When New Order said, “I thought I told you to leave me / While I walked down to the beach” in 1983, it’s hard to imagine they ever foresaw a day like today. Wednesday, January 15, 2020, is officially New Order Day in Miami Beach.
“New Order has left its mark in the Miami Beach and worldwide music scene,” shared the city’s Commissioner Michael Góngora in a press statement. “They represent a generation of bold and powerful musicians that were leaders of the New Wave music scene that pushed the envelope and reimagined music as we know it.”
The band is returning the love by holding down their first-ever U.S. residency at Fillmore Miami Beach. Launching yesterday, January 14, the residency will wind down with a pair of shows over the upcoming weekend on January 17 and 18.
Thank you to @MichaelGongora and City of Miami Beach for presenting New Order with the key to the city – what an honour! Another good reason to return! #NewOrderMiami pic.twitter.com/UZSvemgOQ7
— New Order (@neworder) January 13, 2019
“Expect surprises,” drummer Stephen Morris told the Miami Herald regarding the weekend performances. Morris would somewhat cryptically reply that “Miami picked us” when asked about the band’s connection to the city. It helps that the Factory Records legends were presented with the key to Miami last year. First playing there in 1989, it’s become a regular stop on New Order’s tour itinerary.
Morris added that while the group no longer indulges in Miami Beach’s notorious party scene to the degree they once did, they still enjoy visiting—though they are now more likely to be spotted roaming around the Wynwood Arts District and The Wolfsonian-FIU Museum than inside local nightspots or dance clubs.
Bernard and Tom out and about in Miami on #NewOrderDay 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/HLtX5wXerB
— New Order (@neworder) January 15, 2020
