A founding member of Joy Division and New Order, Peter Hook more recently produced Stone Roses. It seemed all the more fitting that tonight’s gig was dedicated to Stone Roses’ Mani – Gary Mounfield – who died only nine days earlier.
The set began with New Order’s Get Ready album, now twenty-four years old. Hook tells us he’s enjoyed playing it more than recording it, then reminding himself, and us, that real life is not a honeymoon. There’s depth in that statement that we don’t excavate tonight, but Brutal is played next, then Here to Stay, and it is at this point the crowd moved on, literally, from simply nodding appreciation to energetic all–limbs dancing it.
What follows cements that 1980s aura, and, whilst they may not realise it, the absence of phones in the space during a Means to an End somehow marked a kind of respect for those past days.
Hook defies the passing of years, though, with this performance. It removes any doubt that a 70 year old could possibly take Get Ready touring worldwide, planned for 2026. He’s ready.
Leeds 02 Academy’s own warmest of welcomes will no doubt be matched wherever The Light plays –timeless, ageless, matchless.
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Photography by Grace Butterfield.
