Bernard Sumner

New Order frontman Bernard Sumner has strongly criticised the state of funding for mental health services in Britain, branding the neglect as “disgusting” and urging that it be addressed quickly.

With the band gearing up to promote a new Sky Arts documentary film about the band’s 40 years of work as both New Order and Joy Division, titled Decades and which airs later this week, Sumner reflected on the fate of Joy Division’s late singer, Ian Curtis, and spoke about what provisions there currently are in the UK for people with both mental health issues and epilepsy – from which Curtis struggled before his suicide in 1980.

“I'm not just talking about epilepsy but mental health issues for young people especially school kids it's criminally underfunded,” he told Sky News. “When the coalition government, after the banking crisis in 2008, formed they underfunded the NHS and they completely underfunded help for young people with mental issues.”

Continue reading: New Order's Bernard Sumner Rails Against Mental Health Services Underfunding

Indie legends New Order have confirmed more details of their new album, their first in ten years, including its title and release date. Music Complete will be out on September 25th this year, available on Mute Records.

As well as being their first album of brand new material since 2005’s Waiting For The Sirens’ Call (2013’s Lost Sirens was an LP of offcuts from the same sessions), it is their first since the acrimonious departure of Peter Hook in 2007.

A teaser for Music Complete can be seen below, the clip of which contains the album’s artwork which has been supplied by Peter Saville, the original graphic designer for the band and their original record label Factory.

Continue reading: New Order Confirm Release Details Of First Album In Ten Years

They’re the band that simply refused to die. Surviving inter-band disputes and departures, the death of singer Ian Curtis and any amount of hiatuses, British post-punk survivors New Order have announced plans for their first album in ten years.

The news follows in the wake of a sold-out tour last summer, and lead singer Bernard Sumner told Rolling Stone: “The shows were being well-received and we were enjoying it. It seemed like the logical thing to do.” Two songs have already been completed, ‘Plastic’ and ‘Restless’, which were debuted during that tour.

New Order's lead singer Bernard Sumner spoke to Rolling Stone magazine

Continue reading: New Order Announces First Album In Ten Years