Record / CD / Tape
Joy Division
1980

Quick upload 31/ 12/ ’10 Anno Domini... ....1980 me and a mate did the Interail thing round Europe. First up we were gonna head up to Scandinavia to the Arctic Circle to see if we could have a gander at the Aurora Borealis .Anyway it turns out that if you go up to the Arctic Circle in summer you get eaten alive by mosquitoes so still waiting to see The Northern Lights. Instead we did the clockwise trip, down to Greece, across to Italy and back through France which is pretty par for the course. Aaaanyway , just like when “Transmission” came out and I was down Discount Records like a nuisance for weeks asking “is it in yet...” a la Bart Simpson “are we there yet ...” sort of a thing; same story with “Atmosphere”. Well it turned out to be a no go / no show. I think only 2 copies showed up and that was that.(They had loads of the “Komakino” flexi at Discount and they were handed out willy nilly). So on the way back through France we did a detour to Rouen, partly as somewhere off the beaten track to aim for and partly ‘cos I knew that Sordide Sentimetal Records was based there. This was obviously eons before Google/ internet so how I knew I’m not exactly sure. Well we found the record shop where it was based and then found a Monsieur Jean Pierre Turmel, who owned the label and did the artwork etc. He was a smallish chap of the be-spectacled hippy persuasion but friendly enough and didn’t laugh at my tres mal Franglais. When I told him of my crusade he was very empathetic and told me he thought he might still have a copy and if it turned up he’d let me know. So I gave him my address and he gave me the whole artwork sleeve but without the record in, but I was well enough chuffed with that. Well after a good ol’ chinwag we bid dosvedanya amigo and set about enjoying Rouen and what it had to offer. Did a lot of record shopping on that trip through Europe, New Rose in Paris being a particular highlight; good job I only had a couple of T-shirts to carry 'cos me bag weighed a ton when I got back!
Well I really didn’t really expect to hear anymore and thought no more about it. I mean anyone in Rouen who worked in a record shop would snap up something like that, and if they didn’t surely their Grandad, grandma, local lollipop lady etc. would. Then a few weeks later Mr. J.P. sent me a letter ( wonder what happened to that...?), explaining that he had indeed located a copy and if I was to send him a postal order for 5 quid, or whatever it was for P. & P. He would pop it in the mail. So that’s what I did and just like back in the olden days when you’d post your old Black and White film off for developing, every morning with a certain amount of anticipation and excitement I’d check to see if the post had arrived; it was like being a kiddie waiting for Chrimbo all over again.(Jeez it seems a long time since music got me that excited....still have me moments though...).Well this went on for 3 weeks or more and I kinda thought that’s it, end of.... But then one bright sunny morning (it might have been cold and rainy but I was oblivious...), there it was , left on the doorstep as the postman had had the gumption not to shove it through the letterbox and that’s me “Atmosphere” story; the moral being that yes, sometimes it’s o.k. to trust a hippy. I gave the other artwork to me mate who for all I know may have turned it into roach material.
Of course, like all my records I played it to death and is no doubt worse for wear; but I like a bit of snap, crackle and pop on me choons ‘cos it’s rock ‘n roll and that’s what they’re for. This one No. 162 of 1578 issued, and like anyone hearing this or “Dead Souls” on the B-side, on Peel for the first time, it truly was astounding. Just hearing it through headphones with that production sending tingles down your spine took it to another level and raised the banner for them and many other bands I think. No doubt it still holds up today. Yeah, a beautiful piece of music.....