Brotherhood

1983年に発表した『POWER, CORRUPTION & LIES』でジョイ・ディヴィジョンの呪縛から完全に解き放たれ、自身の新たな美学を提示した彼らが、ジョイ・ディヴィジョンからニュー・オーダーへと続く音楽的な移行を完了させた作品が、1985年発表の前作『LOW-LIFE』だった。ニュー・オーダーとしての本質をサウンドで明確化した彼らが、よりその本質を際立たせるかのように、生のドラムとリズム・ボックスを併用し、エレクトロ・ポップスからエモーショナルなギター・ロックなど、ヴァラエティに富んだニュー・オーダー・サウンドを聴かせてくれる今作『BROTHERHOOD』は、ロックとダンスの両立を見事にシーンに提示したアルバムだと言える。

本作はスティーヴン・ウィルソンによるドルビー・アトモス、5.1サラウンド・サウンド、2024年ステレオ・ミックス、インストゥルメンタル、及び2024年ステレオ・リマスターの96kHz/24bit PCMステレオ音源を収録したブルーレイ・ディスクである。

New Order had been so good at integrating synth and guitars (often on the same song) that fans who greeted 1986's Brotherhood with the realization that it was split into a rock side and a dance side couldn't help but be a little disappointed. Still, the songs and the band's production had reached such a high level that the concept worked superbly, without calling undue attention to itself. The rock side comes first, revealing more of the emotional side of Bernard Sumner's singing and songwriting, even leading off with acoustic guitar for one song. But Brotherhood was also a little harder than what had come before; Sumner often sang with a come-on sort of brio, matching Peter Hook's seething work on the bass. The songwriting was excellent, and the album was delivered with great pacing, especially on the first four tracks -- sensuous and roiling for "Paradise," bright and emphatic on "Weirdo," reflective for "As It Is When It Was," then back to direct and upbeat on "Broken Promise." The synthesizer side was similarly assured, beginning with one of their brightest singles (and biggest transatlantic hits), "Bizarre Love Triangle." There was no dark side to Brotherhood, as there was with Low-life; after "Bizarre Love Triangle" came only the Middle Eastern fusion of "Angel Dust" and the simple, pastoral synth pop of "All Day Long" and "Every Little Counts." For better and worse, this was a New Order with nothing more to prove -- witness the tossed-off lyrics and giggles on "Every Little Counts" -- aside from continuing to make great music. ~ John Bush