The Cure: Classic or Dud?

I just hope that any new stuff doesn't sound as terrible production-wise as the last one. The crap production on 4:13 Dream was doubly irritating as it spoiled some of - IMO - the bands best material for years.

ask yourself, what was the last cure record with good production

The last Cure album with production I couldn't fault from end-to-end was Wish. I also think that Wild Mood Swings mostly sounds good even if the material isn't their strongest. The mix on Bloodflowers is too cluttered, and Ross Robinson proved himself unsuitable for the band (as they were at the time of recording) on the self-titled...

...but the sound on 4:13 Dream is a different level of bad. Badly engineered (the muffled drum sound!), badly mixed (whoever EQ'd and balanced the levels was fucking deaf, I swear) and on top of it badly mastered.

Yeah. OTM on all of this. I believe RS to be the main culprit for the production job (and his overall attitude that louder is always better). So I have only mild curiosity for a potential new record (I’ll believe it when I see it).

(and his overall attitude that louder is always better)

This was fine when his ears worked: contrast the "mixed to play loud so turn it up" Disintegration vs the Disintegration/Entreat remaster.

I was listening to some podcast defending Bob Rock's production of "St. Anger," not saying it was good but basically saying that Metallica was a huge superstar act with tons of power and endless resources who could probably have gotten any producer they wanted, and therefore that the only way the album could end up sounding like it did was because the band wanted it that way. Which is to say, yeah, if a Cure album sounds bad, blame Robert Smith.

Wish really is an incredible sounding album, some of the best dreamy guitar sounds of the 90s

i love wish. it brings back memories. the last cure album i have any relation to whatsoever.

If only I'd thought of the right words... https://t.co/GGJC6Ujt0a

— Jake Rudh (@JakeRudh) March 31, 2019

LOL

ROBERT

Read a few people on social media calling him a dick for the way he responded to this chirpy, annoying robot. He's always been a dick to the phonies and I have to love the fact he hasn't tempered it with age.

i loled when i saw this and i am a reasonably perky person
it was funny!

hahaha, go Robert Smith!

The other thing is that the reporter tweeted about it and it seems like she wasn't offended, so I don't quite get the people offended on her behalf.

I remember countless interviews with alt-rock stars from MTV days, so many of them were comically bad

complainers are concern-trolling for sure

the Cure get endless good will for their epically-long live shows, they played like 36 songs last time I saw them

On a side note: how come Simon Gallup hasn't got severe back problems?

I remember reading that Nils Lofgren had knee and hip problems because Neil Young made him wear ankle weights to stop him from moving around so much. Maybe Simon otherwise stands so disconcertingly erect they give him an extra heavy bass?

On a side note: how come Simon Gallup hasn't got severe back problems?

He's played 141 gigs in ten years, and probably has enough pull to get a box of epsom salts on the rider

Probably got some tips from Peter Hook.

Or, like, Rob Trujillo:

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/PE4yTibqNmWMgbkPA8Q7u.jpg

Hahaha

Hook originally learnt to play at a normal incorrect height, then saw the Clash for the first time "and never wore the bass above my bollocks again"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxoSHmoCVp8

1. Shake Dog Shake 00:38
2. A Forest 05:12
3. Lovesong 12:19
4. Just Like Heaven 15:52
5. Boys Don't Cry 19:46

For a five song set, that actually does a pretty good job summing them up.

Yeah, there's a little of everything there... and nothing past 1989.

Back on the Schecters, boo

Was Boris there?

He was! About 5:30 on this clip: https://m.youtube.com/watch?fbclid=IwAR2dVIOczM7VGWYCEQn4XFTNgQyOPD4B-z7MGR_6dLzsEnpWR0gbH2sJbUM&v=VFINzd26anI

Yeah pretty much everyone?

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D3FTKR5WoAADl9Y.jpg:large

Plus Trent, their new roadie. Speaking of roadies, thought this was a good thread:

I've been watching all 273 former members of the Cure take their victory lap over the weekend. They all seem very proud to have played their small part in the saga and grateful for the recognition, but Perry Bamonte is the only one who seems sad that he's not in the band anymore.

— Svenllamus Horribilis (@svenllama) April 1, 2019

I still think that Robert firing Perry and Roger after The Cure was a really crap thing of him to do. At least Roger got to be back in the band. After Pearl (formerly Porl) Thompson left the band (again), Perry wasn't invited back.

pretty much everyone?

I'm figuring the grey beanie is Boris and the dark beanie is Dempsey, so Mathieu Hartley and Phil Thornalley are the only exclusions once Andy died and Bob insisted Reeves counted

Cure keyboard must be a tough gig. One finger solos, trying not to look bored ...

There's also things like 'Homesick' ...

Ha, maybe that explains why they so rarely play it: 15 times since 1989.

I would have thought that might have something to do with it not being one of their more popular live numbers than any difficulty Roger O'Donnell would have playing keyboard parts that he himself actually played on the studio version to begin with(!)

opening with Shake Dog Shake = CLASSIC

yeah that's a pretty good selection. Surprised that RS didn't invite any old members on stage but I guess a couple of them harbor bad feelings (Perry by the looks of it, Pearl/Porl judging from his comments on social media).

Pearl/Porl judging from [...] comments on social media

?

called them a tribute band or something on Instagram

xp Porl changed his name to Pearl a few years ago now

oh nvm i misread that because i'm tired lol

I would have thought that might have something to do with it not being one of their more popular live numbers than any difficulty Roger O'Donnell would have playing keyboard parts that he himself actually played on the studio version to begin with(!)

Oh, I never meant it wasn't played because it was difficult, quite the contrary! I said it must be tough to be a Cure keyboard player because the vast majority of the songs are simple/minimal/one-finger, yet many of their players have been more than competent enough to handle more complex stuff, which I can imagine is pretty frustrating/boring/stultifying. And yet RS clearly prefers that nothing gets too fancy, so any any keyboard player ready and hopeful for a Homesick or something a bit more flashy is going to be stuck playing a lot of tambourine.

xpost The last time I saw the band, some time ago, was when they were playing as a keyboard-free four-piece, iirc, with Porl, and I remember being pretty disappointed. It sounds like they've sort of sprung back to life after that, but I haven't had a chance to catch them again since.

I saw that tour and I kinda liked it as a full-on rock Cure. And given Pearl left of her own volition, unsure why she's complaining.

complaining is fun!