This pandemic has changed things. The world we left is not the one we will return to. Even as vaccination rolls out and tours and festivals start booking. A giant void was left in the fabric of our reality and club Dj’s headed to places like Twitch to fill that void. It wasn’t enough to spin Spotify or Mixcloud playlists. People hunger for an interaction. To have a story told. A “Radio show with a strong visual component” Hate Mior. The people who have embraced this new medium have broken a never before done artform which is creating a modern day electronic salon for music fans from around the world to congregate and discuss culture and music in real time. I will start by reviewing a very special 5 hour show by Toronto Street artists/Clothing creator/and DJ Hate Mior and their show to commemorate the life and death of icon Ian Curtis (Joy Division).
https://www.twitch.tv/hatemior
https://www.twitch.tv/hatemior/clip/KindTrustworthySalmonPipeHype-1hbfCfSy4qdUdKo3
https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1042696401
This piece is a journey, a story of one of the most known and tragic figures of our genre. Ian’s words and unique musical style were taken too soon but left a rippling effect which burned hard in the imagination and inspiration of generations to come. It opens with the fitting David Bowie classic “Rock and Roll Suicide“. Hate then appears on the screen with the flat lined supernova readout that is homage to the Joy Division “Unknown Pleasures” album. One of the most recognizable images in T Shirt history. Their face is emotive and playful. Stark in Black and White. Projecting the range of an experienced theater performer. Then The Sex Pistols No Fun rings out. It’s hard to separate The Pistols from Joy Division. Legend has it the band was formed at one of their early shows.
At the 25 minute mark Hate lays out what the concept of the show is and why it is important. Also the role the visuals play in the story. Because this isn’t a radio program. It’s a multi media experience. They site reference material like “Touching from a Distance” by Ian’s widow Debra Curtis and the film Control. I love how the story starts at the true beginning. The number one hit in England during Ian’s birth “Why Do Fools Fall in Love“. The narritive progresses to Ian’s early family influence and what it was like growing up in a factory town like Manchester. Matching up the video to the film “Jason and the Argonaughts” which was sited as playing a dramatic role in his development. I love this attention to history. It is clear early on this isn’t just a setlist. It’s a biography set to music.
Ian Curtis is best known for the power of his lyrics. It was truly transformative poetry of the depths of the human condition. Here Hate calls out specific lyrics and the impact his early loves played on those later verses. A story then goes into Ian’s love of mime and performance. How this connected to David Bowie. Then the most important part, how it connected back to Hate’s own life and experience in performance. Because the new roll of the streaming Dj is also as a performer who makes a personal connection with the audience. The Dj is no longer the the one who chooses the music, but a part of the story themselves. This brings Kate into their idea of Ian and Debora’s personal mixtape. I think the other aspect worth noting is Kate does not hit play and put their headphones on. They take this journey with you. In movement and facial expression.
“Kate has an unhealthy knowledge of this band. The setlists were weird until I realized where the show was going.” It felt like going through a museum with the best tour guide on their roster. The stories, background, and history allowed you to see the paintings for yourself. Just gave all the best behind the scenes insight to make everyone who watched feel like an expert.
Setlist: PROLOGUE: David Bowie – Rock n’ Roll Suicide John Peel Announcement
: The Death of Ian Curtis Sex Pistols – No Fun Sex Pistols – Pretty Vacant PART 1: Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers – Why Do Fools Fall in Love David Bowie – Sound and Vision The Doors – Light My Fire Neu! – Wave Mother The Velvet Underground – Candy Says Nektar- It’s All in the Mind Mott the Hoople – All the Young Dudes Roxy Music – More than This WARSAW YEARS Warsaw- No Love Lost (early recording) Warsaw – Warsaw Warsaw – The Drawback Warsaw – They Walked in Line Warsaw – Tension Warsaw – Lost Iggy Pop – The Passenger Buzzcocks – Lipstick The Fall – Firey Jack The Drones – Persecution Complex X-Ray Spex – Oh Bondage! Up Yours Delta 5 – Mind Your Own Business Gang of Four – To Hell with Poverty Martin Hannet & Joy Division – Noise Drums Sine Warmup N.F Porter – Keep On Keeping On Joy Division – Interzone Frank Sinatra – My Way
In between the sets you hear the famous Henry Rollins rant, along with a Bill Burr quote. I love the full picture here of adding other voices to how Joy Division effected them. Shout out for the Bootblacks spin who I think has a direct line the flavor and magic Joy Division captured. From here the set veers sharply into a tribute to Joy Division the way it was meant to be heard. 1st pressing vinyl, obscure cuts, and a Martin Hannett homage. Kate calls out the people who support them, which is such an important part of the modern stream. People have a longing to be connected to what they are seeing. The best streaming shows understand this and make the experience interactive.
PART 2 – THE RISE AND FALL OF JOY DIVISION Joy Division – Shadowplay (First television appearance) Kraftwerk -The Man Machine Joy Divison – Day of the Lords Joy Division – Twenty Four Hours Joy Division – Insight Martin Hannett & Joy Division – More N4 Drum Programming Joy Division – Transmission (Arrow Studio 1978) Jou Divison – Transmission (12″ original vinyl) Joy Division – Incubation Joy Division – Dead Souls (live at Les Bains Douche) Joy Divisio – Isolation Joy Division – She’s Lost Control (original first UK press vinyl) The Captain and Tenille – Love Will Keep Us Together Joy Division – Love Will Tear Us Apart Section 25 – Girls Don’t Count Section 25 – Colour Movement Sex & Violence Parts of Ian Curtis’s recorded past life regression therapy (originally recorded by Bernard Sumner) FINAL CURTAIN A Certain Ratio – All Night Party Joy Division – Ceremony (Live at Birmingham University) Joy Division – Disorder Joy Division – Decades Joy Division – Digital Joy Division – The Eternal Iggy Pop – Nightclubbing Iggy Pop – Mass Production Martin Hannett & Joy Division – Atmosphere Buildup MUSIC VIDEO: Atmosphere David Bowie – Warsazawa
The game has changed and Djs haven’t just had to adapt. They have had to create a new medium of art and experience. This was a history lesson, a street performance, and a psychology paper rolled into musical format. If this is the future of streaming shows that the pandemic has made for us. If this is the way the world connects online to become a little closer, a little smaller. I say the future looks bright and is starting to heal the pieces of what this isolation has made. Where will it end?
I’ll work on more stream reviews soon, who are some of the ones you love? Comment below