Yet, the bassist’s negative feelings went beyond just being spiteful as he took his former members all the way to court, when he accused the band of “clandestinely” trying to control the New Order and Joy Division trademarks. Hook also said the band, which he’d left in 2008, owed him “millions of pounds” in unpaid royalties, as reported by NME. The bassist’s former bandmates, though, said the dispute was about Hook’s royalties from the work the band had done after his departure.

His departure came amid the heavily delayed album “Lost Sirens”, which keyboarding Gillian Gilbert discussed in a Brazilian interview to promote a Sao Paulo show. According to an English translation, she acknowledged issues with Hook, and said there was “a lot going on behind the scenes on the copyright.”

Hook’s lawsuit was settled in 2017, but unfortunately, his hard feelings towards the rest of the band never went away. “He left the band, and then he complained about leaving the band,” said singer/guitarist Bernard Sumner, per NME. “He’s so angry. If you choose to take a path in life, don’t blame other people for the path you’ve chosen to take.”

But even though the litigation was settled, Hook doesn’t look like he will be getting on stage with his former bandmates anytime soon. As he tells Rolling Stone when asked if he will ever consider performing with New Order again, “It’s only hope that keeps us all going through every day. So yeah, it’s something that you hope will happen. It’d be wonderful and in many ways, the fact that you didn’t reconcile is one of the greatest sadnesses because of how much you’ve shared and how much you still share.”