Similar Items: Warsaw Still The Complete BBC Recordings Unknown Pleasures Preston 28 February 1980 ASIN: B0002235MQ Release Date: 2004-06-15

Tracks:

1. Disorder
2. Love Will Tear Us Apart
3. Insight
4. Shadowplay
5. Transmission
6. Day of the Lords
7. Twenty Four Hours
8. These Days
9. Means to an End
10. Passover
11. New Dawn Fades
12. Atrocity Exhibition
13. Digital
14. Dead Souls
15. Autosuggestion
16. Atmosphere

Customer Reviews:

A must for any Joy Division fan.......2006-05-14

I've been a Joy Division fan for years, but before hearing this album, I'd never heard them live before. Les Bains Douches totally blew me away. The songs I thought were excellent on their studio albums were phenomenal live. Their emotionally unsettling lyrics and sound pack a power, energy, and raw nerve live that's absolutely chilling. The thrashing "Day of the Lords" and "Transmission" demonstrate is perhaps the most brilliant example of Joy Division's affect in their entire catalogue, live or studio. "Shadowplay" and especially "Atmosphere" show themselves as two of the most haunting, brooding songs ever recorded. Perhaps the only bad spot on the album is the outdated synthesizer-prominent sound on "Love Will Tear Us Apart", but it is outshined by every other track on Les Bains Douches, and Les Bains Douches outshines any studio work Joy Division ever recorded.

A Lively Taste of Joy Division.......2005-08-29

When Ian Curtis hung himself in 1980 on the eve of Joy Division's first US tour, it's safe to say that no one could ever experience the feeling of being at a Joy Division concert ever again.

Les Bains Douches, a 2001 post-humous collection of 3 Joy Division concerts (Les Bains Douches, Amsterdam and Eindhoven), is the closest to actually being at a Joy Division concert before that fateful day.

No band has made such an impact on the music world in such a short timeframe. In Joy Division's 3 year existence, the band only released 2 full studio albums. But today, bands like Interpol are constantly cited or compared to the work of Ian Curtis and his Manchunian bandmates. Groups ranging from the likes of Fallout Boy to Nine Inch Nails do covers of some of Joy Division's best known songs.

This album is full of energy with flawed but nevertheless excellent versions of songs like "These Days," "Shadowplay," and the sped-up version of Joy Division's hit song, "Love Will Tear Us Apart," but also has its quiet and introspective moments with "New Dawn Fades," "A Means to an End," and the closing song, "Atmosphere." The album is chilling, like looking at a moment in time so ideal and good-natured that you know ends badly. The silent moments are deafening, the quieted roar of the crowd, the occasional chants of "Joy Division!" by the Amsterdam audience. You know something's wrong. The album's sound quality slowing deteriorates, with Curtis' voice becoming more and more distant and the drum beat more and more pronounced until the album finally fades into fuzz 16 tracks later. The familiar baritone voice is nearly unheard in "Dead Souls." Whereas this would be a detriment to other groups, this technological failure only strengthens the emotions in the CD, symbolizing Curtis' departure from the band and the world.

This is a wonderful CD, displaying Joy Division's wide range, well written lyrics and engrossing drumbeats. The album art is less minimalistic than I'd expect from any Joy Division CD, but good nevertheless. The liner notes are amusing and touching, and give some insight into the album's creation. All I can complain about is that I wish I were there.

amazing.......2005-08-19

You will never get the chance to see Ian Curtis seizure out onstage. Instead, you will buy this live CD, and when the drums come in on Disorder, you will black out - you will white out - God will come before you and fill you, and you will seizure out instead. Curtis' voice sounds especially urgent and depraved. He is going crazy on this, you can hear it, and his singing is sometimes off-cue, out of tune, and imprecise, but it is always passionate and moving.

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