TO lose a band member may be deemed unfortunate.
To lose one of pop music's most iconic instrumentalists could be considered tragic. But New Order fared well without their estranged bassist and co-founder, Peter Hook, in Glasgow.
Hooky's legs-akimbo posturing was missed, but stand-in Tom Chapman filled his infamous, pliant basslines admirably. And if New Order were down a founding member in Hook, then the return of original keyboardist Gillian Gilbert was welcome
New Order's career-spanning set echoed that of last year's Live at London Troxy CD, opening with an abridged version of their instrumental psalm Elegia (released in 1985 and dedicated to their former Joy Division bandmate, Ian Curtis); the chart-friendly, dance-rock of 2001's Crystal (one of their more recent hits, yet also one of their most dated); and the humdrum celebration of 1993's Regret.
The early sound was muggy, and Sumner seemed troubled by onstage feedback, but the band soon hit their stride for a night of electronic-rock game-changers. Temptation proved a thrilling highlight, while the cold ubiquity of Blue Monday rang out into the night. They saluted their cardinal post-punk lineage, too, with a confident, convincing encore of Joy Division's Transmission and Love Will Tear Us Apart.
Aside from some odd PA-style video backdrops (True Faith being a case in point), the visual display was routinely outstanding, and when New Order left the stage in a glare of brilliant, blinding white light, it spoke volumes, too.
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