Tear Down The Flagship - Start Something

Tuesday, June 30, 2009

The Wombats - Lets Dance To Joy Division

The Wombats are an indie band from Liverpool, UK. They comprise two native Liverpudlians; Matthew Murphy, provider of vocals, guitar and keyboards, drummer/vocalist Dan Haggis and bass player/vocalist Tord Ă˜verland-Knudsen.

The three band members met in 2003 at the Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts, soon becoming friends and starting to jam together. In 2006, the band released their debut album "Girls, Boys, and Marsupials".

Their last single "Let's Dance to Joy Division" was released in October 2007, to coincide with the release of their debut album, entitled The Wombats Proudly Present: A Guide to Love, Loss & Desperation which reached #11 in the UK Albums Chart. The release was being followed by a European tour ending with a thanksgiving party at Liverpool Academy.


Joy Division were an English rock band formed in 1976 in Salford, Greater Manchester. Originally named Warsaw, the band primarily consisted of Ian Curtis, Bernard Sumner, Peter Hook and Stephen Morris. Joy Division rapidly evolved from their initial punk rock influences, to develop a sound and style that pioneered the post-punk movement of the late 1970s.

Despite the success of the band Ian Curtis ill health plagued the band as a lack of sleep and long hours destabilised Curtis's epilepsy and seizures became almost uncontrollable he slipped in to depression and commited suicide at the eve of the bands American Tour 1980.

The song 'Lets Dance To Joy Division' is about having fun and being happy even though everythings is wrong and going wrong. The title is almost a metaphor since their dancing to a band who's lyrics are dark and solemn. Let's dance to Joy Division, And celebrate the irony, Everything is going wrong, But were so happy.

The Treatment

The video for the song would start with a break up between a girl and a boy both aged 20 and follow the girl walking out and down the street. There are shots of sadness and even tears. As she walks past the venue where The Wombats are playing she looks up and decides to go in and take a look as it's a free show. As she walks in she is stunned by all the colourful lights and immediately starts to cheer up. As the chorus is about to start some people from the crowd get her to join in and dance with them. What proceeds is cross-cutting between the band members and her having a great time and really feeling the message of the song. As she makes her way to the front of the crowd the lead singer picks her out and gets her up on stage and she starts dancing with the band members and having the time of her life. From the moment she walks in to the gig venue the camera is cross-cutting between her and the band. Everyone is wearing really extravagant, colourful clothing which are really brought out by the extensive lighting. The song finishes with her up on stage - completely forgotten about her break up as if it didn't matter, and the music has had this effect on her.

No comments:

Post a Comment