he Back To Mine mix series, currently on number eleven with New Order, has typically been designed by dance artists who want to make you understand what kind of music they would put on at 4 in the morning after some clubbing. It’s basically been the same thing for each edition – can’t you just see Danny Tenaglia or Nick Warren shilling theirs to you: “Oh, yah, we have both kinds of music: progressive trance and house!”


The artists who participated, including the previously mentioned, as well as Faithless, Morcheeba, and Talvin Singh (ha ha, remember him?) upon other MOR techno groovemeisters, stuck to their zones, rarely branching out. However, volume ten, arranged by Orbital, has shown a new ideal for this series: along acid house sat PJ Harvey, Divine Comedy, Tangerine Dream, and 1960s TV themes. It didn’t matter that there was a lack of flow- there was some great music. And that’s about the step New Order has taken on their edition, almost completely escaping the trappings of DJ dance.


Reader, you may be thinking: Why should I spend 14 dollars on a mix by New Order, when I can just get Joe Indie to make me one ever cooler? Good question: but did Joe Indie write “Your Silent Face”? No, he’s too busy covering Lou Barlow. But seriously, folks, I implore you to read on. First to five points wins.


The hook


Your friend made the first track to get you hooked to keep listening, just like any good mixtape (only tapes). Throwing on Royal Trux’s “Inside Game” is pretty cool, but Barney and company give you Captain Beefheart’s “Big Eyed Beans From Venus” to lead off. The greasy, blues stomp and freeform guitar noodlings are pretty cool, but the sinister, grizzled voice is what really hooks you.


New Order: 1
Your friend: 0


The tripped-out track for coming down


Spacemen 3's “Transparent Radiation (Flashback)” is classic Pierce, with reverbed vocals, bluesy guitar, and a wash of organ. New Order, on the other hand, throw vintage Primal Scream at you, with “Higher Than The Sun.” Maybe herein lies the difference between your friend and New Order: while Joe Indie expects you to give the track your full attention, the band thinks you’re still gonna be jammin’ it up, so they throw, basically, a club track at you. Peter Hook’s obvious influence in this collection is here with the obvious bassline, but overall, I give your friend the edge.


New Order: 1
Your friend: 1


The token hip-hop track


Your compadre wants to come here and throw in some ... Def Jux? Please. Nothing El-P will ever do could possibly touch New Order’s choice, Missy Elliott’s “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly).” Timbaland’s breezy, trippy beat is perfect for sitting in that chair of yours, thinking about that wild and crazy night. While your friend wants a harsh jam, Missy just can’t stand the rain. “Beep beep! Who got the keys to the Jeep? Vroooom!”


New Order: 2
Your friend: 1


The proto-punk track


New Order gives us not one, but two of these, but the highlight is the Velvet’s “Venus In Furs.” This track works its hypnotic drone into your skull as Lou Reed implores you to “taste the whip in love not given lightly, now plead for me” in monotone sadism as John Cale’s viola just squeals like it’s, well, getting whipped. This will be hard to beat ... and your friend will step up to the challenge with a track from the “underrated” album by the Velvet Underground, Squeeze. “Dude, this doesn’t suck! What the hell! Doug Yule’s just as good as Lou Reed!”


New Order: 3
Your friend: 1


The cheesy Europop dance hit


After the decidedly unique choices from New Order, a trio of club bangers are thrown on: Patrick Cowley’s mix of Donna Summer’s “I Feel Love,” a Moroder mix of “E=MC2" (no, not the Mick Jones tune), and Joey Beltram’s “Energy Flash.” Yeah, I bet Ian Curtis loved that shit. Here’s where New Order starts to fail: it seems like a copout to have such predictable tracks following, say, Roxy Music. While I imagine these songs are fine on their own — fairly simple club tracks — they don’t fit the niche this album has created. If you don’t care about that sort of thing, fine. But if you do, I imagine you’ll at least find it entertaining that New Order places tracks on this album that have direct influence from, well, themselves. Listen to that drum loop straight out of “Blue Monday”: Cocky, arrogant, or naive? The other guy’s mixtape has vintage Pet Shop Boys and “Love Will Tear Us Apart” instead.


New Order: 3
Your friend: 2


The Krautrocker


Off their epic Tago Mago, Can’s “Mushroom,” propelled by Jaki Leibezeit’s steady drumming and Damo Suzuki’s incoherent spasms is a fine choice for New Order. This track displays a possible influence on their own Power, Corruption and Lies’ minimalist freakouts and eerie rhythms, and crushes the competition in Tangerine Dream’s languid “Rubycon, Pt. 2.” Boring!


New Order: 4
Your friend: 2


The slow downbeat track


“M62 Song,” by Manchester pop trio Doves, is a breezy, aching track off their latest, The Last Broadcast– and I don’t really see why this song spoke to New Order; it’s sure not danceable. Maybe it’s the crap lyrics that Bernard Sumner could relate to – “now that guy knows how to write!” Nonetheless, the spooky harmonies create a wash that flows over the slight acoustic lilts, creating a very pretty pop moment. It’s kind of odd, really, that New Order put this relatively new track on this mix, possibly as a sort of “passing the torch” to the next generation. Compared to Massive Attack’s “Teardrop,” though, another song that utilizes a heartbroken vocal and minimal instrumentation at times, this one does the trick.


New Order wins, 5 to 2, and if that can help convince you to purchase this album, go figure. If you want to hear what New Order likes and where they came from, this is a pretty good document. But perhaps you favor the stylings of your friend- just don’t say I didn’t warn you.