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Buzzcocks / Joy Division
Autumn Tour 1979 Gig Schedule
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"We were
regulars at Hemel Pavilion for all the punk shows back in the
late 1970s, not being able to afford the higher ticket prices
and train/tube fare up to London while in the 6th Form at
school. We went over from Harpenden and were searched for
fireworks going in to the Pavilion as it was the night of
November 5th. Neither band were selling T shirts or badges at
this show, which was unusual, so we saved our money. I sat
upstairs for the Buzzcocks, as you were always guaranteed a
fight on the floor at a Hemel show during the main band, and
we'd got tired of the show being disrupted and getting
clobbered by a stray boot or fist while trying to see the
band. This was normal at most gigs back then, or random
violence at some point on the journey to/from a show, so we
just took it in our stride. We thought it was a great chance
to see 2 Manchester bands together that John Peel always gave
a lot of support to, especially as Joy Division were really
creating a buzz at that time.
We watched Joy Division from the floor, close to the stage with a handful of others while the 'cool punks' stayed drinking lager at the bar, ignoring them. Tim knew their music better than me, and thought he was the only person in town that liked them. He thought they were more hard and louder than the records. I thought they were okay but the songs all sounded the same, and a bit over-hyped by the NME but they had potential. The only song I recognised was "Digital". They just came on and played the songs, and didn't say anything to the audience. I wasn't really converted to being a fan of their music by any of this, but needed a lot more listens to their music to really get what the fuss was about. Buzzcocks were tremendous, and into their 3rd album by now, so the show was well organized and they were on top of their game. I'd seen them on the Love Bites tour here, and this set was just as good. The crowd quickly filled up the floor and leapt around madly to all their songs. NME had described them as cold and mechanical on an earlier tour date, but that would have applied better to Joy Division's set at this point in time. Pete Shelley chatted to the audience as he always did, and their set list was I Don't Mind, Moving Away From the Pulsebeat, Ever Fallen In Love, Sixteen, You Say You Don't Love Me, Mad Mad Judy, I Don't Know What To Do With My Life (interrupted by a fight in the crowd for ten minutes, then resumed), Hollow Inside, I Believe, Noise Annoys, What Do I Get? and Boredom as the encore. Some naughty chap let off an air bomb firework outside the main exit doors as we left, which made for an interesting ending and was VERY LOUD. On the drive home, Tim and I agreed we were both a bit unsettled by Ian Curtis' dancing and manic appearance on stage, feeling like they were taking advantage of his odd illness-related behaviour to make the band stand out instead of getting him help. How little did we know then......" Simon Neil October
2024
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