Gang of Four's 'Entertainment!' vs. Joy Division's 'Unknown Pleasures'
 

Two titanic post-punk albums, both highly revered respectively. One focuses on politics while the other focuses on inner (industrial) turmoil...but which one do you prefer and why?

holy ****.

I'm going to have to pick Entertainment! because to me it's not only one of my favourite albums ever, I think it's one of the best post punk albums. I love every track


as for Unknown pleasures, lol well I always preferred New Order actually. if this was between Power, Corruption, and Lies I would have a much harder time picking

^almost exactly what she said....except I'd add that it by far my favorite political album

Gotta go with unknown pleasures. Shadowplay is probably a top 20 all time song for me. I like Gang of Four too but they're far from my favorite post punk band

By a very slim margin, Unknown Pleasures. I love the gloomy sound Martin Hannett was able to give them as producer, and Disorder is my all time favorite JD track.

I love Entertainment! too though.

If I wasn't already aware of A Certain Ratio I would have said Entertainment!, but honestly after I found them I didn't really bother to listen to much Gang of Four after.

So I guess Unknown Pleasures wins by default.

Entertainment - Pretty easy choice for me although they are both great. Just love the groove of the album, what a killer rhythm section. One of my favorite albums of all time. And they were one of the best live bands I have ever seen as well.

I like the more abrasive approach with the guitars on Entertainment!. Unknown Pleasures is a good album but I don't spin it as much as I used to, while I'm always up for some Entertainment!.

Bought both albums when they were released, listened to both of them often and still have them in my collection. Don't listen to either one much these days, but 'Entertainment!' always got more spins on my turntable so It gets my vote.

Never much cared for Joy Division. I generally always end up wanting to listen to something else before one song is through. Not awful, just don't care.

But Entertainment's twitchy guitars are just ear sex.

I've always found Joy Division so boring ass. It was hard for me to get through Unknown Pleasures without pressing the stop button. Entertainment! is miles better. Enjoyed that one all the way through.

I prefer Closer to Unknown Pleasures.

Another vote for Entertainment!

Unknown Pleasures is a far more important album than the GOF album. Closer is one of the best albums of all-time.

I like Unknown Pleasures a lot and enjoy the production on it more than Entertainment! but as an album I like Entertainment! more. It just has such great energy, and "Ether" is one of my favorite album openers ever.

Gang of Four! I love Ether.

I bet Ian Curtis is having a seizure in his grave over the results of this poll.

Oh man, I laughed...but is that out of taste? Part of me thinks that's out of taste.

Anyway, it really depends on the day. When I'm in the mood, not much beats Unknown Pleasures but more often than not I go for Entertainment!. It's just such an incredible record, from the lyrics, to the instrumentation, to the execution. I would say it's practically a flawless record. (to its credit though, so is UP) Another vote for GoF.

I wonder what would be winning had I thrown a Wire album (Pink Flag or Chair's Missing) into the mix?

I'd have voted Pink Flag if it were in the mix.

id still pick Entertainment, I'm not very fond of Wire. I even prefer 12XU done by Minor
Threat

i have to admit...i think that would be really hard for me...both Entertainment! and Pink Flag are albums i listen to often and in their entirety

but i honestly think Entertainment! might win

This

Entertainment! easily for me. I like Joy Division, but Entertainment! is a favorite of mine.


Now, if it would have come down to Pink Flag vs. Entertainment! this would have been a lot harder. Heck even Chairs Missing vs. Entertainment! would have been rough.

ok ok here we go

Unknown Pleasures > Pink Flag > Entertainment! >/= Closer > Chairs Missing

fucck id probably pick just listening to Shadowplay 10 times than the rest of the albums. i think thats is a joke but im not sure

Chairs Missing > Unknown Pleasures > Pink Flag > Closer > Entertainment! imo though, Chairs Missing at the bottom of those five albums is crazy to me

Entertainment! for sure.

I think Unknown Pleasures is good, but I don't quite understand why it has the reputation it does. That said, I'm not particularly familiar with the album as a whole yet; still could listen to it another time or two and see of I "get it".

Entertainment!, on the other hand, I've loved from the first time I heard it. It's rough and energetic, yet tight. One of the better albums out there.

maybe i should mention there is very little separating all of them (except UP). Any of them could easily be #2 at any given time

Man, I wanted to like Entertainment but honestly that is one of the most boring albums I've heard! Joy Division is awesome though.

Switch that around and I couldn't agree more. Jesus Christ, you sad sack butt fuck stains need to take a Prozac and listen to basically anything else.

So you're saying that the pleasures of Joy Division are unknown to you?

GoF is certainly light years better.

With every Trollheart joke you make I feel just a little more alone.

I genuinely wanted to put a TH copyright on it but I was lazy.

I can easily understand how a person could conclude Joy Division is the most important band ever.

Liking Joy Division is for people with a testosterone deficiency.

GoF is not sissy. They got the gnarly riffs and mad hard rhythms. Joy Division should come with a razor blade. Even if you're too pansy to commit suicide then at least the suggestion has been planted.

Nah they're pretty good, just overrated due to their influence. (Joy Division)

Plus, music for people pumped up on too much testosterone is probably, like, Limp Bizkit or something.

I'm not advocating an excess of testosterone, or else we'd all relate to Pantera on a fundamental level, just mocking wussbag indie twats who think being super sensitive is a product of being enlightened and not just a chemical imbalance.

Or maybe they just weren't fixing to be the next Slayer.

Honestly, I'm not a huge fan of Joy Division. I think I listened to a Peel session of theirs with Neapolitan in plug once, though, and it wasn't terrible. Good times.

You're ability to make a pinpoint crack at Joy Division shows how well you understand them. Sometimes I'll be at work or at a bar or I'm existing in a time and place where I'm with another heterosexual man and I'll comment about a beautiful woman we both know. These comments are without exception juvenile and sexually objectifying.

Me: I sure would love to get the chance to have sex with female X.

Another man: She's not my type. She complains too much. She's stupid. (Whatever reason)

Me: What the **** does that have to do with her pussy?

In the same way, that's how incomprehensible your lack of love for Joy Division strikes me. I could get it if you don't get it. Like in the above example I could get it if my male friend were gay. I can think, "OK. He's not programmed to worship 20-something vaginas." But you're not Joy Division adverse. You understand what they are but still you don't collapse in awe. Instead, you come up with an excuse for not loving what must be loved.

Not being enlightened is a symptom of being chemically balanced.

You're not balanced. Bow before the greatness. The vagina is god and you know it.

1. An Ideal for Living is pretty nice, so there.

2. I could give a **** about GoF's politics. They just come with the mad tunes and that's enough for me.

I rail against music subcultures as an identity. Listening to music that jibes with your sense of self and not listening to music that doesn't is whatever so long as you aren't dismissing music you actually like just because you don't like their mentality.

Yeah no I wouldn't give a **** if I didn't think Joy Division was boring in the first place. I'm actually kinda down with New Order, and "Blue Monday" is one of the fattest tracks ever, but Joy Division just leaves me in a stupor.

And so I find delight in mocking their fanbase.