Joy Division: Learn the Myth, See the Mythbuster

Peter Hook, bass player for Joy Division and New Order, will speaking at Porter Square Books on Friday, February 8 to discuss his new book Unknown Pleasures: Inside Joy Division. A halo of myth surrounds Joy Division frontman Ian Curtis, who sang of gloom and despair on the bands' two iconic album then hanged himself at 23 on the eve of their first American tour. Hook brings not only his first-hand knowledge of life in Joy Division but also the perspective he's gained in the three decades since the band's demise. In an interview on Salon promoting the book, Hook discusses how his has sliced through the Curtis mythology:

Peter Hook: Ian Curtis wasn’t curled up in a ball, head in his hands

We don't have Hook's memoir yet, but an understanding of the legend helps to fully appreciate his point of view. To comprehend it, check out:

The two Joy Division studio albums:

• Unknown Pleasures (Annex CD (Box 57))
• Closer (CD 10095)

The feature film about the band and their Manchester scene:

• 24 Hour Party People (DVD 1203)

Documentaries about Joy Divison:

• Joy Division: The True Story of the Meteoric Rise and Fall of One of the Most Influential Bands of Our Time (DVD 3354)
• Joy Division: Under Review (DVD 4359)

Books about the band and their work:

• Torn apart: The life of Ian Curtis by Mick Middles & Lindsay Reade (ML420.C92 M53 2009)
• Unknown Pleasures by Chris Ott (ML421.J696 O88 2004)

Peter Hook appears at Porter Square Books, Porter Square Shopping Center, 25 White Street
Cambridge, MA, 02140, 617-491-2200, at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, February 8, 2013.