Closer
by Joy Division
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Joy Division bestography
Closer is ranked 2nd best out of 12 albums by Joy Division on BestEverAlbums.com.
The best album by Joy Division is Unknown Pleasures which is ranked number 38 in the list of all-time albums with a total rank score of 20,365.
(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).
Listen to Closer on YouTube
Closer track list
The tracks on this album have an average rating of 86 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).
Top-rated track as rated by BestEverAlbums.com members.
Closer rankings
Calculated from aggregate positions across 60,000 charts (2 million album rankings). Click to see how the rankings are calculated (Last updated: 5 hours ago)
| Year | Source | Chart | Rank | Rank Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 |  hoyquarlow | Top 50 Music Albums of the 1980s | 38/50 | 5 |
| 2026 | fabm0 | 1 My Chart All Time 2 | 11/100 | - |
| 2026 |  Graeme2 | Top 54 Music Albums of 1980 | 1/54 | 5 |
| 2026 |  O.T. | Top 35 Music Albums of 1980 | 16/35 | 3 |
| 2026 |  slatsheit | Top 100 Greatest Music Albums | 2/100 | 98 |
| 2026 | Juneof44 | Top 50 Music Albums of 1980 | 50/50 | 0 |
| 2026 |  AAL2014 | Top 73 Music Albums of 1980 | 2/73 | 5 |
| 2026 |  identifer | Top 50 Music Albums of the 1980s | 31/50 | 8 |
| 2026 | pinkfreud1981 | Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s | 23/100 | 16 |
| 2026 | fabm0 | List Zone 12 Europe British Isles | 7/100 | - |
| Total Charts: The total number of charts that this album has appeared in. | 1,521 | |||
| Total Rank Score: The total rank score. | 14,249 | |||
Closer collection
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Closer ratings
Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AVwhere:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.
Showing latest 3 ratings for this album. | Show all 1,934 ratings for this album.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Album ratings | Avg. album rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 5 days ago |  pedro1976 | 1,580 | 71/100 |
| ! | 09/30/2026 13:12 | Siromynian | 1,786 | 74/100 |
| ! | 09/28/2026 20:52 | luukvdschepop | 793 | 75/100 |
Rating metrics:
Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)
This album is rated in the top 1% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 85.1/100, a mean average of 83.5/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 85.2/100. The standard deviation for this album is 16.1.
Closer favourites
Showing latest 10 members who have added this album as a favourite | Show all 438 members
Closer forum mentions
imacgill 10/06/2026 23:06 in What album are you listening to? (cont.)
BestEverAlbums 10/01/2026 08:00 in Chart of the day (#5452): By LittleM1971 BestEverAlbums 09/27/2026 08:00 in Chart of the day (#5448): By GlitterboiiiCloser comments
Top Comments First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
(Showing comments with any number of votes. Manage Profile)
souplipton 06/15/2016 03:10 | #168746 | TOP COMMENT
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Ian Curtis didn't live to see the release of Joy Division's second album, but the music he made on those two records will live forever. I think great music has to have the ability to make you feel something, and Closer definitely has that. It's impossible to listen to Closer and not feel something intensely powerful, a oppressive sadness runs through every fiber of the album. Martin Hannett's production is spacious, and feels like it's being played from within a giant empty cathedral, yet still feels claustrophobic at the same time. There's nowhere to run or hide from the bleak nihilism, it washes over you and through you with every track. A truly sad masterpiece.
btener11 08/01/2011 22:28 | #25483 | TOP COMMENT
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I just get lost in this album. A giant cloud hangs over the entire experience, coating every moment with beautiful sorrow and a barely restrained mania just dying to burst apart into madness. Closer may be the most cohesive piece of artwork ever recorded.
the ending to this album is remarkable. probably one of the best endings to an album ever
ShaneSpear TOP 100 COMMENTER 07/03/2011 18:34 | #23876 | TOP COMMENT
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This entire album is very good. The last three songs (Twenty Four Hours, The Eternal & Decades) are on an entirely different tier of greatness.
Astounding lyricism. They surprisingly manage to get even deeper and more tragic than the dark lyrics on their impressive debut album. I was also really impressed with the album with respect to its production; "Closer" appears to sprawl itself out and draw upon more genres and interesting influences whilst still remaining its own thing.
It's a shame their career was tragically cut short, but I'm forever grateful for this brilliant, tortured soul of a record along with their outstanding debut.
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