why doesnt ian curtis enunciate his words properly on love will tear us apart?

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the song would be so much better if he sung it properly, or at least didnt sound like it was a chore. it doesnt even sound like his voice is mixed high enough.

― titchyschneider (titchyschneider), Sunday, 5 June 2005 12:05 (twenty years ago)

I do not follow, what do you mean by properly?

I don't hear the "chore" aspect at all, the delivery is fantastic. The vocal floats along on top of the music but manages to sound somewhat assertive as well.
I reckon it's a near flawless display.

One of my favourite Joy Division vocals is "Digital" and that has some sub-standard enunciation, but it doesn't make it any less awesome.

― Nic de Teardrop (Nicholas), Sunday, 5 June 2005 12:19 (twenty years ago)

I like his strange enunciation on that song. I always think he is saying "You turn away on your side/Is my timing that floored?"

― k/l (Ken L), Sunday, 5 June 2005 12:21 (twenty years ago)

I must have heard this song 1000 times, and I count it among my all-time lifetime favourites, but I have never ever worked out what all the words are.

― CharlieNo4 (Charlie), Sunday, 5 June 2005 12:26 (twenty years ago)

he just sounds like hes droning on and on and on. i mean, its one of my fave joy div tracks ever, mainly cos the performance and melody of the band is just so fucking perfect, but what the fuck is he saying? its all just uhhhhhhhhhhhh ohhhhhhhhhhh whatever. its like hes in a continuous stupour, or hungover, or just severely depressed, as if hes being supported to stand up while recording.

― titchyschneider (titchyschneider), Sunday, 5 June 2005 12:39 (twenty years ago)

The official lyric as transcribed from his "reams and reams of lyrics" in Touching from a Distance:

When routine bites hard and ambitions are low
And resentment rides high, yet emotions won't grow
And we're changing our ways, taking different roads
Then love, love will tear us apart again
Love, love will tear us apart again

Why is the bedroom so cold? You've turned away on your side...
Is my timing that flawed? Our respect runs so dry...
Yet there's still this appeal that we've kept through our lives
And love, love will tear us apart again
Love, love will tear us apart again

You cry out in your sleep, all my failings exposed
And there's a taste in my mouth as desperation takes hold
Just that something so good just can't function no more
And love, love will tear us apart again
Love, love will tear us apart again
Love, love will tear us apart again
Love, love will tear us apart again

― Ian Riese-Moraine forever! (Eastern Mantra), Sunday, 5 June 2005 12:41 (twenty years ago)

i'm with titchy to an extent, not so much with the enunciation but the vocals are mixed way too far down. I never got the Martin Hannett love - his productions are way too muddy.

― jed_ (jed), Sunday, 5 June 2005 12:43 (twenty years ago)

there's an alternate version of this where he does sing in a less droning fashion. might've come out as a b-side or something? I heard it on a radio doco about JD once.

― haitch (haitch), Sunday, 5 June 2005 12:48 (twenty years ago)

Yeah, that'd be the B-side with a faster beat. The Peel Session version they did sounded more like the B-side.

― Ian Riese-Moraine forever! (Eastern Mantra), Sunday, 5 June 2005 12:49 (twenty years ago)

i think it would be fine if i could just hear his vocals a little better. but theyre not loud enough. i still love martin hannett though, in spite of this, hes one of the all time great producers for me.

― titchyschneider (titchyschneider), Sunday, 5 June 2005 12:55 (twenty years ago)

Hadn't Ian Curtis been studying Sinatra records during this period? I always thought "Love Will Tear Us Apart"'s vocal delivery reflected it.

― mike a, Sunday, 5 June 2005 15:57 (twenty years ago)

is that a joke? because it makes total sense!!

― s1ocki (slutsky), Sunday, 5 June 2005 16:26 (twenty years ago)

These vocals were remixed after Ian died (along with the rest of the song, I believe). They recorded a different (and slower) drum part and had to slow down Ian's vocals to match its tempo.

― MindInRewind (Barry Bruner), Sunday, 5 June 2005 16:30 (twenty years ago)

For instance, his vocal style on this one recording is completely different from the live or Peel Sessions versions.

― MindInRewind (Barry Bruner), Sunday, 5 June 2005 16:31 (twenty years ago)

So it's the "Strawberry Fields Forever" effect.

― k/l (Ken L), Sunday, 5 June 2005 16:35 (twenty years ago)

I'm certain that 25 years ago they were really worked up about worrying about comments as inane as this one.

― Anthony Lombardi (CCPO), Sunday, 5 June 2005 17:56 (twenty years ago)

I have no problem understanding what he's saying.

― miccio (miccio), Sunday, 5 June 2005 17:59 (twenty years ago)

if you want a more emotive version check out Paul Young's No Parlez.

― miccio (miccio), Sunday, 5 June 2005 18:00 (twenty years ago)

The Sinatra thing is in Touching From A Distance, quoted below:

http://www.iancurtis.org/songs/lovewilltearusapart.html

― mike a, Monday, 6 June 2005 00:34 (twenty years ago)

xpost

Paul Young's version is fucking dire. How to over emote a song to death in one easy lesson.

― Guilty Boksen (Bro_Danielson), Monday, 6 June 2005 10:39 (twenty years ago)

Ian Curtis was very overrate. He could not really sing - not surprise as he was messed up on epilepsis drugs most of the time - and his lyrics were too miserable and Goth. It took the genuine vocal talents of Paul Young to bring out the song's passion. Maybe New Order should have got him to sing the song instead in the first place.

All in all it is probable a good thing that Ian Curtis took his life because New Order were going nowhere with him and his drony, unmelodic voice would have dragged down future triumphs like Blue Monday and Morning Sun.

― Comstock Carabinieri (nostudium), Monday, 6 June 2005 10:43 (twenty years ago)

its like hes in a continuous stupour, or hungover, or just severely depressed

y'think?

― N_RQ, Monday, 6 June 2005 11:03 (twenty years ago)

well, he sounds positively jubilant on every other song.

― titchyschneider (titchyschneider), Monday, 6 June 2005 11:07 (twenty years ago)

The Stanton-Miranda cover of this song is surely worse than even the Paul Young one, and the Nouvelle Vague cover is one of the sickest jokes I've ever heard.

― Deluxe (Damian), Monday, 6 June 2005 11:10 (twenty years ago)

epilepsis drugs? i heard Ian Curtis was on ellipsis drugs to get over his habit of pausing...dramatically and leaving things hanging at the end of a sentence...

in all seriousness, though, if Mr Curtis had stuck around for the recording of what became 'Movement', it probably would have been the greatest record of all time.

in fact, if he'd just popped into the studio before going home to listen to some Iggy, and had laid down a proper vocal take for 'Ceremony', i'd be satisfied for New Order to have never existed at all.

we can but dream... (shit, pills aren't working)

― Lee F# (fsharp), Monday, 6 June 2005 11:21 (twenty years ago)

Actually, I think young Paul, er, Young's versh is jolly good!!!! At least you can hear all the words!!!! And he did the cover version in 1984 when no-one would touch the song with a bargepole!!!! And is thus ironically responsible for extending the life of the song to the point of it becoming hip enough for ignorant young whippersnappers to slag off his immesurable contribution to keeping it alive!!!!!!

― Old Fart!!! (oldfart_sd), Monday, 6 June 2005 11:24 (twenty years ago)

Do not be so ridiculate. Paul Young's cover version was released in 1983 not 1984. It is on the all-time classic No Parles album.

― Comstock Carabinieri (nostudium), Monday, 6 June 2005 11:25 (twenty years ago)

oh i saw new order playing transmission on later with jools holland. horrible. horrible horrible. why do they do that? why? the fuck why?

― rizzx (rizzx), Monday, 6 June 2005 11:33 (twenty years ago)

that new NO album is shit.

― titchyschneider (titchyschneider), Monday, 6 June 2005 12:22 (twenty years ago)

The enunciation is on the original is rather better than on this cover version by Tuvan throat-singer Yat-kha...

http://yat-kha.blogware.com/download/music/ReCovers/Albert_Kuvezin_Yat_Kha_Love_Will_Tear_Us_Apart.mp3

― falseazure, Monday, 6 June 2005 17:13 (twenty years ago)

THERE IS SO MUCH WRONG HEADED BULLSHIT ON THIS THREAD I WILL HAVE TO STOP READING IT NOW

― kyle (akmonday), Monday, 6 June 2005 19:45 (twenty years ago)

THAT IS THE BEST COVER EVER.

― The Brainwasher (Twilight), Monday, 6 June 2005 19:45 (twenty years ago)

Please god tell me I still have that b-side version on vinyl...

― The Silent Disco of Glastonbury (Bimble...), Tuesday, 7 June 2005 01:21 (twenty years ago)

He is practicing being dead.

― Atnevon (Atnevon), Tuesday, 7 June 2005 06:15 (twenty years ago)

Whoa, did I win?

― Atnevon (Atnevon), Tuesday, 7 June 2005 13:37 (twenty years ago)

sixteen years pass...

30 years old today:

27 June #otd in 1980 - 'Love Will Tear Us Apart' by Joy Division was released by Factory Records. The planned release took on extra significance following the death of Ian Curtis the previous month. Produced by Martin Hannett; sleeve design by Ben Kelly & Peter Saville. pic.twitter.com/bGH1rJDQ6a
— ManchesterHist (@McrHistory) June 27, 2021

― Heavy Messages (jed_), Sunday, 27 June 2021 13:34 (four years ago)

oh shit, 31.

― Heavy Messages (jed_), Sunday, 27 June 2021 13:35 (four years ago)

oh shit, oh shit 41.

― Heavy Messages (jed_), Sunday, 27 June 2021 13:36 (four years ago)

This sounds like me whenever someone asks me how old I am.

― epistantophus, Sunday, 27 June 2021 14:06 (four years ago)

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