The priest didn’t hesitate to flatter his king in his writing, describing his charge into battle with gleaming shield and lance as “a sight both delightful and terrible to see.” But, despite his biases, William of Poitiers worked hard to get his facts right. Later, he provided a well-known account of the king’s life and the conquest. When William the Conqueror invaded England in 1066, William of Poitiers was his chaplain.
Trained as a knight in his youth, William went on to become a priest and scholar. One of the earliest and most significant victories for knights in the Middle Ages was the Norman conquest of England, and a lot of what we know about that fight comes from William of Poitiers (c. It’s a brief EP at 5 songs personally, I’d add the “Ceremony”/”In A Lonely Place” single and outtake “Cries and Whispers” and arrive at an interesting album bridging the gap from Movement to 1983’s Power, Corruption and Lies (basically the second disc from the 2008 Movement reissue).New episodes of Knight Fight premiere Wednesdays at 10/9c. “Hurt” is percussive in a similar manner as “Green,” almost like a different take on the same song while “Mesh” could be a Movement outtake, with that moody post-Joy Division darkness that pervaded the album. “Procession” is great, bathed in an interesting wash of synths and guitars, a bit more rocking than Movement but still a little spooky.
While “Temptation” signaled the dance-oriented pop that would dominate New Order’s future singles, the balance of the EP was a little more somber and intense. “Everything’s Gone Green” was similar in sound, perhaps a bit more atmospheric and lacking the killer hooks of “Temptation,” but still rocking a compelling beat and synth sound. There are several other versions of the song included on various compilations, but I’m particularly partial to the original 12″ version included on the EP, though I can’t say whether this is for sentimental reasons or just because it’s better. It became something of a Friday night ritual to have a dorm room pre-party, blasting “Temptation” before heading out for the night, screaming “Oh you’ve got green eyes, oh you’ve got blue eyes, oh you’ve got grey eyes… and I’ve never seen anyone quite like you before” at the top of our lungs on the way to whatever party beckoned. So it was quite a revelation when I got to college in the fall of ’84 and my buddy Chris pulled out “Temptation.” Here was dance music that sounded more punk than disco, insanely catchy and with a slight edge. But then came Chicago’s disco demolition, and anything with a dance beat was forever banished. Sure, we all learned to line dance to the Bee Gees, rolling out our finest disco moves at each weekend’s Bar or Bat Mitzvah party. Growing up in Chicago in the 70s and early 80s, I had to come to view anything disco-like as pure evil. Lame.) And somehow this release (and the 2008 Movement edition) is not streaming on Spotify you can find a few tracks in their EP versions (which I collected on the playlist below), but “Mesh” can be found only in its inferior demo version, and “Hurt” doesn’t stream at all. (For some inexplicable reason, last year’s latest re-re-issue of Movement included selected demos as bonus tracks but omitted the 1981-1982 EP songs. It’s relatively obsolete at this point the songs were later included on the 2008 deluxe-edition of New Order’s 1981 full-length debut Movement.
Related: “Stormzy: Turning British Dance Music On Its Ear” This 5-song EP was my introduction to New Order (and ultimately Joy Division, which I eased into only after being drawn in by New Order’s more approachable sound), and will always have a fond place in my heart.
Check out his site, and look for his book, Jittery White Guy Music. CultureSonar is excited to share Marc’s posts with our equally-passionate readers. Editor’s Note: Marc Fagel is a passionate student of the albums that just didn’t get enough love, those that never (or barely) made it onto the charts.