New Order.

Last night I went to see New Order at Roseland with Jenna. New Order are one of my favorite bands, but I’d only seen live them once before last night, and that was 7 years ago. Prior to their 2005 tour, the last time they played in NYC was in 1987, and, well, I wasn’t going to New Order concerts when I was 12, you know? So this show was a big deal. It’s really important for me to see the bands I care the most about live, preferably multiple times.

Much has been made of the fact that bassist extraordinaire Peter Hook (who effectively left New Order in 2006) was not along for this tour, and I will admit I felt a bit skeptical going in as to whether it would still feel like a New Order show. Let me assure you: It did. I’ve seen New Order with Hooky, Hooky without New Order (when he toured last year performing Joy Division’s Unknown Pleasures in its entirety), and now New Order without Hooky. As sad as it is that the JD/NO unit is no longer intact, Tom Chapman is doing an excellent job in Peter Hook’s absence. I can only imagine how overwhelming it must feel to fill in for such a legendary musician from an iconic band, so hats off to Tom!

Oh, and also: STEPHEN MORRIS. The man is a machine (sometimes literally). It’s too bad that you don’t really get to SEE drummers much at concerts unless they’re Phil Collins, because I’d have loved to be able to watch Morris play. I’m not one of those people who gets all worked up about stuff like awesome drummers (I tend to just absorb music as a whole, probably because I’m not a musician), either.

OK, I’m babbling now. This is why I shy away from writing reviews of anything, especially music.

To the point, the show was GREAT. And by great I mean it was truly excellent. Jenna and I both had a really good time. The setlist was pretty much perfect, the light show/projections were AMAZING, and Barney’s energy was totally contagious. I was bouncing and clapping and dancing and generally looking stupid but not caring—and that’s really what it’s all about. New Order make the kind of music that’s perfect in crowds, and not dancing really isn’t an option. One of the first things I said to Jenna when we walked out is that the show kind of made me feel like going out to clubs again. I don’t think I really mean that, but just in case, I’m keeping my eye on Thursday nights at the Pyramid Club.