Artist News

New New Order members comment on Old New Order member

By Andy Malt | Published on Friday 18 December 2015

New Order’s newer members Phil Cunningham and Tom Chapman have spoken about being caught up in a legal battle with the band’s former bassist Peter Hook.

As previously reported, Hook was recently granted permission to proceed with a lawsuit against the band’s current incarnation. He claims that he has been done out of at least £2 million in royalties due to the way the band set up their business affairs when regrouping without him in 2011. His former bandmates deny this and noted in a previous statement that Hook’s royalties stemming from the band’s original songs and recordings catalogue are not affected by the business arrangement he is disputing.

Cunningham, who was a member of the band with Hook for five years, told Loaded: “Peter phoned me a couple of years ago, because I said something in an interview that offended him. He said: ‘Look, it’s all getting a bit personal, this. It’s ridiculous. I’ve got my thing, you’ve got yours, and it’s cool. Everyone’s happy’. But that’s obviously not the case. He’s not happy. He decided to leave the house, and now he’s outside it, chucking bricks through the window”.

Hook’s direct replacement Chapman added: “He’s had plenty to say about me, but I’ve never actually met him. [If I did] I’d tell him ‘I think it’d be good to support young musicians. Maybe you could wish good luck to musicians who’ve had a break’. I’d also tell him that it’s an absolute joy and lots of fun to play in New Order, but I don’t think he’d want to hear that”.

Speaking about the looming court case, Cunningham said: “It saddened me a few years ago, but he’s said such horrible things about Bernard and the rest of the band that it just makes me angry now. They’re my friends, so it makes me more angry than sad. Things will have to play out how they play out now. It’s so unfortunate”.