New Order's Peter Hook opens FAC251 with an all-star gig

Peter Hook opened FAC251 last night (February 6) with his band The Light, and you can see fan footage of the show by scrolling down.

Showcasing New Order, Joy Division, Monaco and Freebass tracks, Hook was joined onstage by Primal Scream and former Stone Roses bassist Mani, Howard Marks, Gary Briggs, Rowetta and his son Jack for a 17-song set.

Opening with the first live airing of the Freebass songs 'Dark Starr' and 'You Don't Know', the newly refurbished former Factory Records office was crammed to the hilt, with seemingly all of Manchester coming out to sample a slice of its own musical history.

Overlooked by a portrait of the late Factory Records boss Tony Wilson, which hangs near the door, Hook's band The Light turned back the clock with a nod to some of the music that has helped put Manchester on the musical map.

Taking to the stage with a T-shirt with one of Tony Wilson's quotes on - "We made history, not money" - Hook controlled the stage with his trademark low-slung bass.

The supergroup played songs such as Monaco's 'What Do You Want From Me', New Order's 'Ceremony' and Joy Division's 'Transmission' and 'Interzone'.

Tickets for the show sold-out in less than 10 minutes.

"I was sat in the hotel room across the road before looking out of the window and it was mad," Hook told NME.COM "I was like 'Fucking hell, it's like 1988 and The Haçienda all over again'".

Closing with a storming rendition of Joy Division's 'Love Will Tear Us Apart', the group come back onstage for an encore of New Order's 1983 classic 'Blue Monday'.

The Light played:

'Dark Starr'
'You Don't Know...'
'Dreams Never End'
'Ceremony'
'Sister + Brother'
'Shine'
'What Do You Want From Me'
'Atmosphere'
'Insight'
'Shadowplay'
'Pictures'
'Interzone'
'Warsaw'
'Transmission'
'Sunrise'
'Love Will Tear Us Apart'
'Blue Monday'

Talking after the gig to NME.COM, Peter Hook gave his verdict on the show.

"It was brilliant and particularly great to get Freebass together and to do it with Howard [Marks] was really nice," Hook said "It showed the contrasting sides to Freebass, and that's what I'm most proud of tonight."

Also finding time to premiere the final Joy Division track 'Pictures', Hook gave his thoughts on playing the recently finished 1978 song.

"It went in an instant," he explained. "Because it's so punky, its on the cusp of Warsaw and Joy Division and it sort of showed that beautiful madness. Ian Curtis' lyrics gave it that depth, and the music just developed around his focus really and that's why I really liked it."

Now officially open as a club and live venue, The Whip will play FAC251 tonight (February 6), while White Lies and Twisted Wheel are among the bands set to grace the stage within the first month of it opening.

Fan footage of The Light's encore of 'Blue Monday' can be seen below: