Closer[n 1] is the second and final studio album by the English rock band Joy Division, released on 18 July 1980 by Factory Records.

The earlier guitar-driven compositions were written during the latter half of 1979: "Atrocity Exhibition", "Passover", "Colony", "A Means to an End" and "Twenty Four Hours".

Peter Hook later complained that the track "Atrocity Exhibition" was mixed on one of his days off, and when he heard the final product he was disappointed that the abrasiveness of his guitar part had been laden with effects and toned down.

[16] The album cover was designed by Martyn Atkins and Peter Saville, with a photograph of the Appiani family tomb in Genoa's Monumental Cemetery of Staglieno adorning much of the sleeve.

"[13] At the time of release, Sounds critic Dave McCullough wrote that there were "dark strokes of gothic rock" on Closer.

"[29] Writing for Smash Hits, Alastair Macaulay described the album as an "exercise in dark controlled passion" and wrote that its music "stands up on its own as the band's epitaph".

rock music has always dealt head-on with emotions and thought rather than clichéd, standardised stances; that's what makes Closer and Joy Division so important.

"[31] At the end of 1980, Closer was voted the 22nd best record of the year in the Pazz & Jop, an annual poll of American critics published by The Village Voice.

[32] Robert Christgau, the poll's supervisor, deemed the album an improvement over Unknown Pleasures in a retrospective review: "Curtis's torment is less oppressive here because it's less dominant—the dark, roiling, off-center rhythms have a life of their own.

"[21] Rolling Stone's Mikal Gilmore, in a 1981 profile of the band's work, wrote: "The music turns leaden, gray and steady because it means to fulfill a vision of a world where suffering is unremitting and nothingness is quiescent.

"[14] Closer has been highly acclaimed, and is often cited as Joy Division's finest work, being considered by music critics such as Mark Fisher to be "the crown jewel of post-punk"[9] and receiving praise from artists such as George Michael.

[citation needed] In addition, Q magazine placed Closer at number 8 in a list compiled of the 40 greatest albums to be released in the 1980s.

[44] All tracks are written by Ian Curtis, Peter Hook, Stephen Morris and Bernard SumnerNote: the original vinyl disc only contained a small etching on the disk marking the A and B sides.