Who likes listening to The Cure

[E.J. Matze]

Who likes listening to the Cure?

On YouTube there are numerous integral live-concerts to be enjoyed.

Their typical sound both gloomy and dreamed with a nice beat and mysterious lyrics.

They are around for 30+ years...

[zacharythax]

Very hit or miss. Of course, their early stuff like THREE IMAGINARY BOYS and PORNOGRAPHY was right on target. A vastly underrated band to be sure.

[melissa scott]

Ok, I'll admit it, I never got it with The Cure. Is it too poppy? Too faux Goth? They always seemed like they were TRYING to be clever instead of actually being so.

If I've missed something, do tell. Is there any way to get "Love Cats" lalalalala out of my head long enough to hear the good stuff?

[E.J. Matze]

(...) It isn't garagepunk, that's for sure.
 
melissa scott said:

Ok, I'll admit it, I never got it with The Cure. Is it too poppy? Too faux Goth? They always seemed like they were TRYING to be clever instead of actually being so.

If I've missed something, do tell. Is there any way to get "Love Cats" lalalalala out of my head long enough to hear the good stuff?

[John Battles]

 It's hard for people to imagine that there was once a time when The Cure , like REM or U2 , were an underground band  (More on that in a moment. ) . In my best estimation , they have NUTHIN' to do with Punk Rock or Garage Rock , but , just to play devil's advocate , I'll mention that they go back far enough to be considered an early Punk Reaction Group. A more Art School take on the somewhat more experimental sounds that came about when Punk (As a movement , at the very least.) was limping to the finish gate.....You know , PIL , Magazine , Gang of Four , stuff like that.

The Cure's first album had some discordant , sorta - psychedelic guitar work , smeared liberally on their 2nd and 3rd albums , which were VERY languid affairs.  Strangely enough, it seems around the time they actually allowed themselves to be photographed on their records , they really took a turn for the worse. Seeing Robert Smith , soon a lesser idol to the MTV generation , and a bigger one to the late in emerging U.S. Goth fanbase , ONE COULD SEE HOW IN LOVE WITH HIMSELF HE WAS.....

Only Billy Corgan would beat his time a few years later , and if you don't think HE was heavily influenced by The Cure , THINK AGAIN.

In the very early 80's , trust me , REM , and even U2 , were playing small clubs for chump change in the states , sometimes to half - empty houses , or worse. Art School Brigade bands like Echo and The Bunnymen and Ultravox (In their "We used to be Punk Reaction , but it's all over now "incarnation.), and even Siouxsie and The Banshees were playing Punk clubs , yet to see the big payday , even if they'd had hits in The UK and on The Continent (The waiting list for a U.S. chart placement on a UK hit in the early 80's was one year to never. ) . Of course , The Cure were a big live act in America by about 1985. What's telling is that a rare , great program on MTV , "IRS's The Cutting Edge" (Hosted by Peter Zaremba from The Fleshtones.) , approached The Cure about doing an appearance , and were turned down flat.  When the show began to take off , The Cure's people contacted the program to reneg , as though they'd never snubbed them in the first place. They were told , outright , "You had your chance , and now you're playing to 19 ,000 people in Los Angeles .  You turned us down , once . Now , we're turning YOU down.

[E.J. Matze]

Gosh

John Battles said:

 It's hard for people to imagine that there was once a time when The Cure , like REM or U2 , were an underground band  (More on that in a moment. ) . In my best estimation , they have NUTHIN' to do with Punk Rock or Garage Rock , but , just to play devil's advocate , I'll mention that they go back far enough to be considered an early Punk Reaction Group. A more Art School take on the somewhat more experimental sounds that came about when Punk (As a movement , at the very least.) was limping to the finish gate.....You know , PIL , Magazine , Gang of Four , stuff like that.

The Cure's first album had some discordant , sorta - psychedelic guitar work , smeared liberally on their 2nd and 3rd albums , which were VERY languid affairs.  Strangely enough, it seems around the time they actually allowed themselves to be photographed on their records , they really took a turn for the worse. Seeing Robert Smith , soon a lesser idol to the MTV generation , and a bigger one to the late in emerging U.S. Goth fanbase , ONE COULD SEE HOW IN LOVE WITH HIMSELF HE WAS.....

Only Billy Corgan would beat his time a few years later , and if you don't think HE was heavily influenced by The Cure , THINK AGAIN.

In the very early 80's , trust me , REM , and even U2 , were playing small clubs for chump change in the states , sometimes to half - empty houses , or worse. Art School Brigade bands like Echo and The Bunnymen and Ultravox (In their "We used to be Punk Reaction , but it's all over now "incarnation.), and even Siouxsie and The Banshees were playing Punk clubs , yet to see the big payday , even if they'd had hits in The UK and on The Continent (The waiting list for a U.S. chart placement on a UK hit in the early 80's was one year to never. ) . Of course , The Cure were a big live act in America by about 1985. What's telling is that a rare , great program on MTV , "IRS's The Cutting Edge" (Hosted by Peter Zaremba from The Fleshtones.) , approached The Cure about doing an appearance , and were turned down flat.  When the show began to take off , The Cure's people contacted the program to reneg , as though they'd never snubbed them in the first place. They were told , outright , "You had your chance , and now you're playing to 19 ,000 people in Los Angeles .  You turned us down , once . Now , we're turning YOU down.