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“Atmosphere” – Joy Division
(Words/music: Bernard Albrecht/Ian Curtis/Peter Hook/Stephen Morris/Bernard Sumner, available on Substance, Qwest 1988 / Factory Records single 1980)

If Ian Curtis’ suicide dominates Joy Division’s general reputation, most of their catalog does little to refute the gloomy associations.  Whether it’s dark overtones in the lyrics or the general tautness of their sound, most would find bleakness in their music before finding beauty.  Even their most famous song frames love as a destructive force.  As with any generalized reputation, Joy Division’s reduced biography paints the band as completely one-dimensional.  Songs like “Atmosphere” show the band putting a twist on their sound, foreshadowing the more nuanced emotions New Order put into their records.

“Atmosphere” frames the iciness of Joy Division’s sound in a different context.  It still sounds cold and barren, but it feels like the peaceful quiet of a chilly pre-dawn morning.  The humming synthesizer and huge drum sound feels like a busy street before everyone wakes up.  It’s this setting where Curtis and his second party find a sort of public privacy while the rest of the world sleeps.  Whether Curtis, who sings in a deep and rich tone, intends his plea as a final desperate act or just as a reaction to a disagreement, his request for this person to remain and talk rings through the emptiness.  Where emptiness in other Joy Division songs might signify isolation or loneliness, this emptiness creates a sense of intimacy only available in these very early (or very late) moments.  As the hum of the rest of the world builds, Curtis feels increasingly sincere and urgent.  In a scene with few other signs of life, we’re given a glimpse into the kind of private moments we never know about.  Out of this emptiness comes a sense of warmth, largely from the same ringing arpeggios and “Be My Baby” beat that “Just Like Honey” would use a few years later.  Just as the song reaches its climax – the moment where the rest of the world wakes up – “Atmosphere” fades out.  Even without resolution, it’s a rare glimpse into a side of the band that rarely gets mentioned.

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