Let the voting begin.

"Low-life". It might sound a bit dated today, but at the time it was a recording I breathed. "Love Vigilantes" is such a great tune.

Get Ready, followed closely by Republic... what can I say, I like their new stuff better.

Low-Life has always been a very special album to me.

I voted for Technique. It was a blind purchase for me based on the cool cover. At the time I was into metal/rock and this album turned me on to electronic music in a big way.

IMHO, "Get Ready" is their worst effort. Completely unmemorable aside for the fantastic "Crystal" - which sounds like vintage New Order.

Personally, I think it's a tight race between "Power, Corruption & Lies" and "Technique". "Low-life" isn't far behind either.

That being said, "Substance 1987" is possibly the best compilation ever released by a band. If you don't have it (for shame!) - do yourself a favour and go get it!

-matt

I tend to think "Get Ready" is a fantastic album musically, but their most amateurish lyrically. I'd have to say "Republic" is their worst. It's quite redundant.

But have they ever released a truly bad record?

I only have Low-Life, Technique and the recent greatest hits. I'd probably rank Technique as my favorite, but as mentioned I think if you like their sound the quality of their work is pretty consistent. Peter Hook is my favorite bass player of all time--I love his simple, yet melodic lines that almost carry the whole song sometimes.

Anything with Ian Curtis released under the name JOY DIVISION.

You must've missed the JD poll a few months back.

I wouldn't even go that far with "Get Ready" - lyrically it is rather devoid, but musically I fail to see how this is a progression at all - rather, a regression I think. Even Monaco's latest album is miles above this effort IMHO. However, this record is at least a few steps up from the oft boring "Twisted Tenderness" (Electronic) album.

As for "Republic", it's a hit and miss album. There are some truly wonderful tracks such as "Regret", "World" and "Spooky" but there are as many forgettable songs as well.

Quote:

But have they ever released a truly bad record?

I'd say "Get Ready" is by far their worst, followed by "Brotherhood" and "Republic" - but no, I don't think they've released anything truly "bad".

I do think that Sumner has lost it though....

-matt

I've been amazed, as a long time U2 fan, that people liked their last recording. I thought it was a massive drop in creativity. So, I can relate to how you might feel about "Get Ready". But just a little bit! I've been a New Order fan since 1983 and I think "Get Ready" is a very good recording. I like almost every song, even with the silly lyrics and the awful "Rock the Shack" song.

Substance is one of the best album ever. There are several cool songs on this album not on any other ones like True Faith.