Cure's Album Reviews:
Read reviews and rate Cure and help define the Austin TX music scene for your fellow friends on Unlock Austin.
| Early Cure - Quirky Pop-Rock Thats Waaaaay Addictive |
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| Theres something about the primitive innocence of early Cure that makes me want to listen to it again and again. Im a dyed-n-the-wool Cure fan, which means I like or at least appreciate nearly everything they do, but this early stuff is really melodic and could potentially appeal to a much bigger crowd than, say, PORNOGRAPHY ever could. Yes, the American release of THREE IMAGINARY BOYS (renamed BOYS DONT CRY) is superior, but Disk 1 presents the album in its original form - thats history, baby! Yes, Killing An Arab belongs here, but that songs pretty easy to come by anyway. Plastic Passion is also missing, but you can get that one on the JOIN THE DOTS B-side collection which is worth getting for the first disk alone (and, of course, theres always downloading). Obviously, this expanded package is aimed at the die-hard fans, but some of the unreleased tracks on Disk 2 are superior to many of the TIB tracks (IMHO). Theres a lot of really cool music on Disk 2 thats worth discovering even if youre not a big fan. Theres also a few well-known singles and some demos that are mostly of interest to the die-hards. The following is a song by song commentary of Disk 2 from an old-school Cure fan (since 85). Ive never been dedicated or savvy enough to collect a lot of bootlegs, so most of Disk 2 for me was a thrilling discovery. --------------------------------------I Want To Be Old (studio demo) - this appropriately cynical song totally rips. Very punk. Robert Smith has said his main influences starting out were The Sex Pistols, The Clash and the Buzzcocks, and that influence is very evident on several Disk 2 tracks including this one. Great sound. *****Im Cold (studio demo) - many Cure fans are familiar with a slowed-down, wiggy version of this song which served as an early B-side. This is a straight-up version, upbeat and rocking. The lyrics are perfectly clear without the wicked reversed echo heard on the B-side and theyre so cool - cold, actually. Guitar wizard Porl Thompson appears on several of these early tracks including this cut. After a falling out with Robert Smith, he later rejoined the band. Great sound on this one. *****Heroin Face (live) - a harsh blast of punked-up energy. Decent but not great sound (I believe its an audience recording). Those fortunate enough to have a copy of the rare CURIOSITY cassette released back in the day have heard this track. ***1/2I Just Need Myself (studio demo) - Robert Smith quite obviously cops Johnny Rottens attitude (Sex Pistols) on this cut (as he does on the TIB track So What). He even sounds a bit like a sneering Rotten. Pretty basic rock n roll with Porl wailing on guitar. I love it. ****10:15 Saturday Night (home demo) - I am so thrilled to have this version. Just a young Robert Smith, home alone on Hammond organ, guitar and drum machine. This version captures the bare essence of the song. Robert sounds so anguished! *****The Cocktail Party (home demo) - an amusing lark with Hawaiian-sounding guitar, poorly recorded but fun. ***1/2Grinding Halt (home demo) - early document, mostly of interest to those who study the band. Not much different from the final studio version, has bad sound. *** Boys Dont Cry (studio demo) - pretty good, straight-up version. A very good pop song, but far from my personal Cure fav. ****Its Not You (studio demo) - cool song, very good version, some different lyrics. ****10:15 Saturday Night (studio demo) - great version, not too different but way cool. *****Fire In Cairo (studio demo) - cool version, slightly grittier sound on the guitars. *****Winter (studio out-take) - this is a great lost track. So soft and dreamy, I can understand why it wasnt included on the debut. A harbinger of more mellow and emotional songs to come from the Cure. ***** Faded Smiles aka I Dont Know (studio out-take) - another great lost track, this one rocks. ****1/2Play With Me (studio out-take) - wow! yet another great unreleased song, this one has a prickly old-school guitar groove that just works. ****1/2World War (rare album track) - Robert Smith hates this cut and was appalled when label head Chris Perry added it to the original album line-up. If memory serves, this song was on my old BOYS DONT CRY tape and Ive always found its primitive, almost bone-headed approach strangely appealing. Its got a sort of sinister post-apocalyptic feel to it. ****Boys Dont Cry (extra album track) - the (shouldve been) hit single. Undeniably catchy, but again, not my favorite Cure song. ****1/2Jumping Someone Elses Train (extra album track) - This frantic, runaway-train track is one of their best singles. A biting commentary on poseurs. *****Subway Song (live) - previously available on the CURIOSITY tape. An otherworldly sounding, very cool bootleg. ****1/2Accuracy (live) - Smith has claimed this is one of his favorite Cure songs. I dont share his opinion. Its too sing-songy for my tastes. This early bootleg does nothing to change my opinion of it. **1/210:15 Saturday Night (live) - a totally punked-out, hyper kinetic blast through 10:15. Quite a vast difference between this one and Roberts home demo, but both of them are absolutely fantastic in their own way. This live version gets into some totally groove-worthy rhythms to ward the end and reaches a head-spinning climax. A must for Cure fans!
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| Take Out the Out-takes |
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| The Cures Faith has never sounded better with the arrival of this excellent remastered edition. Every song on disc one (the original album) is memorable, making it arguably the bands best of this era -- From the rapid rumble of Primary to the more somber moments like All Cats Are Grey and The Funeral Party.The second disc, like most in the deluxe-edition series, contains mostly studio out-takes and bonus tracks. This era of The Cure was minimal to begin with, and the out-takes are just painful to listen to. There is one great bonus track included on disc two: Charlotte Sometimes. I would have much preferred the option to purchase a single disc containing the original album along with the studio bonus tracks.
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| Classics |
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| These are all good songs - classic! But I definitely dont like the change in rhythm in Close To Me...Robert and his boys shouldve left it as it was.
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| Classics |
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| These are all good songs - classic! But I definitely dont like the change in rhythm in Close To Me...Robert and his boys shouldve left it as it was.
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| Only for die-hards |
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| If you like The Cure and are interested in hearing their early material, this re-issue might be for you. Punk fans may also appreciate this. The album itself is a little spotty, with the high-points being 10.15 Saturday Night, the incredibly catchy Grinding Halt, and the haunting Fire In Cairo. The demos were interesting to hear once or twice, but they dont have much lasting value. On the second disc, I found the demos I Just Need Myself, Heroin Face, and I Want to Be Old most entertaining. The second disc also contains the studio tracks Jumping Someone Elses Train and Boys Dont Cry are included, as they were not on the original Three Imaginary Boys but were included on the American Boys Dont Cry album. In short, this is a great re-issue for a hardcore Cure fan that likes punk, but you can get all the best songs off this re-issue on the Boys Dont Cry album (the one with the pyramid and the palm trees).
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| Excellent |
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| This is a great addition to all Cure fans collection. If you love the Cure and you already have this album, this collector version is perfect. If youre new to the cure and you dont have seventeen seconds already, buy this version instead of the single disk. This has lots of great tracks on it that have never been released before. ^-^
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| I wanna hold you like a doll... |
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| I followed the infectious scent of Just Like Heaven (the greatest pop song ever written) to this album, and found myself listening to one of the greatest records Ive ever heard. A few of my favorite songs on this record are as follows:TortureIf Only Tonight We Could SleepWhy Cant I Be YouJust Like HeavenAll I WantShiver and ShakeTheres just so much mood and euphoria in these songs. The greatness of Just Like Heaven spills over into all the other compositions. Love it! Always will.
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| An Excellent Compilation of Early Cure |
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| This was the 1st Cure album I had bought, and I really wasnt sure what to expect. The only songs I was familiar with were Boys Dont Cry, In Between Days, and Close To Me. Wow! Everysong is great, and very diverse styles and moods as the album goes on. After that I had gone out and purchased just about all of their albums. My only gripe is that it needs to be remastered! How about a 20th Anniversery re-release???
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| Spiralling... Spiralling... Spiralling |
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| This album is quite possibly the darkest album Ive heard in a long time. Robert was spinning into drug-induced depression at the time, and the results were Pornography. Every song from 100 Years to the title track are pumped full of deep, black, depression. Even the first line of the cd, It doesnt matter if we all die, lets the listener know what he/she is in for. The guitar puts the icing on the cake. It laces all of the music with dysfunctional, screaching, spirals that one might hear on the path to insanity. The cold drum machine gives the darkness its heartbeat, and Robert gives the music the losing hope vocals. When Robert sings, you ALWAYS hear every bit of emotion that he intended to be put in the song. Buy this album along with Disintigration. You wont be disappointed. Also, check out Faith and Seventeen Seconds for more Cure darkness.
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| The Cure Is the Best Alternative Band! |
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| I was introduced to The Cure in 2004, when I heard Pictures of You in an HP commercial, and liked the song. If I get a Cure CD, I might get this or Galore. I think this is their signature album!
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| Good, but not great |
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| I have recently been buying up the remastered, two-disc Cure CDs, and Three Imaginary Boys was my starting point. As an a teenage American, I have missed out on the vast majority of The Cures work -- as it came out, that is -- and certainly missed Three Imaginary Boys, due to my national status.That said, the closest I can get to comparing audio quality is by listening to Boys Dont Cry (the outtake from TIMs second disc) and 10:15 Saturday Night from the Staring at the Sea collection, and then the TIM reissue. The difference is superb, which brings me to my next.The omission of Killing An Arab (admittedly, it was never my favourite song from this period, but it has grown on me considerably since my first listening long ago, now to the point of my quite liking it) is an outrage. Call me picky, but I would like to be able to listen to songs like Boys Dont Cry, 10:15 Saturday Night, Killing An Arab, and Jumping Someone Elses Train without a significant change in audio quality. Unfortunately, because Killing An Arab was omitted, I am forced to. I do not know the reason the track was kept off, but I suspect it was due to the title, which, to those who know nothing of the song, seems hateful. Well, the problem is, its not a hateful song, and that it is excluded from the CD rubs me the wrong way in a big way.I quite like the Studio Demo version of Boys Dont Cry (not more than the master, understand), whose opening sounds quite like Killing An Arab from the Concert album (which is absolutely superb -- I very much recommend it).If Killing an Arab had been included on this, I would have given it four stars; but, as it is not, it receives three. I like this album, but I feel it lacks the listenability of every album that follows it. A very solid first effort in one of the best carreers in musical history.
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| Fantastic Live Cure - No Overdubs Used Or Needed! |
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| The liner notes proudly proclaim that no overdubs were used on this recording. Having seen the Cure in concert, I know how powerful they are live, so I have no doubt this statement is true. These songs taken from 4 different shows in May of 84 show off the Cure with a terrific line up that wasnt around for too long (even by Cure standards). M.V.P. Robert Smith is in fine form and his guitar is often massive, sometimes employing an effect that makes it sound like a jet taking off. Drummer Andy Anderson favors heavy-hitting beats and keeps everything very up tempo. Founding member Lol Tolhursts role on keyboards, questionable as always, seems to be largely relegated to elongated notes, although they are often useful and effective. Multi-instrumentalist Porl Thompson rejoins the fold here, a super-talented guy who would go on to spend many years with the Cure. Abandoning his previous role as a control room wizard, Phil Thornally capably rounds out the quintet on bass. The breakdown: Shake Dog Shake - Taken from an Oxford, England show. This version substitutes the churning swirl of the dense album cut for a more tightly wound kind of menace. A sick song, but the definitive take remains on THE TOP. Of course, Smith cant duplicate all his trippy vocal overdubs in concert (which, by the way, are brilliantly applied all over THE TOP - see my review, if you so choose). Instead, he stutters and spits them out which compliments the songs deranged air. ****1/2 Primary - A lesser Cure song in my view, because it sounds almost like an ordinary pop song and the Cure are capable of much more than that. Still, this is a fun version with jet-taking-off guitar flying all over the place. ***1/2 Charlotte Sometimes - good version dominated by keyboards and a great bass line. **** The Hanging Garden - killer version - intense beat from Andy gives it a more dangerous edge. Notes are frantically scattered to keep up the pace and a heady climax is reached as the animals die, then Smiths Japanese guitar weaves back and forth across the auditorium. ***** Give Me It - Talk about frantic - this one is off the hook. I might prefer this version to the one on THE TOP. Porl lays down the definitive sax part for the song on this take. ***** The Walk - Brilliant live translation of this synth-manufactured oddity, thanks in large measure to Thornalleys skillful interpretation on bass. Longstanding member Simon Gallup would soon refill the bass shoes, though. ****1/2 One Hundred Years - a great live song, this is a classic slab of doom n gloom grilled to perfection with Smiths hovering, harrowing guitar - thrashing in the water, thrashing in the water . . . ***** A larger London crowd greets the opening chords of A Forest (complete with its lovely intro) with a rabid roar. This is the Cures signature song. A testament to the power of minimalist rock, it solidly rocks here. While this is a very good version, I saw them on the KISS ME tour and they hit a truly heart-stopping climax (right when Smith got to that last again!). ***** 10:15 Saturday Night - This is a totally wired version, a different beast from the original studio recording and altogether heavier. It rocks hard and fluidly even during the hushed (drip drip drip) moments. The band sounds like theyve blasted through this song hundreds of times, yet it still sounds fresh. ***** Killing an Arab - Great version of this cool Japanese/Middle Eastern flavored tune. Not actually racist, its a tongue in cheek nod to The Stranger, a short novel by Albert Camus. The song is a riot. For the finale, Smith warps his guitar into the fourth dimension, pulls everything through a wormhole, and the CD abruptly ends. ***** Great music, an absolute must for Cure fans!
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| The best live album by The Cure |
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| This is the best of the live albums by The Cure. This band has had so many line-up changes and this was one of their most interesting line-ups. Here they sound like a raw post-punk band. Even The Walk, a normally upbeat song, sounds dark, moody and goth. A great era of The Cure captured live. I only wish there were more tracks on here!
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| Bloodflowers - overlooked Masterpiece! |
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| I really feel compelled to write this review, because many of the Bloodflower reviews i have read have really been mixed. I have been a Cure fan for a long time. I love this band, and have always gotten excited when they were about to release a new LP. I often find myself having to ease my way in to new Cure albums...becuase they are so different from eachother and the cure have never been a GRAB you immediatly type of band. Overall, (and dont kill me) this is my favorite Cure album. I believe that it brings together all of the Cure archetypal sounds and signature tricks and blends them all beautifully. THe album is a spralling emotional trip with layered guitars, drums, and studio add-ins. Its definately a labored listen, but one that is well worth the trip. I really believe that robert an Co. are in TOP FORM on this album. AN album that is largely ignored or overlooked. I listen to this Cure album more than any other...and I always enjoy it. It is a mature Cure, doing what they do best, create a gloomy and melancholy soundscape that is a treat for the ears and the mind. Bloodflowers is a soundtrack for life. These flowers will Never DIE. Give it a chance...its an incredible listen.
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| Bloodflowers - overlooked Masterpiece! |
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| I really feel compelled to write this review, because many of the Bloodflower reviews i have read have really been mixed. I have been a Cure fan for a long time. I love this band, and have always gotten excited when they were about to release a new LP. I often find myself having to ease my way in to new Cure albums...becuase they are so different from eachother and the cure have never been a GRAB you immediatly type of band. Overall, (and dont kill me) this is my favorite Cure album. I believe that it brings together all of the Cure archetypal sounds and signature tricks and blends them all beautifully. THe album is a spralling emotional trip with layered guitars, drums, and studio add-ins. Its definately a labored listen, but one that is well worth the trip. I really believe that robert an Co. are in TOP FORM on this album. AN album that is largely ignored or overlooked. I listen to this Cure album more than any other...and I always enjoy it. It is a mature Cure, doing what they do best, create a gloomy and melancholy soundscape that is a treat for the ears and the mind. Bloodflowers is a soundtrack for life. These flowers will Never DIE. Give it a chance...its an incredible listen.
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| If youve got the problem, then Ive got the Cure! |
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| As many reviewers have stated, this is pretty much The Cures singles volume 2. In my opinion, these are the best Cure songs and much better than the older stuff (except Boys Dont Cry was an awesome song from Staring At The Sea: The Singles). On this CD, you are taken on a rollercoaster of Robert Smith and companys tragic tales of love and lost love. I love how so many of the songs have so many layers in it. The song will start with some guitar, bass, and drums, and then will build up and kick in some keyboards, and by the time Smiths voice begins youre already bobbing your head. Many have tried to copy The Cures signature sound, but none have been able to outdo them. Most of the songs on here are excellent with a few so-so tracks. The best songs are: Just Like Heaven (easily my favorite song by The Cure - Show me show me Show me how you do that trick The one that makes me scream she said. Love it!), Catch, Why Cant I Be You?, Pictures of You, Close To Me (which the Get Up Kids did a nice cover of), Friday Im In Love, and Lovesong. While he sings, you can just picture Robert Smith, with all his makeup and fingernail polish and think, Man, this guys got some issues with love! But it is his passion in every word he sings that makes you feel his pain as well as his joy. Its like he is singing the words that you have wanted to say and never knew how to express. Please do yourself a favor and buy this CD. Youll be happy you did!
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| A True Masterwork |
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| Honestly, Im having difficulty thinking of what to say about Disintegration. What hasnt already been said about this album? It really is one of the greatest albums of musical history, and easily the best album by The Cure. However, I will admit that I am not a Cure fan in regards to the volume of their works. The only albums I enjoy are Disintegration, Bloodflowers, and Wish, in that order, which I guess you could say are their most accessible albums. The rest of the albums are a great big meh for me, and I just dont find them interesting or very listenable. As for Disnitegration, it is a masterpiece in every sense of the word. The songs are all perfectly written and produced, with no subtle sound being out of place, and no track over-wrought with excessive production. The vocals are brilliant, the lyrics are haunting, and the music is varied and majestic. Between dark rockers like Lullaby and poppy love songs like Pictures of You, Disintegration covers the gamut of fantastic music, and no song is mediocre on this album. If you cant listen to the album from start to finish, there might be something wrong with you. If you dont own it, buy it. If you dont like it, get some taste.
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| always wonderful |
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| every cd put out by the cure is wonderful! if you are a serious cure fan like me defiently should get this cd!
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| stark, hauntingly seductive--the Cures first masterpiece |
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| Robert Smith explains in the 2005 2 CD deluxe edition reissue of Seventeen Seconds that this is the first record I felt was really The Cure, and although I feel this statement is pushing it a bit, its still very understandable. Although Smith was just turning 21 around the time of Seventeen Seconds initial release in April of 1980, the Cure had already made their first masterpiece. (It has now been reissued in single CD form in April of 2006.)It shouldnt be overlooked though that The Cures 1979 debut Three Imaginary Boys, a strong album in its own right, did point the way toward Seventeen Seconds, in particular on tracks like Another Day and especially the title track. Theres no denying though that Seventeen Seconds marks a major turning point for The Cure--the sound here is more thoroughly haunting, more claustrophobic, with an incredibly icy snare drum sound throughout, and with Smiths vocals often being pushed WAY back in the mix and never as upfront as on many of the songs from Three Imaginary Boys. Smith also explains in the deluxe edition liner notes that the group made virtually no modifications to their basic set-up throughout the albums entire 10-day recording session, and quite frankly, this method proved to be an absolute blessing. For one thing, it allowed the band to work quickly and affordably since they were still relatively low on money at the time. At the same time, it also accounts for the albums consistent sound which gives it an irresisible, mesmerizing flow. There dont appear to be that many overdubs at all on the album, which could be attibuted to the lack of time and money the band had at their disposal, but again, this proved to be an advantage--the starkness of the album is absolutely arresting. It appears that Smith pretty much had in mind exactly what he wanted when the band went into the studio to record Seventeen Seconds. As the saying goes, there doesnt appear to be a note out of place anywhere on the entire album--the overall level of craftsmanship is astonishing. The performances themselves are nearly as precise--the only time the band sounds a bit off is on the intro portion of Play For Today where Lol Tolhursts bass drumming seems to be a tad behind the beat. Tolhursts lack of technical proficiency on the drums has been well-documented, but aside from this extremely minor gripe, his limitations dont hinder the album whatsover. Frankly, on most of the songs you could almost swear the band was using a drum machine opposed to a real living drummer. Keyboardist Matthieu Hartley joined the band for just this one album before leaving. Play For Today, In Your House, M, A Forest, and the title track all use synthesizers in a mind-blowingly unobtrusive manner that enhances their moody feel. Every song here is in a minor key, and even with such a strong emphasis on mood, the band still managed to pile in catchy hooks and/ or arresting melodies into pretty much every song. Much of this is thanks to Smiths guitar work, which is brilliant throughout--check out his superbly rubbery rhythm work on Play For Today; his dreamy arpeggios on In Your House; and his ingeniously dissonant chords on At Night. A Forest is a thrilling uptempo epic that culminates in Smiths cathartic, frantic riffing, and the 8-note guitar riff that appears on the intro leaves such an impression that you might not even realize that it never reappears after the first minute and a half of this nearly-6-minute song. Like Pink Floyd before them, the Cure prove themselves to be masters of pacing. There are three instrumentals/ near-instrumentals here, and they each work as links in the chain as opposed to just album fillers. The album starts off with the gentle, yet creepy and contemplative instrumental A Reflection. Three has a robotic kind of repetitiveness to it, and is basically an instrumental, although there are some extremely buried vocals that seem to be mostly spoken and are almost totally inaudible. The atonal, haunted house-style The Final Sound, which is less than a minute, perfectly sets up A Forest. Theres just so much musical invention here... Smiths guitar kind of takes a backseat on Secrets which has a prominent, memorable bass line and extremely distant-sounding piano chiming. The beginning part of Play For Today features brilliant interplay between Gallups bass and Smiths expect use of guitar harmonics. The only track on the album that comes up a little short is the album-closing title track. Its not BAD--it does have a neat build-up and build-down, but it feels a bit too sketchy and melodramatic, as if they couldnt quite figure out how to bring the album to a satisfying conclusion. The Cure would go on to make more elaborately-produced recordings later on, but Seventeen Seconds remains a key touchstone in their discography, and a phenomenal record in its own right.
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| In response to SRS |
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| Breathe and A Chain Of Flowers are available on the Join The Dots boxset.Hey You!!! will be released with all its brothers and sisters in August 2006 as the next reissue campaign from Rhino (US) and Fiction/Uni (UK) takes place. They are releasing the deluxe editions of The Top, The Head On The Door, and Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me. They corrected the omission of Hey You!!! so we have the full album as it should be. Why it took them this long, I have no idea. Princes 1999 cd suffered the same fate (Warners omitted DMSR to make the 74 min disc, but corrected it in 1991 when the capacity was increased).OK, I should write a review...KMKMKM came out the summer I moved from my childhood home. I remember the video of Robert Smith dressed like a bear or something in the video for Why Cant I Be You? and I recall falling in love with the song. I went out, bought the cassette, and the rest is history. This shows The Cure in all facets of their career...moody, gloomy, depressing, happy, poppy, dancey, quirky, rhythmic, tribal, etc. Take all of The Cures works prior to 1987, mix it up onto a double album, and you have this one. Essential...even the filler is enjoyable if you are real Cure fan.
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| What music strives to be |
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| From the opening notes of Plainsong to the final bits of Untitled, Disintegration grabs the listener and envelopes them in its own dark atmosphere. Everyone has heard of Pictures of You and Love Song, But the true gem is the incredible Same Deep Water as You. Each note is clear and distinct, without distraction and overlapping sounds. Every instrument is precise and vibrant. In Lullaby, Robert Smith practically exhales every word as beautiful strings play in the background. This is an album that brings the listener into its world and shares its wonderful story.
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| I Give You Exhibit A |
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| Although their legions of fans would beg to differ and albums like Disintegration and The Head on the Door make a compelling argument to the contrary, The Cure have always been, first and foremost, a singles band. Need proof? Exhibit item A: Staring at the Sea -- The Singles.Here we have 17 songs that make the case, and make it very strongly. Sometimes these singles were dark and brooding (Charlotte Sometimes, Jumping Someone Elses Train, Boys Dont Cry) sometimes they were surprisingly upbeat and catchy (Lets Go To Bed, The Love Cats,) sometimes they fell somewhere in between (In Between Days, Close to Me) but always they were solid pop songs that pushed the boundaries without sacrificing listenability.Yes, Staring at the Sea -- The Singles, makes its case flawlessly and as if that wasnt enough there is Exhibit B -- the additional 18 tracks on Galore: The Singles 1987-1997.
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| Sounds much better |
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| Pornography may be the definitive Cure album. The group has had some serious missteps, several lineup changes, all the highs and lows that go with a thirty year history, but this one is on the mark from begining to end. Many fans cite the 1989 masterpiece Disintergration as the groups finest hour, and Ill stay out of the debate (personally, I am partial to Faith, despite its obvious shortcomings)--but if there is such a thing as a Cure aesthetic, it finds some of its best exprression here. The sound is stipped down, ominous interlocking drums and bass. The lyrics are mostly superb. From the opening of the disc, It doesnt matter if we all die (can there be a better summation to the groups gestalt?), to the self-referential final lines of the work, there is real passion here. It flirts with solipsism--a characteristic that mars much of their other work--but never quite crosses over. Whether youre 14 and screaming at the moon, or 40 and covering your face as the animals die, there is poetry enough here.
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| Ignore Show |
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| SHOW is just a cash-in on the pop hits that have been played too many times. PARIS is a fantastic live CD that shows The Cure to be brave enough to release dark songs that are much less well-known. Im especially pleased with the inclusion of Dressing Up from THE TOP. Always a nice song, its even better live, and no one seems to have ever heard of it, which is a shame.This is a very well-produced product from the 1992 tour. The performances are amazing all around. The version of The Figurehead which opens it is fantastic. Slowed down and even darker than the original from ..., it sets the mood very well. One Hundred Years is awesome, as always, and ends with Robert playing the riff from Foxy Lady for a moment or two. Very cool.Im glad they included A Letter to Elise and Apart from WISH on here. Theyre the two best songs on the album this tour was promoting, certainly a lot better than High and Friday Im in Love, which are more well-known. (Of course, the two popular songs are very nice, too.)Ending with Close to Me is a bit of an odd choice, I think, but its always a groovy tune. Honestly, though, I think I would have rather it end with A Forest. Ah, well. Maybe someday theyll release a Deluxe Edition PARIS with the entire show included. Thatd be great.
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| there arent enough superaltives for this album |
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| i admit i was never the biggest cure fan in the world. i thought kiss me, kiss me, kiss me had some great songs (hot, hot, hot, catch, like cocatoos, why cant i be you? and, of course, just like heaven) and i was mildy amused by songs like the walk, lets go to bed and inbetween days. i remember being in high school and watching postmodern MTV (when MTV actually had a redeeming quality) every night with that goofy host, kevin seal, and ocassionally catching a cure video (me, well, i was more in the DM camp instead of the cure). dont get me wrong, i liked the cure, but to my adolescent mind they couldnt top the mighty mode. however, my opinion of the cure forever changed when i saw the world premiere of the video for fascination street. who was this new cure? robert smith and co. always gleefully played in the darkness, but fascination street seemed more purposeful and direct than previous cure songs id heard. it kept the cures trademark darkness, but there was something else to it. what was it? 15 years on i still dont know. i went to the sadly defunct crandall audio in orem, utah and bought disintegration with my hard-earned lawnmowing money that week (i still have the old cd longbox cds used to come in). nothing couldve prepared me for the beauty of the albums opener (and standout, in my opinion), plainsong. everyone whos said disintegration (appropriately titled, by the way) is a moody, atmospheric album is spot-on. few albums drum up the raw emotions we all feel inside quite like disintegration. it was an interesting blend of peddled-guitars, tinny bass, spooky synths, and robert smiths trademark yalps. it was shortly thereafter i saw the video for lullaby. i thought i was having a nightmare. its still a brilliant song and the second best song on the album (in my opinion). most of us will also probably feel some nostalgia for pictures of you, and love song, too. theyre the kind of love songs that could only come from the cure. as someone else correctly noted, disintergration is very much a concept album. how else do you explain every song coming in at 5+ minutes? (well, most anyway). in short, disintegration is indeed the cures defining moment, much like violator was depeche modes, the innocents, was erasures, earth sun moon was love and rockets, and technique was new orders. now that i think about it, the late 80s and early 90s had some truly great music. 1989, the year of disintegration, is particularly noteworthy.if youre new to the movement, disintegration is essential listening. its huge, bold, experimental, purposeful, direct, nebulous, moody, eerie, creepy, spooky, heartbreaking and ultimately beautiful.im still not a huge cure fan, but ill disintegrate anytime.
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| The first real Cure album |
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| If youre new to the Cure, you problably know them as a gloomy goth band. Well, if you pick up their first CD(Three Imaginary Boys), you would never have known. Their second album, Seventeen Seconds, took the band to a very dark place. Of coure, they got MUCH darker on the next two albums.This is known as the first part of The Dark Trilogy, which is followed by Faith and Pornography. The early Cure records that kind of stand by themselves. They arent as produced as later offerings, with a more low-key sound than usual(the exception being Pornography). The album IS very low key, and original CD pressings(and perhaps record pressings too) really ruined the sound of this album. The voice was too low, the drums were much louder than the rest of the instruments...it was a mess. It took me many years to really appreciate this CD, thanks to the god-awful sound reproduction on the old CDs. Well, they fixed it, thank god. The instruments have been raised up closer to the drums. The voice sounds louder in certain songs(At Night), and everything just sounds more full, unlike the old pressing. It really has made all the difference in the world.The CD is pretty solid, with only a couple of weaker tracks. A Forest is amazing as usual, as is At Night. Songs like Secrets and Play For Today are great as well. In Your House sounds far less repetetive now that you can hear the damn keyboards! A very low key and gloomy album, but not so much as Faith. I really like this one a lot, because it is gloomy, but not so sluggish as Faith, and has more hooks. A really big step in the right direction for The Cure. If youre new to The Cure, and have been thinking about picking this up, get this one over the Deluxe Edition. Far cheaper, and the deluxe edition only has a couple of songs that a really worth owning. If you have the old CD pressing, and have always been frustrated with the sound, pick this up. Of coure, the voice on Secrets is still really low, but thats the way im guessing it was intended(keep quiet)Sam M.
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| Unfocussed Slosh |
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| No matter how often and how many times Ive tried to listen to this album I cannot get more than half way without getting so bored with it that Im compelled to change discs. The Cure has been my all-time favourite band since 1985, and still is to this day (2006), but this album is simply unlistenable drivel. Its not that objectively speaking, the album is the worst thing since Celine Dion, but, standing against the background of such groundbreaking classic Cure favourites as Faith, Pornography and Disintegration; Wild Mood Swings falls right out of the swing and hits itself badly on the head, concussing and haemmorrhaging to death on the hard earth of reality.Some tracks are catchy enough, especially the openers Want, Club America and The 13th, but nonetheless come over as sounding so similar to tracks already done wonderfully before (respectively Open, Harold and Joe and The Lovecats) that theyre less like original variations than pale caricatures of them. From there its all down-swing as the album does a bland, unfocussed and uninspired take on jangly Brit-style pop and ballads. Songs like Mint Car sound so obviously like Smith is trying so incredibly hard to be happy and poppy and fluffy (when hes probably just really drunk) that you cant help cringing when you listen to them. Smith himself has said this is his least liked album The Cure has done of them all. If youre interested in The Cure but new to them - avoid this one, and stick to one of the certified greats, such as the above mentioned titles.
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| BRILLIANT |
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| stop crying everyone. get over it. so pictures of you isnt on this album. it doesnt matter, every song on here is great, and essentially there most popular songs from the charts.UNBELIEVABLE! the cure are the best band ever.
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| Forged In The Darkest Depths of The Human Psyche |
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| One could not fathom a darker, bleaker, disturbing, haunting, clouded, doomed album than Pornography. The opening song, One Hundred Years immediately captures the listener and sends them on their way to the catacombs of darkness. As soon as this song starts, I picture a large manor on the top of a hill with a spiral staircase in the very center of the main room and a gray faced dressed in a black tuxedo carrying a tray of stale food, slowly making his way down the staircase with his head staring straight ahead, never looking down, yet somehow remaining perfectly balanced. The man continues his plight, down and down he goes, down and down. He never will make it the the main room above the staircase again. He will try and possibly even get his feet to the second stair from the top, but he will remain trapped in that spiral staircase for eternity. I have to stop there, because the imagery gets much worse, nearly unbearable. The thoughts and images that form in my mind are far too morbid. They are colder than an ice woven knife sliding down the vein of a warm wrist. If you arent ready to endure something comparable to what I have described then be wary of purchasing this album. If you believe you are ready, then you are in for an experience like none you have ever had before. Pornography is my second favorite album of all time. In case you were wondering, my favorite album of all time is Disintegration.
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| A Victim Of 1 Disc Band Overviews |
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| Around the turn of the century, record companies began to released one disc compilations that attempted to take artists with a ton of output and try to make an 80 minute attempt to capture the essentials. Needless to say, all of these attempts have failed. Great songs were overlooked, and instead of giving a quality overview of the band, one got instead the feeling of being ripped off. The Cures Greatest Hits falls victim to the one disc overview.A greatet hit album serves two purposes. One is to collect the best for fans who may desire to have many of their favorites on one album. The second is to provide new-comers to the band an overview of their career. The problem with The Cure is that they have released over 30 singles, and no single disc set can truly capture the best of their work.For instance, how does a Cure best of ignore Pictures of You? It would be akin to a Billy Joel best of leaving off The Stranger. This song is considered one of the Cures best, and leaving this off for stuff like The Walk, High, and Never Enough is an insult.While Pictures of You is the biggest example of a song that is missing, there are plenty of other songs of lesser impact that still should have been on there. For instance, the sublime Catch, the melancholy A Night Like This, or even Jumping Someone Elses Train. And what about their break-out single, Killing An Arab?The problem with this album is that it attempts to provide an overview of the Cure but instead only barely touches the surface. Leave this one on the CD racks and spend the extra money to get Staring at the Sea and Galore.
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| whet your appetite for the Cure with these tunes |
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| Being a Cure fan who did not at all like this talented and innovative bands early music when it first came out (way too dark and down for my pop sensibilities), and really only turned on to them with a few tracks on The Head on the Door, but mostly with Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me (not only cause the band put out such great music by then, but because I became friends with one of the guys in the bands brothers, who was a really nice guy and a huge fan and supporter of their music, of course), this CD satisfies my desire to hear many of their mid-to-later career singles, all in a handy single disc that I can keep in my car and play whenever I need a quick Cure fix. Songs like The Lovecats, Just Like Heaven, Inbetween Days, Lovesong, Why Cant I Be You?, Boys Dont Cry, Lets Go to Bed, and Friday Im in Love bring me back to a different time and head when I need some escape from the stressors of the present, and always provide me immense aural pleasure. A good collection from the 1985 and on (I think) period to whet the appetites of future fans, who can then go out and get the LPs from whence these songs came for a real bite of the band.
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| Disintegration is the best album of all time. |
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| There is a positive and a negative side to this being the best album of all time. The positive is that Disintegration is the only thing I will ever need in the realm of music. The negative is that everything else I listen to is filler for this album.
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| A 1980s classic, but best left to Cure fans |
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| Roberts very uncomfortable vocals on this record make it unlistenable for most people who arent Cure fans. But, for those of us who like the band, we can appreciate how they fit the music.This record has some great songs, like Piggy in the Mirror. Thats one of my very favorite of the bands songs. Give Me It is one track I always skip, however.The record is very rooted in the 80s, though, and unlike Pornography, a record that wasnt well-liked when it came out, this one doesnt seem like it suits the taste of the current generation. Theres not enough angst and its not mainstream, either.
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| More mainstream and straightforward rock than normal for the Cure |
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| This is a Cure record that I once loved (as a kid) and now almost never listen to. It really is good, though. Songs like Screw are very 80s, and may not hold up so well today. Others, like Push and Sinking, are timeless.My favorite Cure records are Seventeen Seconds, Faith, and Pornography. That is the real Cure trilogy. But, I really love some of their other work. Nothing after Disintegration is worth listening to, though.
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| Problematic |
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| Firstly, the CD is still missing Hey You, even though modern CD players can play 80 minute discs. Further, its missing the songs Breathe and A Chain of Flowers, which are B-sides that should have been included since theyre better than songs that made the cut like Torture, Fight, and The Perfect Girl.This CD desperately needs to come out in remastered form (no clipping or compression in the remastering process, please) with Breathe, A Chain of Flowers, and Hey You.
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| A compilation in need of remastering |
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| For some odd reason or the other, I had suddenly had an interest in The Cure. I determined that Greatest Hits simply had to be missing too many good tracks, I instead picked up this and Galore at the same time.The album is an interesting look at the progression of the early Cure from punk rock to new wave. One can hear the band grow into more complex arrangements and more elegant lyrics. While the beginning and the end of the album are incredibly strong, it is the middle of the album the suffers the most. Seemingly, the hooks that grabbed you with Boys Dont Cry disappeared into a sort of drone. However, with Lets Go To Bed, the songs begin to pop out and grab you again.However, that is not to say that the middle part of the album is lacking. Given a few listens, a few of the songs do show themselves as strong, like Charlotte Sometimes, a few still show themselves as weak, like Other Voices.From the highs (A Night Like This) to the lows (The Caterpiller), the album does give the best overview of The Cures early career.While the best of the music has aged very well, one part of this album has not - the sound. The master used is from the early days of CDs, and this albums mastering shows off every fault that the CD has in terms of sound. The sound can be lifeless on some tracks (Killing An Arab), too cold (Love Cats), too harsh (The Forest, Charlotte Sometimes), and at best is just acceptable (In Between Days). The sound does harm the music, and frankly, it is in serious need of a remastering job.However, while the sound is terrible, it is a price one has to pay in order to get a quality over-view of their early period. Forget Greatest Hits, which boasts superior sound but has a pretty poor selection, and pick up both this and Galore if you are looking for an overview of The Cures career.
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| The Bottom |
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| The Cure: The Top: Being considered a masterpiece by certain obsessive fans but actually one of the worst opuses, along with Wild Mood Swings. I know a huge fan who found Disintegration dry and utterly predictable simply because it is not as weird as the Top, but the point is that weird music is not always good music. If you want good Cure music, then pick up Disintegration, which is a true masterpiece that contains some of the best melodies by Robert Smith.
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| Mediocre at its best |
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| The Cures Wish: unmemorable pop tunes, mindless lyrics, great production but the material is inferior to Disintegration. A few tracks such as Open and Apart are apparently the best songs on the album. There is really nothing special can be found here.
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| Absolutely love this band, absolutely hate this CD |
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| This sounds like a constipated chicken. The first time I saw it I thought it was a collection of trashy outtakes, but no its a weirdos delight. I mean cmon this is kinda for weird (Give Me It?).Id also like to bring up a song that particularly sounds horrible. That would be Give Me It. Thats what sounds like a constipated chicken. Robert Smith is like ahhhhoooo and rawkkkkk and SCREAMING FOR LOVE, SCREAMING FOR AIR which is exactly what you hear from a constipated farm animal. You hear them go SCREAMING FOR ICE CREAM, SCREAMING FOR RELIEF when theyre constipated, so I believe Robert Smith knows what I do.
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| Go to Napster and buy the whole thing for $10 |
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| I really really love this album. With that said, you must be wondering why Im giving it 3 stars. Well ... the entire first disc of b-sides is amazing, while the other 3 quickly dive from ho-hum to the point where youre scrapping the barrel for good tracks. ... AND this would have gotten 5 stars if it were the first (essential) disc for only $10. After breaking the first disc, I pondered whether or not to buy the whole thing new. And then I found it on Napster for $10; think of it as a great b-side album from 3IB - Head Cure + 3 bonus discs.Yay!
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