NeW OrDeR - FiRsT GiG

Eureka moment - the first gig I went to with my mates, New Order at Preston Guild Hall 22nd of October 1985. The princely sum of £4!! :-D I still vividly remember the night, even after all these years and I kept the ticket, a bit of a habit!! 5 of us crammed into a friends car, a Peugeot 205 if I recall, the height of chic at the time! 30 minute drive to Preston, park up and then walk up to the Guild Hall. I was consumed by the whole atmosphere, people trying to flog tickets, t-shirts and tapes as you approached the entrance. The crowd consisted of a whole plethora of different types of people of all age groups, teens to middle aged. The play list from the gig was as follows;

Ceremony, The Perfect Kiss, Love Vigilantes, As It Is When It Was, State of the Nation, Broken Promise, Subculture, 586, Sunrise, Your silent Face

We went down to the front in the 'mosh' and as the gig started with Ceremony there was some crazy Ian Curtis dancing (the former lead singer of Joy Division now New Order after he had committed suicide, who used to have fits on stage which he disguised with his dancing, check Youtube) as the set progressed there was an increasing vibe that something was going to kick off in the audience, then all hell broke loose, about 20 lads dressed in combat gear and newly bare chested started to shout and give Nazi salutes. Blackburn Youth a right wing group had turned up in force. New Order were plagued with association with right wing groups due to their name. Joy Division-a group of German prostitutes during the war and New Order with it's German connotations. The audience scattered to leave a core of Blackburn Youth stood in the middle saluting and shouting abuse at the rest of the crowd. It wasn't long before the Preston lads started to wade into them and for about ten minutes a series of rucks occurred until it was all cleared. I of course had got well out of the way but watched fascinated by the spectacle before me. Once the trouble was sorted the gig continued. I still remember how it felt to feel the power of the speakers rushing through my chest as Subculture boomed out of them. I felt alive in a way I had never experienced before,(I felt so extraordinary as the song goes) like a new drug, I was happy here, I knew I wanted more of this, the buzz, the atmosphere, the thrill of live music pumping through my veins. The gig finished and excitedly we talked about what had happened, our favourite song etc...I got home tired, sweaty but couldn't wait until I got into my bedroom, and got my New Order and Joy Division records on the turntable. I barely slept that night....a Eureka moment!! I still love live music, comedy, theatre and dance, it is part of who I am...I best go and get the rest of my stuff together for Leeds Festival!!! I think I will ask people about their first gig experiences see what sort of response I get!! :-Dx