New Order, Same Old Quality.
Given the respect and esteem that New Order are held in, they probably realised that the crowd was theirs for the taking regardless of what they played. However, they gave their audience what they wanted with a set spanning the ages.
Opener 'Regret' was let down by some vocals being lost in the mix but by the time recent single 'Krafty' followed, the problems appeared to be fixed and the band were starting to get warmed up.
Much has been written recently about Bernard Sumners dancing and overly keen yelps but it seems churlish to criticise, especially when no one mentions Peter Hook's continual wandering to both far edges of the stage or his personal style of bass playing. The two of them provide a good contrast and make an enjoyable spectacle for the crowd to enjoy.
The crowd was cheered by the guest appearance of Brandon Flowers to sing 'Crystal' although The Killers front man added little to the song. His continual insistence on dropping lines from Oasis' 'Morning Glory' was also a little disconcerting and he was no great loss when he soon left the stage.
Following this, the band delved back into their Joy Division days with 'Transmission' and 'Atmosphere' being aired. 'Transmission' came across well, as jaggy and sharp as the original while 'Atmosphere' was given extra importance by being dedicated to the people of London. The fact that New Order are still happy to honour the memory of Ian Curtis and ensure fans are reminded of his talent is touching and indicative of the sort of people they are.
That said, New Order have never been far from unforeseen disaster and during 'True Faith', their amps blew, cutting all sound. The crowd continued singing the chorus, which seemed to impress Bernard but true to character, Hooky was grumbling and dragging the band off to get the problem fixed.
After a short impasse, 'Bizarre Love Triangle', 'Love Will Tear Us Apart' and 'Temptation' all featured before the encore – all of which had the large crowd singing and dancing along, no doubt reminiscing of their earlier memories of the songs.
After a spirited encore, New Order left the stage and the fans were left to take stock. Upon reviewing them, it can be easy to let your opinion be swayed by what the band has meant over the years and of their status. However, unlike some acts currently peddling the revival tour at the moment, New Order have more than enough genuinely life changing songs for their audience to enjoy and it seems the band enjoy it as well. They may not be as powerful or as challenging as they used to be but it was a tremendous spectacle and for first time viewers, the set was still great enough to leave a warm glow after the sun had went down.