The Cure's Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me Poll

I think it's an odd choice for a second single, especially when "Just Like Heaven" is an option. But I think it would've made sense as the 4th single after "Hot Hot Hot!!!".

This is the first Cure album that I couldn't just enjoy start to finish. There are a couple filler tracks imo, and "Catch" is just insipid.

― rip van wanko, Sunday, October 8, 2017 5:37 PM (yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Yeah, I mostly agree... I can listen to everything from Three Imaginary Boys up until The Head on the Door without really wanting to skip anything, even the tracks I'm less keen on. Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me probably would have worked better condensed down to a single LP.

'Catch' is... alright, I suppose. One of the lesser/less essential '80s tracks, and a momentum killer on the record, too... I find myself often skipping it to get to the excellent 'Torture'

That 'Torture' got zero votes and 'Catch' got five is just stupid.

just listened to Catch and it really hit me. It's been a while.

I love "Catch" and "Torture". KMKMKM is my favorite Cure album. I love that it's long, I wish they'd found a way to include "A Japanese Dream" and "Breathe" too.

Torture, Hey You and Fight are the only bum notes on this album. The length, the sprawl, the scope are key to the album. HOTD sounds like a set of tinny demos in comparison

The Head on the Door is one of the absolute best records The Cure ever made, so I couldn't possibly agree.

To each their own. I’d rank it at the bottom of their pre-92 imperial phase

Did you mean Chain of Flowers and Breathe? I thought A Japanese Dream was pre-87

HOTD is the best Cure album though.

Eh.

"A Japanese Dream" was the B-Side to "Why Can't I Be You". (x-post)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=npIBmz_i8_A

Oh yeah, that is good. I was thinking of The Upstairs Room.

I can hear the cockatoo wings.

Nice capsule; hard disagree on Shiver and Shake but otherwise on board. I remember waiting and waiting for this to come out, it was too much to digest.

Just Like Heaven may be the best song ever written.

(NB: only a writer would write the line, “Daylight licked me into shape”)

The concept dates back to antiquity, people used to think bears were born as formless masses and the parents literally licked them into shape.

Shoulda been a single. THIS mix!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWHXQU23V4o

The concept dates back to antiquity, people used to think bears were born as formless masses and the parents literally licked them into shape.

― avellano medio inglés (f. hazel)

Sure! I just meant the verb.

that's the verb you use for that idiom, to lick something into shape... I must be missing something

No, I am. I didn't know this idiom existed, much less to be used in a pop song. Thanks!

ah man "torture" is amazing

i actually like "Hot Hot Hot!!!" the song is just so funky and fun. they were just throwing things at the wall and made a double album out of it. didn't like it as a single and agree with piscesx that "How Beautiful You Are" should have been the single instead. "A Thousand Hours" need to be on the album as it fits in at the perfect time. "Torture" is stunning, so heavy. i would probably only rank "Shiver and Shake" and "Hey You" in the meh category. the later might just be a product of being left off of the original CD version and never really found it's way back. my two cents in 2020 and good piece Alfred.

today i would probably vote for "All I Want."

We happen to be sitting in our living room, watching a TV production of their 40th Anniversary concert (Hyde Park, London), with closed captioning on. I’ve really never paid attention to his lyrics before, but a lot of them kinda read like “dummy” lyrics... I dunno.

Every song on this is so good, except for "A Thousand Hours" which I hate

i actually like "Hot Hot Hot!!!" the song is just so funky and fun. they were just throwing things at the wall and made a double album out of it. didn't like it as a single and agree with piscesx that "How Beautiful You Are" should have been the single instead. "A Thousand Hours" need to be on the album as it fits in at the perfect time. "Torture" is stunning, so heavy. i would probably only rank "Shiver and Shake" and "Hey You" in the meh category. the later might just be a product of being left off of the original CD version and never really found it's way back. my two cents in 2020 and good piece Alfred.

― Bee OK, Wednesday, April 22, 2020

Thank you. I prefer the Mixed Up version of HHH!!! but the vocal is an intestinal cramp.

you’re an intestinal cramp

*groan*

I love this record and I really love the b-sides disc it came with. My favourite orange thing in the world.

https://www.popsike.com/pix/20120318/251020704065.jpg

omigod

Oh that is beautiful

I would cut Torture and Fight (both cheesy in similar ways) but the rest is perfect. Why Can’t I Be You also grates.
It took me a while to get into them but these days, besides the obvious ones, 1000 Hours (Dan you are crazy) and Icing Sugar are amongst my faves.

FOR HOW MUCH LOOOONGER CAN I CATERWAUL LIKE A SAD VULTURE INTO THIS WIIII-HIIIIII-HINND

https://ssl.adam.com/graphics/images/en/19578.jpg

I would ditch Snakepit, Shiver and Shake, Torture, and Fight. Only saving Hey You because the album title is in the lyrics and Hot Hot Hot because of the kervorkian remix.

saving Hey You because the album title is in the lyrics
the album title is literally the first line of the first track, "The Kiss"

Bonus, then I’m happy to ditch Hey You too! Are there other albums where the title appears in the lyrics to different songs?

All this debate underscores my point -- thanks to Alfred for singling it out -- that the band essentially provided a full array of choices and left you to decide what works best.

xp: Yes, Wish is another album that has two potential title tracks.

"The Snakepit" and "Torture" are among the best songs on the album, IMO.

At one point I'd turned this album into a very angry/disjointed playlist:

The Kiss
Torture
How Beautiful You Are...
The Snakepit
All I Want
Like Cockatoos
Shiver and Shake
Fight

^^^ 100% baller IMO

Also, I played "Fight" in high school English class after we discussed "Do not go gentle into that good night" and got a bunch of the honors metalheads into the album.

Yeah I dunno. I find Fight pretty cringey these days. And Torture is mostly ruined by that dated horn preset.

Snakepit, If Only Tonight and Cuckatoos are all-time though.

"Torture" has a cracker of a bass line.

Boris/Simon/Pearl are so good on this album

Listening to this straight through for the first time in ages and I severely underrate this album

every song on this is flawless even the bad ones

I listened to that bright orange 12" of b-sides more than the actual album. Also I really loved the cover art during this era of the Cure, aside from the music. My favorite of all their logos!

Amazed I still have my vinyl copy of this after regrettably purging so many good quality records and CDs during my teen years.

It's my favorite Cure album. I think "A Japanese Dream" and "Breathe" should've been on it instead of "Shiver and Shake" and "A Thousand Hours", but it was an embarrassment of riches really.

hi!