Cure fans will get “The Only One” on the 13th
Yes, The Cure might very well be bordering on self-parody. But every so often, glimmers of the old magic still surface in their music, as was the case with their 2004 self-titled album. And that’s enough to get my inner 10th grader excited and hopeful whenever news surfaces from Robert Smith and Co. concerning new music.
The Cure’s new, as-yet-untitled album (their thirteenth overall), is due out September 13th. And in order to whet our appetites, the band will be releasing singles from the album on the 13th of every month up until September. On May 13th, the band will release “The Only One” (with b-side “NY Trip"). More info can be found here.
You can hear a portion of “The Only One” on their homepage, and while it might not rank up with the singles of yore, it’s solid enough. Plus, it’s always fun to hear Smith throw around some sexual innuendo in that silly, precocious way of his.
Comments
The Visitor
May 3, 2008 12:45amwell, The Cure only SEEM like they’re heading for self-parody because so many bands have copied their sound.
Jason
May 3, 2008 3:47pmI agree with you, up to a point. However, there’s no denying that every Cure album contains elements that are so melodramatic and over-the-top, that you just have to know the band—or at least Robert Smith—is in on the joke. Indeed, one of the reasons why we love them so much is that they pull it off without seeming indulgent.
However, I’d argue that some of the more recent albums—basically, everything post-"Wish"—don’t achieve that balance as well as before.
I think I might like “Wild Mood Swings” a bit more than I did when it came out, but it’s still a wildly inconsistent album. I know “Bloodflowers” was supposed to be a return to the glory days of “Pornography” and “Disintegration”, but it’s such a tired and exhausted-sounding album. The self-titled release brought back some of the intensity, thanks to Ross Robinson’s production, but there were still moments where you weren’t sure if the band even cared anymore or not.
All that being said, I still have enough love for Smith and Co. after all of these years—likely due to an unhealthy amount of nostalgia—that I’ll be buying their albums until the end of days.
The Visitor
May 3, 2008 10:30pmi’m always wary of when critics describe an album as being “back to the glory days” of a band. it’s another way of saying “Your last few albums were crap.” :)
Bloodflowers had some strong tracks but overall, it wasn’t a strong album. i think the only possible “complaint” about The Cure is that they’re not into reinventing themselves, like say, U2. they just do what they do best, and keep on doing it. i’m a believer in the saying “If it ain’t broke, why fix it?”. But yes, I do agree that at some point, this does pose a danger of self-parody.