Jo Richardson meets Peter Hook

Peter Hook & The Light play The Engine Shed tomorrrow (Thursday, November 27) as part of the current UK tour. 

The gig will see the band play the New Order album Get Ready in its entirety, followed by a set of Joy Division and New Order classics. 

When I interviewed him, Peter was still recovering from the dog-walking accident which led to surgery on his shoulder: “It was so painful, it was scary.” 

But he soon became upbeat when he talked about touring again. His enthusiasm for his back catalogue is infectious.

“When people come to gigs they want to revel, enjoy and relax. The power of music is greatly underrated.”

Born and bred in Manchester, Peter was keen to talk about his connection to our city. 

“Chapel Studios (in the Wolds) did figure quite heavily in our recording career. We did our Monaco albums there, so we actually spent a lot of time in Lincoln. They were big, very popular studios.”

He takes on the vocals in his shows, so it’s his son Jack, who supports him with the extra bass guitar. I asked him how they divided up the parts. “It can be a bit of a tussle, especially when we get to the older stuff. He loves the more rocky ones.” 

Now aged 69, Peter is currently writing another two books and is already talking about touring New Order’s final albums. 

“I’m showing no signs of being able to retire or actually feeling like I’d like to retire, so I picked the right job!” 

Plenty more to look forward to then.