by xtc-1957 » Wed May 18, 2005 6:08 am
25 Years Ago Today...........
...On Sunday, May 18th, 1980
JOY DIVISION'S lead singer Ian Curtis is found dead, the victim of his own suicidal depression. His wife had left him on Saturday afternoon, taking their baby with her. The NME says he then..."visited his old house in Macclesfield to watch the televised film "Stroszek" by his favorite director, Herzog."
It was in the early hours of Sunday Morning, he killed himself by hanging. The band were supposed to leave for America in 4 days, to play a 3-week tour. This was to be their first American tour. He was twenty-three. It's unclear whether the other three will continue. They have a full album and 2 singles ready for release. It seems weird that the sleeve design for the LP is a gothic marble statue of a dead Jesus sprawled across a coffin lid, although the photo was finished long before Ian was. The NME says that part of the note left with the body read, "at this very moment I just wish I were dead. I just can't cope anymore." Speculation is that Ian was depressed over the disintegration of his marriage as well as his increasingly acute epilepsy.
"Sounds" writer David McCullough remebers that, "Ian Curtis was the stuff of enchanted immutable mystery. When I met him he talked in a whisper & he talked hypnotically and enchantingly about toy shops. He spun words magically, that I do remember, that was his gift. He poured pure silver across totally memorable phrases & related scenarios, and he managed it in songs too." We're reminded that the group decided long ago that if ever a member were too leave they would no longer be Joy Division. They would have to change their nqme. If they continue, it won't be as Joy Division, but something new.