Poi Dog Pondering Performing “Your Silent Face”

“A thought that never changes remains a stupid lie.”

(Play above while reading below)

The Chicago cult band Poi Dog Pondering is back in full force on their latest album Remnants of Summer (2018). And, importantly, one of the most powerful and majestic songs of rock is reincarnated. It was 1983 and the British band New Order was rising on the British charts. New Order was formed in 1980 by vocalist/guitarist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris after the demise of Joy Division. The demise of Joy Division was brought about by the suicide of their lead singer Ian Curtis right before the band’s North American tour. The tour would have brought Joy Division a huge new American audience and would likely have made them a “household” name in American music. However, with the death of Ian Curtis, the tour never happened.

New Order became famous for integrating post-punk, electronic and dance music making them one of the most influential bands of the 1980s. Yet, one wonders what would have happened if Ian Curtis had not killed himself and appeared with Joy Division on their Americdan tour? There has been speculation as to the meaning of the song written by Bernard Sumner a few years after the death of Curtis. Its mysterious lyrics (in part) are below. Some speculate that it’s about Sumner’s feeling of the world after the death of Curtis.