June 9, 2002. Finsbury Park, London. And it’s a beautiful day for an outdoor festival - well, except perhaps for the rain and resultant mud. Still, when you’re out to experience possibly the greatest band the world has ever had the good fortune to see such things are of little consequence, as is evidenced by the writhing throng that greets three quarters of the original line-up as they saunter on stage (Gillian has been busy parenting whilst young Stephen plays with the lads) under what looks very much like a hunk of the Sydney Opera House that the Barmy Army may have pilfered while they were out here for the cricket.

It seems that something strange happened to New Order whilst on their rather long sabbatical between the somewhat crap Republic album and their comeback as such with the return to form Get Ready in 2001. Basically, they got happy. Previously renowned for their dour on-stage presence, their lack of banter, their lack of encores even, not to mention a pervasive air of difficulty which even worked its way down to their song titles, which bore no resemblance to anything even hinted at in the lyrics, if it weren’t for that utterly magical, beautiful sound and the simply glorious songs they emit you’d swear this was another band altogether. We get Barney whooping and hollering at the most inopportune moments and cheekily chattering away between seemingly practicing for a future flogging aerobics videos, Hooky smiling whilst continually managing to push the boundaries of the classic challenge “how low can you go?� with legs akimbo and bass scraping the stage and, well, the human drum machine and apparent egg man Stephen Morris still doing his thing with nary a whimper up the back. With Gillian absent, one Phil Cunningham ably fills in on guitar and keyboards, and seems to fit in well with the lads – after all, by this time he’d toured the world with them. There’s also some lovely dulcet tones added to the mix from backup singer Dawn Zee when appropriate (eg Crystal, Brutal etc.)

While several songs also featured on the previous local DVD release, 3 16, there’s quite a different dynamic on display here, not to mention a couple of real treats for fans. Favourite of many True Faith gets the remix treatment, with a touch of Italo-house creeping into proceedings and the aforementioned Brutal, easily the best thing from the Leo-starring flick The Beach, gets only its second live airing ever. If you’re a fan from the way back days of Joy Division you may also get the odd thrill or fifty from She’s Lost Control and the first run through of Digital since they changed their name after THAT tragic event...

With treats like these – plus the majestic Your Silent Face and a moving tribute to, in this instance, Dee Dee Ramone with Ceremony, fans will lap this up, and rubbing shoulders as they are with those tracks everybody knows - Blue Monday, Temptation, Bacon Lettuce Tomato etc. – there’s certain to be plenty here for anybody with even an ounce of musical taste.

Track listing:

Considering its very young age, you’d expect a visual treat to be waiting here – and it doesn’t disappoint. Caught via eight cameras and delivered via a fabulous 1.78:1, 16:9 enhanced transfer, the vision from 5 11 is razor sharp – or Crystal clear if you will. It is this remarkable detail which causes the only bugbears, however, as the usual culprits for aliasing in musical presentations do their thang quite regularly, with guitar strings, microphones and assorted other metallic bits and pieces often exhibiting a touch of shimmer, much more so when a split screen effect is deployed. Still, you can’t have it all, and it doesn’t really detract much from proceedings which otherwise deliver wonderful colour, plus decent enough shadow detail when appropriate. The layer change is a bit of a shocker though, for as much as it’s quite a challenge finding somewhere to put them in a break-free presentation such as this, plopping it in-between some Barney banter wasn’t necessarily the wisest placement choice.

But enough of that and on to the sound... Three mixes are on offer, starting with DTS 5.1 and Dolby Digital 5.1. For a change there’s little volume difference between the two, in fact if anything the DD mix is a tad louder, which gives more of an opportunity to easily keep an ear out for differences. What a shame there’s basically nothing to tell them apart then! Both make wonderful use of the subwoofwoof to give that thrilling kick drum oomph to things, whilst the surrounds are used for a little natural sounding musical spillage and arc up when the mud-splattered crowd goes spare between songs. If you’re after a wonderful mix which, in perfect New Order style, is neither too polished nor to raw, you’ll be in heaven here. Speaking of things raw, the Linear PCM mix is substantially different (and not just because it eschews the use of four out of six speakers, smartypants) – delivering a slightly rougher, yet still quite magnificent version of the sonic proceedings. All is synched superbly and is an absolute treat, no matter which mix you plump for.

Sadly the extras department lets things down a bit, with only a brief (3:12) featurette entitled Earlier in the Day, which as many may surmise offers a fleeting look at sound check, punters arriving, rain and the band coming on stage, all in usually quite grainy black and white, but widescreen enhanced for those to whom it matters. The other bonus is at least a bit more substantial. Another 1.78:1 featurette complete with subtitles, this one’s called New Order 9802, and delivers 13:48 of brief interviews with fans about their first times (seeing the band), a bit of Barney interview on subjects ranging from Bowie to old songs versus the new to Ian Curtis, a couple of shots of the lovely Gillian, and a number of tantalising snippets of live stuff from various shows throughout the UK since 1998. Songs featured include Turn My Way, Confusion, Ceremony and Heart and Soul, plus an almost complete version of the other side of the Ceremony single in the quite haunting In a Lonely Place. More please! Oh, the menus are also quite nice and Peter Saville-ish, complete with an instrumental of the Get Ready track Vicious Streak as accompaniment and there’s a pretty pointless four page booklet of blurry photos included to get smudgy paw prints all over.

A brilliantly presented DVD, 5 11, so named as there are five Joy Division songs and 11 New Order ones, delivers a perfect kiss of music with everything that's vital in such things – superb capture of the live experience, beats, hooks, more gorgeous melodies than a roomful of Paul McCartneys could ever muster and an innate passion which can pinball you through a range of emotions ranging from tears to sheer joy. As the world drowns in a morass of insipid, lifeless, assembly line chart pap we need a group as special as New Order, a band who does things however the hell they want to, now more than ever. Here’s hoping they never pack it in, after all, that’s what mere normal bands do...

Oh, and "Woo!", "Yeah!", "Ha!", "Come on!", "Yo!" and "Hey!" to boot!