Republic (album)


Republic is the sixth studio album by the English rock band New Order. It was first released on 3 May 1993 in the United Kingdom by CentreDate Co Ltd in association with London Records and on 11 May 1993 in the United States by Qwest and Warner Bros. Records. It was the band's first album following the demise of their former label Factory Records, and would be their last studio album for eight years until 2001's Get Ready.
Republic became New Order's second consecutive album to top the UK Albums Chart, and was nominated for the 1993 Mercury Music Prize. In the United States, it reached number 11 on the Billboard 200, the band's highest-peaking album on the chart to date. Its lead single "Regret" became New Order's last top-five entry on the UK singles chart. The band went on hiatus following a gig at the Reading Festival in promotion of the album in August 1993. Lead singer Bernard Sumner was known to dislike travelling to North America, and media reports suggested that the pressure of the long leg there contributed to the band's temporary demise, although they reunited in 1998.

Background

According to bassist Peter Hook, the band were forced to make the album in order to save The Haçienda, a Manchester club partially owned by the band that was losing a great deal of money. The band were also told that if they did not produce another album, Factory Records would go bankrupt and the band members, who had guaranteed loans for Factory and the club, would be ruined financially.
At the same time, Hook and Bernard Sumner were "at that point in the relationship where you hate each others' stinking guts," and the band members were "all off our heads on various things," which made for a stressful working environment. While Sumner was recording with Johnny Marr as Electronic, Hook, Stephen Morris and Gillian Gilbert wrote a whole instrumental New Order album that would be shelved at the request of Sumner when he returned. Disputes over the music and publishing rights created further acrimony that caused the band to break up, though they reunited in 1998 and recorded two more studio albums before Hook departed for good.
Hook later revealed that touring to support an album he "didn't like at all" appalled him. They used a new 16-track record for the backing which allowed them to play multiple guitars on the tape. Hook retrospectively analyzed: "we were turning into the sort of group we used to hate... we were basically miming".

Artwork

As with previous New Order releases, Republic's artwork was designed by Peter Saville and no text other than credits appears within the sleeve. Saville, who had relocated to California, depicted different aspects of the state—people relaxing on the beach while houses burn and vast natural landscapes contrasting with the skyline of Los Angeles. Most of the images were taken from stock photo libraries to achieve a commercial look, and were heavily retouched. Several of these images have been used elsewhere, such as direct-mail campaigns, catalogues and adverts for businesses. Another interpretation of the album's artwork alludes to the Fall of Rome.

Personnel

New Order

Musician credits for New Order are not listed in the liner notes of the album's personnel. Below are the instruments that the group typically plays.

Production

The original liner notes list the album's personnel as follows: