Welcome to "Nothing Not New," a yearlong project in which New Times editorial operations manager Jay Bennett, a 40-year-old music fan and musician, will listen only to music released in 2010. Each Monday through Friday, he will listen to one new record (no best ofs, reissues, or concert recordings) and write about it. Why? Because in the words of his editor, Martin Cizmar, he suffers from "aesthetic atrophy," a wasting away of one's ability to embrace new and different music as one ages. Read more about this all-too-common ailment here.
This new Editors record is one of the most unintentionally hilarious records I've heard in awhile. The singer of Editors doesn't just borrow stylistically from Ian Curtis, the dead singer from Joy Division, he sounds exactly like Curtis. In my opinion, Joy Division is one of a handful of truly original rock 'n' roll bands in the genre's history. Their influence on popular music in the 30 years or so since their demise and transformation into New Order cannot be overstated. So, in that respect, I'm not surprised a band like Editors exists and thrives a generation or two later. They're practically a J.D. tribute band, albeit performing their own compositions with a more instantly accessible, synthesizer-heavy sound.
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