As the crowds spill out of Manchester Apollo on a cold, dreary, Friday night in Ardwick people look stunned. "I know I say it a lot but I genuinely think that's the best gig I've ever seen," a bloke says to his mate who nods in agreement and replies: "Absolutely blown away".
Naturally, the music of Joy Division is always going to resonate here on home turf, but the thousands of "wow" comments on the way out showed the strength of approval. This was serious goosebumps time as the Manchester Camerata reworked the music of the Manchester music trailblazers alongside founding band member Peter Hook and some standout guests vocalists with this "Joy Division Orchestrated" show.
This show debuted at London's Albert Hall in 2019 before heading off to Sydney Opera House - then the pandemic brought things to a halt. But the intention was always for it to return here to Manchester where perhaps, to the fans here, it matters more than most.
