# Joy Division — Every Record We Rank

Joy Division appears 3 times in our Post-Punk, The Eighties, and The Waxonia Desk — The Hundred lists, placing as high as No. 1. Hand-curated, with a reason for every pick.

- **Ranked entries:** 3
- **Appears on:** Post-Punk, The Eighties, and The Waxonia Desk — The Hundred
- **Year:** 1980
- **Highest placing:** No. 1 in Post-Punk
- **Updated:** 2026-08-29
- **Canonical page:** https://waxonia.com/artist/joy-division/

## Appears on

### [Love Will Tear Us Apart](https://waxonia.com/track/joy-division--love-will-tear-us-apart/)

*1980 · Factory · No. 1 in [Post-Punk](https://waxonia.com/genre/post-punk/)*

Peter Hook plays the melody on bass, Bernard Sumner plays the atmosphere on a cheap synth, and Ian Curtis writes the plainest lyric of his life. The genre's one unarguable pop record.

Also on: [The Eighties](https://waxonia.com/theme/the-eighties/), [The Waxonia Desk — The Hundred](https://waxonia.com/selection/the-desk-the-hundred/).

[Search Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/search/Joy%20Division%20Love%20Will%20Tear%20Us%20Apart) · [YouTube Music](https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=zuuObGsB0No)

### [Love Will Tear Us Apart](https://waxonia.com/track/joy-division--love-will-tear-us-apart/)

*1980 · Factory · Picked by [The Eighties](https://waxonia.com/theme/the-eighties/)*

Factory gave its bands the copyrights and had no contracts to speak of, which was ruinous as a business and is the reason this record sounds like nobody was consulted. The decade's most covered song, released by a Manchester club with a design habit.

Also on: [Post-Punk](https://waxonia.com/genre/post-punk/), [The Waxonia Desk — The Hundred](https://waxonia.com/selection/the-desk-the-hundred/).

[Search Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/search/Joy%20Division%20Love%20Will%20Tear%20Us%20Apart) · [YouTube Music](https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=zuuObGsB0No)

### [Love Will Tear Us Apart](https://waxonia.com/track/joy-division--love-will-tear-us-apart/)

*1980 · Factory · Picked by [The Waxonia Desk — The Hundred](https://waxonia.com/selection/the-desk-the-hundred/)*

The bass carries the melody, a cheap synth carries the weather, and the lyric refuses every available metaphor. Guitar music's most perfect three minutes.

Also on: [Post-Punk](https://waxonia.com/genre/post-punk/), [The Eighties](https://waxonia.com/theme/the-eighties/).

[Search Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/search/Joy%20Division%20Love%20Will%20Tear%20Us%20Apart) · [YouTube Music](https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=zuuObGsB0No)

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Hand-curated by Waxonia. We host no audio; all links point to streaming platforms.