When a group has been around for 25 years the toughest challenge is keeping things fresh. The Cure's Robert Smith tackled this by bringing in an outside producer for the first time. Ross Robinson really shook things up in the studio, forcing bandmates to spill their guts to one another (often putting long-time friendships under strain).
The upheaval was worth it though because the result is this brilliantly terrifying collection of songs. Album opener 'Lost' draws you in with a murmur that gradually becomes a frenzied scream. Next up is ‘Labyrinth’, the sound of a bad trip where familiar faces turn sinister ("It's not the same you" Smith wails).
Most of what follows throws you about like a raft in a raging ocean so that when the mood lightens into poppier moments ('The End of the World', 'Taking Off') you want to cling to them for dear life.
The album closes magnificently too with scrawling wah-wah guitar tearing a bloody wound across 'The Promise' before the gentler 'Going Nowhere' bids a wistful farewell. There are echoes of former glories here (1982's Pornography especially) but The Cure still sounds vibrant, scary and most importantly fresh.
Midway through Smith states "I want this to be the last thing we do”. If it is, it's a hell of a way to go.
By Andy McLean. Copyright held by author.
First published in The Brag, Sydney, 2004.
The Cure is available through Geffen Records.
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