Unknown Pleasures
by Joy Division

Album
Unknown Pleasures by Joy Division
Year: 1979
Release date: 1979-06-15
Overall rank: 38th   Overall chart history
Average Rating: 
86/100 (from 2,360 votes)
  Ratings distribution   Average rating history
Accolades:
Award Top 5 albums of 1979 (3rd)
Award Top 10 albums of of the 1970s (9th)
Award Top 50 albums of all time (38th)

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Joy Division bestography

Unknown Pleasures is ranked as the best album by Joy Division.

Joy Division album bestography « Higher ranked
- This album (38th)
Unknown Pleasures Lower ranked (79th) »
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(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).

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Unknown Pleasures track list

  Track ratings The tracks on this album have an average rating of 87 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).

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#
Track
Rating/Comments
1.
Track pick (920 - 676 votes)
Disorder
Average Rating: 92 (676 votes)Comments: View 14
2.
Day Of The Lords
Average Rating: 88 (498 votes)Comments: View 11
3.
Candidate
Average Rating: 83 (451 votes)Comments: View 8
4.
Insight
Average Rating: 84 (455 votes)Comments: View 4
5.
New Dawn Fades
Average Rating: 90 (520 votes)Comments: View 13
6.
Track pick (910 - 597 votes)
She's Lost Control
Average Rating: 91 (597 votes)Comments: View 10
7.
Track pick (910 - 562 votes)
Shadowplay
Average Rating: 91 (562 votes)Comments: View 11
8.
Wilderness
Average Rating: 84 (438 votes)Comments: View 6
9.
Interzone
Average Rating: 85 (447 votes)Comments: View 7
10.
I Remember Nothing
Average Rating: 83 (434 votes)Comments: View 8

Track pick (1000 - 100 votes) Top-rated track as rated by BestEverAlbums.com members.

Unknown Pleasures rankings

Unknown Pleasures rankings summary
Overall rank: 38th | 1970s rank: 9th | 1979 rank: 3rd  Overall chart history
Calculated from aggregate positions across 60,000 charts (2 million album rankings).Help Click to see how the rankings are calculated (Last updated: 5 hours ago)

Unknown Pleasures collection

Unknown Pleasures ratings

Average Rating: 
86/100 (from 2,360 votes)
  Ratings distribution Help Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
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 2,360 ratings for this album.

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RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
95/100
 !		14 hours ago nikosp  Ratings distribution  298/100
 
90/100
 !		10/19/2026 13:30 Larcx13  Ratings distribution  2,86674/100
 
85/100
 !		10/17/2026 12:45 Timooosterink  Ratings distribution  93872/100

Rating metrics: Help 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 86.3/100, a mean average of 85.0/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 86.4/100. The standard deviation for this album is 15.0.


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Unknown Pleasures favourites

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Unknown Pleasures forum mentions

This album has been referenced 241 times on the forums, Explore the wider forum discussion to see what members have said about it.
From Cheddar 28 hours ago in You must listen to the album below you: canon edition
“1. This was an album that definitely grew on me the more I listened to it. I liked the guitar and experimental sound scapes right off the bat, but the vocal delivery threw me off at first. However, like my last canon album rating, I knew that this was an album that would reward repeat listens. So I…”
View topic (4 mentions) →

From BestEverAlbums 10/17/2026 08:00 in Chart of the day (#5468): By bjorndedrij
“Today's chart of the day Top 100 Greatest Music Albums by bjorndedrij () 1. by (1967) 2. (1991) 3. by (1969) 4. by (1972) 5. (1990) 6. by by (1971) 8. by (2010) 9. by (1980) 10. by by (1979) 12. by (1997) 13. (2004) 15. by (1971) 16. by (1993) 17. (2007) 18. by by (2005) 20. (1970) 21. by by by…”
(31 mentions across Chart of the Day topics)
View latest topic →

From Liedzeit 10/04/2026 09:48 in What album are you listening to? (cont.)
“What album are you listening to? (cont.)”
View topic (22 mentions) →

View all forum mentions

Unknown Pleasures comments

Showing latest 5 comments | Show all 191 comments |
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Rating:  
95/100
From 05/29/2016 18:59 | #167184 | TOP COMMENT Help Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.
A brooding masterpiece. Like Jim Morrison and The Doors captured L.A in their music and lyrics, so Ian Curtis and Joy Division do the same with Manchester. Unknown pleasures, is a dark record of alienation, loneliness and foreboding. You cannot fail to be drawn into the eerie atmosphere as Curtis' passionate vocals ache and yearn over the excellent backing. Every track is worth a mention, but it really has to be listened in one sitting to feel it's true power. Superb. (Edited)
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) · 11
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Rating:  
90/100
From 01/02/2015 01:34 | #130610 | TOP COMMENT Help Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.
I love to play (or Sing?) those opening beats of disorder in the shower like...ta da da....and then dug dug dug uuuuu...and then the bass....dan dand and dan dan, dun dun dun dun, dan dan dan, and then the voice gets deep and I sing like Ian Curtis, and then I realize I'm singing disorder at 5:50 in the morning lol
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) · 8
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Rating:  
100/100
From 02/03/2013 23:55 | #63853 | TOP COMMENT Help Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.
The album that forever changed the face of alternative rock. Still to this day the album sounds like nothing I've ever heard before. An uncompromising, dark and cold look at the ever changing world that we live in.
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Rating:  
100/100
From 07/17/2013 02:36 | #81676 | TOP COMMENT Help Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.
This is not only the product of a man's sadness, as people usually say, but of a genius' thoughts about life. Few albums can be compared to this huge masterpiece. And it also makes a great t-shirt.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) · 8
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Rating:  
100/100
From 05/23/2016 00:49 | #166680 | TOP COMMENT Help Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.
Unknown Pleasures is one the best produced albums of all time. Martin Hannett took a raw band and carved out a sound which hits people at their very core. The album's sound is so spaceour and gprgeous, allowong one to hear every single note at its most pure. Curtis' sings some of the saddest and most powerful songs to ever be recored in a studio, and the accompanying music suits the mood perfectly. Very few album are ever able to so clearly and consicely evoke its themes and moods, but Unknown Pleasures brings them across in a focused manner without wasting a note. This album should be listened to by anyone who loves music, because it will make you rethink music production from top to bottom. Absolutely incredible album.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) · 5
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Best Albums of  1979
1. London Calling by The Clash
2. The Wall by Pink Floyd
3. Unknown Pleasures by Joy Division
4. Fear Of Music by Talking Heads
5. Off The Wall by Michael Jackson
6. Breakfast In America by Supertramp
7. Entertainment! by Gang Of Four
8. Rust Never Sleeps by Neil Young & Crazy Horse
9. Highway To Hell by AC/DC
10. Tusk by Fleetwood Mac