The Cure

The Cure are an English rock band formed in Crawley in 1976 by Robert Smith (vocals, guitar) and Lol Tolhurst (drums). The band's current line-up comprises Smith, Perry Bamonte (guitar and keyboards), Reeves Gabrels (guitar), Simon Gallup (bass), Roger O'Donnell (keyboards), and Jason Cooper (drums). Smith has remained the only constant member throughout numerous line-up changes since the band's formation, including stints with guitarist Porl Thompson and drummer Boris Williams.

The Cure's debut album Three Imaginary Boys (1979), along with several early singles, placed the band at the forefront of the emerging post-punk and new wave movements that were gaining prominence in the United Kingdom. The band adopted a new and increasingly dark and tormented style beginning with their second album Seventeen Seconds (1980), which, together with Smith's fashion sense, had a strong influence on the emerging genre of gothic rock and the goth subculture that eventually formed around it. Smith introduced more pop into the band's music following the release of their fourth album Pornography (1982), leading them to worldwide mainstream success. The band reached their commercial peak with the albums Disintegration (1989) and Wish (1992).

The Cure have released 14 studio albums, two EPs, and over 40 singles, selling more than 30 million records worldwide.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019. Their 14th album Songs of a Lost World (2024) was their first release of all-new material in 16 years and received widespread acclaim, topping the charts in multiple countries (including the UK, their first number one album in the country since 1992) and becoming one of the year's fastest selling albums.

History

1973–1979: Formation and early years

The founding members of the Cure were school friends at Notre Dame Middle School in Crawley.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> They first performed in public at an end-of-year show in April 1973 as members of a one-off school band called Obelisk.<ref name=Obelisk>Template:Cite book</ref> That band consisted of Robert Smith on piano, Michael Dempsey on guitar, Lol Tolhurst on percussion, Marc Ceccagno on lead guitar, and Alan Hill on bass.<ref name=Obelisk/> In January 1976, while at St Wilfrid's Comprehensive School, Ceccagno formed a five-piece rock band with Smith on guitar and Dempsey on bass, along with two other school friends.<ref name=TIY>Template:Cite book</ref> They called themselves Malice and rehearsed David Bowie, Jimi Hendrix and Alex Harvey songs in a local church hall.<ref name= Spiral>Template:Cite magazine</ref> By late April 1976, Ceccagno and the other two members had left, and Tolhurst (drums), Martin Creasy (vocals), and Porl Thompson (guitar) had joined the band.<ref name= TIY3>Barbarian, Sutherland, Smith (1988)</ref> This lineup played all three of Malice's only documented live shows during December 1976. In January 1977, following Creasy's departure, and increasingly influenced by the emergence of punk rock, Malice's remaining members became known as Easy Cure – after a song written by Tolhurst.Template:Sfn

After winning a talent competition, Easy Cure signed a recording contract with German record label Ariola-Hansa on 18 May 1977.<ref name="TIY" /> In September 1977, Peter O'Toole (no relation to the actor), who had been the group's vocalist for several months, left the group to live on a kibbutz in Israel. The band auditioned several vocalists that month before Smith assumed the role.Template:Sfn The new four-piece of Dempsey, Smith, Thompson, and Tolhurst recorded their first studio demo sessions as Easy Cure for Hansa at SAV Studios in London in October and November 1977.<ref name=sutherland>A History of The Cure in Melody Maker Magazine by Steve Sutherland (1990)</ref> None were ever released.<ref name="Frost">Template:Cite journal</ref>

The band continued to perform regularly around Crawley (including the Rocket, St Edward's, and Queen's Square in particular) throughout 1977 and 1978. On 19 February 1978 they were joined at the Rocket for the first time by a support band from Horley called Lockjaw, featuring bassist Simon Gallup.<ref name="shows">Barbarian, Sutherland, Smith (1988); and The Cure: A Visual Documentary, by Dave Thompson and Jo-Ann Greene (1988) Omnibus Press Template:ISBN</ref> Hansa, dissatisfied with the group's demos, did not wish to release their original song "Killing an Arab". The label suggested that the band attempt cover versions instead. They refused, and by March 1978 Easy Cure's contract with the label had been dissolved.<ref name=sutherland2>Sutherland (1990) and Barbarian, Sutherland, Smith (1988)</ref> Smith later recalled, "We were very young. They just thought they could turn us into a teen group. They actually wanted us to do cover versions and we always refused."<ref name="Frost"/>

On 22 April 1978, Easy Cure played their last gig at the Montefiore Institute Hall (in the Three Bridges neighbourhood of Crawley)<ref name=shows2>Anomolie, Sureaud, Michaux, Ramage (1990–'92)</ref> before guitarist Porl Thompson was dropped from the lineup because his lead-guitar style was at odds with Smith's growing preference for minimalist songwriting.<ref name=sutherland3>Sutherland (1990)</ref> Smith soon renamed the remaining trio the Cure.Template:Sfn Later that month the band recorded their first sessions as a trio at Chestnut Studios in Sussex, producing a demo tape for distribution to a dozen major record labels.Template:Sfn The demo found its way to Polydor Records scout Chris Parry, who signed the Cure to his newly formed Fiction label – distributed by Polydor – in September 1978.Template:Sfn The Cure released their debut single "Killing an Arab" in December 1978 on the Small Wonder label as a stopgap until Fiction finalised distribution arrangements with Polydor. "Killing an Arab" garnered both acclaim and controversy. While the single's provocative title led to accusations of racism, the song is based on French author Albert Camus's novel The Stranger.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> The band placed stickers that denied the racist connotations on the single's 1979 reissue on Fiction. An early NME article on the band wrote that the Cure "are like a breath of fresh suburban air on the capital's smog-ridden pub-and-club circuit," and noted: "With a John Peel session and more extensive London gigging on their immediate agenda, it remains to be seen whether the Cure can retain their refreshing joie de vivre."<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

The Cure released their debut album Three Imaginary Boys in May 1979. Because of the band's inexperience in the studio, Parry and engineer Mike Hedges took control of the recording.Template:Sfn The band, particularly Smith, were unhappy with the album; in a 1987 interview, he admitted: "a lot of it was very superficial – I didn't even like it at the time. There were criticisms made that it was very lightweight, and I thought they were justified. Even when we'd made it, I wanted to do something that I thought had more substance to it."<ref name="Spin 1987">Template:Cite journal</ref> The band's second single, "Boys Don't Cry", was released in June.

File:Siouxsie and the Banshees-3.jpg

Steven Severin, Siouxsie Sioux and Budgie with whom Robert Smith played inside Siouxsie and the Banshees as guitarist, in 1979, then from 1982 to 1984

The Cure then embarked as the support band for Siouxsie and the Banshees' Join Hands promotional tour of England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales between August and October. The tour saw Smith pull double-duty each night by performing with the Cure and as the guitarist with the Banshees when John McKay quit the group in Aberdeen.Template:Sfn That musical experience had a strong impact on him: "On stage that first night with the Banshees, I was blown away by how powerful I felt playing that kind of music. It was so different to what we were doing with the Cure. Before that, I'd wanted us to be like the Buzzcocks or Elvis Costello; the punk Beatles. Being a Banshee really changed my attitude to what I was doing."<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

The Cure's third single, "Jumping Someone Else's Train", was released in October 1979. Soon afterwards, Dempsey was dropped from the band because of his cold reception to material Smith had written for the upcoming album.Template:Sfn Dempsey joined the Associates, while Simon Gallup (bass) and Matthieu Hartley (keyboards) from the Magspies joined the Cure. The Associates toured as support band for the Cure and the Passions on the Future Pastimes Tour of England between November and December – all three bands were on the Fiction Records roster – with the new Cure line-up already performing a number of new songs for the projected second album.Template:Sfn Meanwhile, a spin-off band comprising Smith, Tolhurst, Dempsey, Gallup, Hartley, and Thompson, with backing vocals from assorted family and friends and lead vocals provided by their local postman Frankie Bell, released a 7-inch single in December under the name Cult Hero.Template:Sfn

1980–1982: Early gothic phase

Due to the band's lack of creative control on their first album, Smith exerted a greater influence on the recording of their second album Seventeen Seconds, which he co-produced with Mike Hedges.Template:Sfn The album was released in 1980 and reached number 20 on the UK charts. A single from the album, "A Forest", became the band's first UK hit single, reaching number 31 on the singles chart.<ref name="Guinness">Template:Cite book</ref> The album was a departure from the Cure's sound up to that point, with Hedges describing it as "morose, atmospheric, very different to Three Imaginary Boys."Template:Sfn In its review of Seventeen Seconds the NME said, "For a group as young as the Cure, it seems amazing that they have covered so much territory in such a brief time."<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> At the same time, Smith became concerned about the concept of an alleged "anti-image".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Smith told the press he was fed up with the anti-image association that some considered to be "elaborately disguising their plainness", stating, "We had to get away from that anti-image thing, which we didn't even create in the first place. And it seemed like we were trying to be more obscure. We just didn't like the standard rock thing. The whole thing really got out of hand."<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> That same year Three Imaginary Boys was repackaged for the American market as Boys Don't Cry, with new artwork and a modified track list. The Cure set out on their first world tour to promote both releases. At the end of the tour, Matthieu Hartley left the band. Hartley said, "I realised that the group was heading towards suicidal, sombre music – the sort of thing that didn't interest me at all."Template:Sfn

The band reconvened with Hedges to produce their third album, Faith (1981), which furthered the dour mood present on Seventeen Seconds.Template:Sfn The album peaked at number 14 on the UK charts.<ref name="Guinness"/> Included with cassette copies of Faith was an instrumental soundtrack for Carnage Visors, an animated film shown in place of an opening act for the band's 1981 Picture Tour.Template:Sfn In late 1981 the Cure released the non-album single "Charlotte Sometimes". By this point, the sombre mood of the music had a profound effect on the attitude of the band and they were "stuck in a ghoulish rut". Sometimes Smith would be so absorbed by the persona he projected onstage that he would leave at the end in tears.Template:Sfn

In 1982 the Cure recorded and released Pornography, the third and final album of an "oppressively dispirited" trio that cemented the Cure's stature as one of the purveyors of the emerging gothic rock genre.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Smith has said that during the recording of Pornography he was "undergoing a lot of mental stress. But it had nothing to do with the group, it just had to do with what I was like, my age and things. I think I got to my worst round about Pornography. Looking back and getting other people's opinions of what went on, I was a pretty monstrous sort of person at that time".<ref name="Spin 1987"/> Gallup described the album by saying, "Nihilism took over ... We sang 'It doesn't matter if we all die' and that is exactly what we thought at the time."Template:Sfn Parry was concerned that the album did not have a hit song for radio play and instructed Smith and producer Phil Thornalley to polish the track "The Hanging Garden" for release as a single.Template:Sfn Despite the concerns about the album's uncommercial sound, Pornography became the band's first UK Top 10 album, charting at number eight.<ref name="Guinness"/>

The release of Pornography was followed by the Fourteen Explicit Moments tour, in which the band finally dropped the anti-image angle and first adopted their signature look of big, towering hair, and smeared lipstick on their faces.Template:Sfn Simon Gallup left the Cure at the tour's conclusion after a bar fight with Smith; the two did not talk to each other for the following eighteen months.Template:Sfn Smith then placed the Cure on hold and rejoined Siouxsie and the Banshees as their lead guitarist in November 1982.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He subsequently became a full-time member of that band, and was featured on the live video and album Nocturne. He then recorded the album Hyæna with them, but left the group two weeks before its June 1984 release to concentrate on the Cure.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

1983–1988: Commercial success

With Gallup's departure from the Cure and Smith's work with Siouxsie and the Banshees, rumours spread that the Cure had broken up. In December 1982, Smith remarked to Melody Maker, "Do the Cure really exist any more? I've been pondering that question myself ... it has got to a point where I don't fancy working in that format again." He added, "Whatever happens, it won't be me, Laurence and Simon together any more. I know that."<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Parry was concerned about the state of his label's top band, and became convinced that the solution was for the Cure to reinvent its musical style. Parry managed to convince Smith and Tolhurst of the idea; Parry said, "It appealed to Robert because he wanted to destroy the Cure anyway."Template:Sfn With Tolhurst now playing keyboards instead of drums, the duo released the single "Let's Go to Bed" in late 1982. While Smith wrote the single as a throwaway, "stupid" pop song to the press,Template:Sfn it became a minor hit in the UK, reaching number 44 on the singles chart,<ref name="Guinness"/> and entered the Top 20 in Australia and New Zealand. It was followed in 1983 by two more successful songs: the synthesiser-based "The Walk" which reached number 12, and "The Love Cats", which became the band's first British Top 10 hit, reaching number seven.<ref name="Guinness"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> These singles and their B-sides were compiled on the Japanese Whispers compilation, which was released in December 1983.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

File:Robert-smith-cure-miyako-np.jpg

Smith in 1985

In 1984, the Cure released The Top, a generally psychedelic album on which Smith played most of the instruments except drums (played by Andy Anderson) and saxophone (played by early Malice member Porl Thompson, who then officially joined the Cure). The album was a Top 10 hit in the UK, and was their first studio album to crack the Billboard 200 in the US, reaching number 180.<ref name= "Guinness"/><ref name="Billboard charts">Template:Cite magazine</ref> Melody Maker praised the album as "psychedelia that can't be dated", while pondering, "I've yet to meet anyone who can tell me why the Cure are having hits now of all times."<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> The Cure then embarked on their worldwide Top Tour with Thompson and Anderson, along with Phil Thornalley who had produced The Top and assumed bass duties for live performances. Released in late 1984, the Cure's first live album, Concert, consisted of performances from this tour. Near the tour's end, Anderson was fired for destructive behaviour, and was temporarily replaced for a few shows by Vince Ely of the Psychedelic Furs. The drummer position was then officially filled by Boris Williams, who had previously been the touring drummer for Thompson Twins.Template:Sfn Ely and Williams had both been recommended by Phil Thornalley, from his previous experiences as a producer and engineer.<ref name=":02">Template:Cite book</ref> Soon thereafter, Thornalley also left because of the stress of touring.Template:Sfn Former Cure bassist Simon Gallup, who had formed the band Fools Dance in the interim, rejoined the Cure after roadie Gary Biddles brokered a reconciliation between Gallup and Smith.Template:Sfn Smith was ecstatic about Gallup's return and declared to Melody Maker, "It's a group again."<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

In 1985, the new line-up of Smith, Tolhurst, Gallup, Williams, and Thompson (now on guitar and keyboards) released The Head on the Door, an album that managed to bind together the optimistic and pessimistic aspects of the band's music between which they had previously shifted.Template:Sfn The Head on the Door reached number seven in the UK and number 59 in the US,<ref name="Guinness"/><ref name="Billboard charts"/> a success partly due to the international impact of the album's two singles, "In Between Days" and "Close to Me". Following the album and world tour, the band released the singles compilation Standing on a Beach in three formats (each with a different track listing and a specific title) in 1986, accompanied by a VHS and LaserDisc Staring at the Sea, which featured videos for each track on the compilation.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> This compilation made the US top 50,<ref name="Billboard charts"/> and saw the re-issue of three previous singles: "Boys Don't Cry" (in a new form), "Let's Go to Bed" and, later, "Charlotte Sometimes". The Cure toured to support the compilation and released a live concert VHS and LaserDisc of the show, filmed in the south of France and called The Cure in Orange. During this time, the band became very popular in Europe (particularly in France, Germany, and the Benelux countries) and increasingly popular in both the US and Canada.Template:Sfn

The band kicked off 1987 by performing in Buenos Aires, Argentina, becoming one of the first British alternative rock bands to perform a large-scale concert there.<ref name= "arg1">Template:Cite web</ref> The concert ended in a riot after fans who had purchased counterfeit tickets were denied entry to the venue.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The Cure did not play in Argentina again until 2013.<ref name="arg1" />

In May, the Cure released the eclectic double album Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me, which reached number six in the UK, the top 10 in several countries,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and was the band's first entry into the US top 40 at number 35; the album was also certified platinum in the US.<ref name="Guinness"/><ref name= "Billboard charts"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The album's third single, "Just Like Heaven", was the band's most successful single to date in the US, being their first to enter the Billboard Top 40.<ref name="Billboard charts"/> The album produced three other hit singles. After the album's release, the band recruited Roger O'Donnell, previously the touring keyboardist for the Psychedelic Furs and a longtime friend of Williams, to supplement the work of Tolhurst while allowing Thompson to focus on guitar. During the subsequent tour, Tolhurst's alcohol consumption began to interfere with his ability to perform.Template:Sfn

1989–1993: Disintegration and worldwide stardom

In 1989, the Cure released the album Disintegration, which was critically praised and became their highest-charting album to date, entering at number three in the UK and featuring three Top 30 singles in the UK and Germany: "Lullaby", "Lovesong" and "Pictures of You".<ref name= "Guinness"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Disintegration also reached number 12 on the US charts.<ref name= "Billboard charts"/> The first single in the US, "Fascination Street", reached number one on the American Modern Rock chart, but was quickly overshadowed by its third US single, "Lovesong", which reached number two on the American pop charts (the only Cure single to reach the US Top 10).<ref name="Billboard charts"/> By 1992, Disintegration had sold over three million copies worldwide.<ref name="mansion"/>

During the Disintegration sessions, the band gave Smith an ultimatum that either Tolhurst would have to leave the band or they would.Template:Sfn In February 1989, Tolhurst's exit was made official and announced to the press;Template:Sfn this resulted in O'Donnell becoming a full-fledged member of the band and left Smith as the Cure's only remaining founding member. Smith attributed Tolhurst's dismissal to an inability to exert himself and issues with alcohol, concluding, "He was out of step with everything. It had just become detrimental to everything we'd do."<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Because Tolhurst was still on the payroll during the recording of Disintegration, he is credited in the album's liner notes as playing "other instruments" and is listed as a co-writer of every song; however, it has since been revealed that while Tolhurst had contributed to the song "Homesick",<ref name= "Pennyblack8447">Template:Cite web</ref> his contributions to the rest of the album were minimal due to his alcoholism.<ref name="Pennyblack8447" />

The Cure then embarked on a successful tour which saw the band playing stadiums in the US. On 6 September 1989, the Cure performed "Just Like Heaven" at the 1989 MTV Video Music Awards at the Universal Amphitheatre in Los Angeles.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In May 1990, O'Donnell quit and was replaced by Perry Bamonte, who played both keyboards and guitar and had been a member of the band's road crew since 1984.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> That November, the Cure released a collection of remixes called Mixed Up. The one new song on the collection, "Never Enough", was released as a single. In 1991, the Cure were awarded the Brit Award for Best British Group.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> That same year, Tolhurst filed a lawsuit against Smith and Fiction Records over royalties payments and claimed that he and Smith jointly owned the name "The Cure"; the lawsuit finally ended in 1994 in favour of Smith. In the meantime, the band returned to the studio to record their next album.Template:Sfn Wish (1992) reached number one in the UK and number two in the US and yielded the international hits "High" and "Friday I'm in Love".<ref name="Guinness" /><ref name="Billboard charts" /> The album was also nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album in 1993.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In the autumn of 1993, the band released two live albums, Show and Paris, featuring recordings from concerts on their world Wish tour.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

1994–1998: Transition

In 1994 the band composed the original song "Burn" for the soundtrack to the movie The Crow, which went to number one on the Billboard 200 album charts.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Between the release of Wish and the start of sessions for the Cure's next studio album, the band's line-up shifted again.<ref name="auto">Template:Cite web</ref> Porl Thompson left the band to tour with Page and Plant and was not replaced,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="auto1">Template:Cite news</ref> while Boris Williams quit and was replaced by new drummer Jason Cooper (formerly of My Life Story).<ref name="auto1" /> After a four-year absence, Roger O'Donnell returned to play keyboards.<ref name="auto" /> The sessions for their next album began in 1994 with only Robert Smith and Perry Bamonte present; Simon Gallup then returned from a health-related leave of absence, after which Cooper and O'Donnell joined the sessions.Template:Sfn<ref name="cooper">Template:Cite web</ref>

Wild Mood Swings, finally released in 1996, was poorly received compared with previous albums and marked the end of the band's commercial peak.Template:Sfn Early in 1996, the Cure played festivals in South America, followed by a world tour in support of the album. In 1997 the band released Galore, a compilation album containing all of their singles released between 1987 and 1997, as well as the new single "Wrong Number", which featured longtime David Bowie guitarist Reeves Gabrels.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 1998 the Cure contributed the song "More Than This" to the soundtrack for The X-Files film, as well as a cover of "World in My Eyes" for the Depeche Mode tribute album For the Masses.<ref>Template:Cite webTemplate:Cbignore</ref>

1999–2005: The Trilogy and more personnel changes

With only one album left in their record contract and with commercial response to Wild Mood Swings and the Galore compilation lacklustre, Smith once again considered that the end of the Cure might be near and thus wanted to make an album that reflected the more serious side of the band.Template:Sfn The Grammy-nominated album Bloodflowers was released in 2000 after being delayed since 1998.Template:Sfn According to Smith, the album was the third of a trilogy along with Pornography and Disintegration.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The band embarked on the nine-month Dream Tour, which included 20 dates in the United States.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2001, the Cure left Fiction and released their Greatest Hits album and DVD, which featured the music videos for a number of their songs.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> The band released The Cure: Trilogy as a double live album video, on two double layer DVD-9 discs, and later on a single Blu-ray disc. It documents the Trilogy Concerts, in which the three albums – Pornography, Disintegration, and Bloodflowers – were played live in their entirety one after the other each night, the songs being played in the order in which they appeared on the albums. Trilogy was recorded on two consecutive nights, 11–12 November 2002, at the Tempodrom Arena in Berlin.

File:The Cure live 2004.jpg

The Cure in concert in 2004. From left to right: Robert Smith, Jason Cooper, and Simon Gallup

In 2003, the Cure signed with Geffen Records.<ref name="officialbio">Template:Cite web</ref> In 2004, they released a new four-disc boxed set on Fiction Records titled Join the Dots: B-Sides & Rarities, 1978–2001 (The Fiction Years). The album peaked at number 106 on the Billboard 200 albums chart.<ref name="Billboard charts"/> The band released their twelfth album, The Cure, on Geffen in 2004. It made a top ten debut on both sides of the Atlantic in July 2004.<ref name="Guinness"/><ref name="Billboard charts"/> To promote the album, the band headlined the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival that May. From 24 July to 29 August, the Cure headlined the Curiosa concert tour of North America, which was formatted as a traveling festival and also featured Interpol, the Rapture, Mogwai, Muse, and Thursday, among other groups.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> While attendances were lower than expected, Curiosa was still one of the more successful American summer festivals of 2004.Template:Sfn The same year the band was honoured with an MTV Icon award in a television special presented by Marilyn Manson.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In May 2005, O'Donnell and Bamonte were fired from the band.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> O'Donnell claims Smith informed him he was reducing the band to a three-piece. Previously O'Donnell said he had only found out about the band's upcoming tour dates via a fan site and added, "It was sad to find out after nearly twenty years the way I did, but then I should have expected no less or more."<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> The remaining members of the band – Smith, Gallup and Cooper – made several appearances as a trio<ref name="officialbio" /> before Porl Thompson returned to the Cure's lineup for their summer 2005 tour.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In July 2005, the band performed a set at the Paris concert of the Live 8 series of benefit concerts.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

2006–2015: 4:13 Dream and Reflections

The Cure began writing and recording material for their thirteenth album in 2006.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The Cure postponed their autumn 2007 North American 4Tour in August to continue working on the album, rescheduling the dates for spring 2008.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The group released four singles and an EP – "The Only One", "Freakshow", "Sleep When I'm Dead", "The Perfect Boy" and Hypnagogic States respectively – on or near to the 13th of each month, in the months leading up to the album's release. Released in October 2008, 4:13 Dream was a commercial failure in the UK compared to their previous album releases, only staying in the charts two weeks and not peaking higher than number 33. In February 2009, the Cure received the 2009 Shockwaves NME Award for Godlike Genius.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

File:Robert Smith - The Cure - Roskilde Festival 2012 - Orange Stage.jpg

Robert Smith performing at the Roskilde Festival in 2012

O'Donnell officially rejoined the Cure in 2011 before the band performed at the Vivid Sydney festival in Australia.<ref name="officialbio"/> This concert was the first in their Reflections concert series, in which they performed their first three albums in their entireties.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> The band performed seven additional Reflections concerts in 2011, one in London, three in New York City and three in Los Angeles.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On 27 September, the Cure was announced as a nominee for 2012 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In NME's cover article for March 2012, the Cure announced that they would be headlining a series of summer music festivals across Europe, including the Leeds/Reading Festival.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On 1 May, Porl Thompson announced that he had left the Cure for the second time.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On 26 May, the Cure embarked on a 19-date summer festival tour of Europe, commencing at the Pinkpop Festival, joined by Reeves Gabrels on guitar. On the same day, it was announced that Gabrels would be standing in for the tour, but at that point was not a full-fledged member of the band.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Several weeks into the tour, the band invited Gabrels to become a member and he accepted.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2013, the Cure toured South America, where they had not performed since 1987 apart from two 1996 concerts in Brazil.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In early 2014, Smith announced that the band would release a follow-up to 4:13 Dream later that year titled 4:14 Scream. The releases would be compiled together as a double album named 4:26 Dream. However, this project was eventually abandoned.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> The Cure paid tribute to Paul McCartney on the album titled The Art of McCartney, which was released on 18 November 2014. The Cure covered the Beatles' song "Hello, Goodbye" which featured guest vocals and keyboards from Paul's son James McCartney. A video of the band and James performing the song was released on 9 September 2014; it was filmed at Brighton Electric Studio in Brighton.<ref>Template:YouTube</ref> Robert Smith also covered McCartney's "C Moon" on the album's bonus disc.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> In the summer of 2015, the Disintegration track "Plainsong" was featured in a humorous moment in the movie Ant-Man, but did not appear on the movie's soundtrack.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

2017–present: Songs of a Lost World

In June 2018, the Cure headlined the 25th annual Meltdown Festival in London.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Smith also selected the festival's lineup, which included several of his personal favourite artists, including Nine Inch Nails, My Bloody Valentine, Deftones, Placebo, Manic Street Preachers, and Kristin Hersh, among others.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On 7 July 2018, Cure performed a 40th anniversary concert at Hyde Park as part of the British Summer Time concert series.<ref name="Cure40">Template:Cite web</ref> For Record Store Day 2018, the Cure released a remastered, deluxe edition of Mixed Up, along with a sequel titled Torn Down featuring 16 new remixes all created by Robert Smith.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In a 30 March 2019 interview with Rolling Stone, Smith commented on the band's next album, saying, "For the first time in 20 years, we went into a studio – we actually went into the studio where they [Queen] did 'Bohemian Rhapsody'. The songs are like 10 minutes, 12 minutes long. We recorded 19 songs. So I have no idea what to do now... We'll finish it before we start in the summer, and it'll be mixed through the summer. And then so release date, I don't know, October? Halloween! Come on!"<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> In an interview published on 5 July in NME, he noted that the band would be re-recording three or four songs in August 2019 but that, "I feel intent on it being a 2019 release and would be extremely bitter if it isn't."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The year passed with no new studio release, as did the following four years.

In 2019, the Cure embarked on a 23-date summer tour, consisting mostly of festival performances along with four dates in Sydney, Australia. The final Sydney show on 30 May was live-streamed.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The band performed at the Austin City Limits Music Festival in October 2019.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Later that same month, the band issued 40 Live: CURÆTION-25 + Anniversary, a Blu-ray, DVD and CD box set featuring their Meltdown and Hyde Park performances from 2018 in their entireties.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In interviews in June 2021, Smith referenced the recording of two new Cure albums, saying "One of them's very, very doom and gloom and the other one isn't," and that the recordings have been completed, "I just have to decide who's going to mix them."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On 15 August 2021, bassist Simon Gallup posted on his social media that he had left the Cure.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> No official statement concerning his departure was made by Smith or the band<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and Gallup subsequently deleted the post. On 14 October 2021, Gallup confirmed that he was still in the band.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In March 2022, Smith confirmed that the first of the band's two projected new albums would be titled Songs of a Lost World.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> An update was provided in May 2022, when Smith claimed that the album would be released prior to the band's European tour in October 2022.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> This, however, did not happen, as the tour got underway with no new album being released, although new material was performed. Perry Bamonte returned to the band for their Lost World tour beginning with their 6 October 2022 concert in Riga, Latvia.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In March 2023, the Cure announced a 30-date North American tour called Shows of a Lost World, set to take place in May through July, the band's first full United States tour since 2016.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Smith was outspoken against Ticketmaster's dynamic pricing model and ticket scalpers, setting base prices as low as $20 before fees;<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> he also negotiated with the company to issue partial refunds to fans who were subjected to excessive fees above the list price.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The Cure released a 12-inch single on 1 October 2024 featuring live recordings of two new songs, "And Nothing Is Forever" and "I Can Never Say Goodbye",<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> that were recorded at a concert in France in 2022.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In September 2024, the band began sending out cryptic postcard messages to fans who signed up for their mailing list along with a poster unveiled in a pub in Robert Smith's hometown where the band played some of their earliest shows. On 26 September, the first single from the album, "Alone", was released. The album was produced by Smith and Paul Corkett, who Smith previously worked with to produce Bloodflowers.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Songs of a Lost World, their first studio album in sixteen years, was released on 1 November 2024.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Songs of a Lost World reached number one on the UK Albums Chart, and was the Cure's first chart-topping album since Wish in 1992.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In the United States, Songs of a Lost World debuted at number four on the Billboard 200, and was the band's first top ten album there since The Cure in 2004.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In October 2024, Smith said the Cure would release a follow-up album to Songs of a Lost World and tour in 2025, and would release a documentary in 2028.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He also suggested that the Cure would retire in 2029, which would be the year he turns 70 and the 50th anniversary of their debut album Three Imaginary Boys.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> A 24-track album Mixes of a Lost World was announced to release in June 2025, featuring remixes of songs from Songs of a Lost World by artists including Chino Moreno, Trentemøller, and Paul Oakenfold.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The band have been nominated for the 2025 BRIT Awards for Mastercard Album of the Year, Alternative / Rock Act and Group of the Year.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Musical style

File:PrayerTour89.jpg

Robert Smith in 1989

The Cure are often identified with the gothic rock genre, and are viewed as one of the form's definitive bands.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="AMG">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite webTemplate:Cbignore</ref> However, the band has routinely rejected classification, particularly as a gothic rock band. Robert Smith said in 2006, "It's so pitiful when 'goth' is still tagged onto the name The Cure", and added, "We're not categorisable. I suppose we were post-punk when we came out, but in total it's impossible ... I just play Cure music, whatever that is."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> While typically viewed as producers of dark and gloomy music, the Cure have also yielded a number of upbeat songs and been part of the new wave movement.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Spin has said "the Cure have always been an either/or sort of band: either ... Robert Smith is wallowing in gothic sadness or he's licking sticky-sweet cotton-candy pop off his lipstick-stained fingers."<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> In 2004, Smith observed, "It's always been paradoxical that it's pushed down people's throats that we're a goth band. Because, to the general public, we're not. To taxi drivers, I'm the bloke that sings 'Friday I'm in Love'. I'm not the bloke who sings 'Shake Dog Shake' or 'One Hundred Years'."<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

The Cure's primary musical traits have been listed as "dominant, melodic bass lines; whiny, strangulated vocals; and a lyric obsession with existential, almost literary despair."<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Most Cure songs start with Smith and Gallup writing the drum patterns and bass lines. Both record demos at home and then bring them into the studio for fine-tuning.<ref name="Gore">Template:Cite journal</ref> Smith said in 1992, "I think when people talk about the 'Cure sound', they mean songs based on six-string bass, acoustic guitar and my voice, plus the string sound from the Solina."<ref name="Gore"/> On top of this foundation is laid "towering layers of guitars and synthesisers".<ref name="AllMusic biography">Template:Cite web</ref> Keyboards have been a component of the band's sound since Seventeen Seconds, and their importance increased with their extensive use on Disintegration.Template:Sfn

Music videos

The band's early music videos have been described as "dreadful affairs" and have been maligned for their poor quality, particularly by the band itself. Tolhurst said, "Those videos were unmitigated disasters; we weren't actors and our personalities weren't coming across."Template:Sfn The video for "Let's Go to Bed" was their first collaboration with Tim Pope. The director added a playful element to the band's videos; the director insisted in a 1987 Spin interview, "I think that side of them was always there, but was never brought out."<ref name="Spin 1987"/>

Pope would go on to direct the majority of the Cure's videos, which became synonymous with the band, and expanded their audience during the 1980s.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Pope explained the appeal of working with the Cure by saying, "the Cure is the ultimate band for a filmmaker to work with because Robert Smith really understands the camera. His songs are so cinematic. I mean on one level there's this stupidity and humour, right, but beneath that there are all [Smith's] psychological obsessions and claustrophobia."<ref name="Sandall">Template:Cite journal</ref>

Legacy

The Cure are often regarded as one of the most significant alternative artists of the 1980s.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=":0">Template:Cite web</ref> They were one of the first alternative bands to have chart and commercial success in an era before alternative rock had broken into the mainstream; in 1992, NME declared that the Cure had during the 1980s become "a goth hit machine (19 to date), an international phenomenon and, yet, the most successful alternative band that ever shuffled disconsolately about the earth".<ref name="mansion">Template:Cite journal</ref> Pitchfork dubbed the Cure the "unlikeliest alt-rock heroes" of the 1980s.<ref name=":0" />

The Cure have influenced a number of musical artists spanning multiple genres. Artists who have cited their influence by or appreciation for the Cure include Billy Corgan of the Smashing Pumpkins,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Slowdive,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Ride,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> My Bloody Valentine,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Miki Berenyi of Lush,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Britt Daniel of Spoon,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Beach House,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Chvrches,<ref name=":2">Template:Cite web</ref> Blink-182,<ref name=":2" /> Interpol,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Manic Street Preachers,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> AFI,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Deftones,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Placebo,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Mogwai,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Korn,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Foals,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Failure,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Drab Majesty,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Converge,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Tim Kasher of Cursive,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Geoff Rickly of Thursday,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and Alvvays.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame chose the Cure for induction in its Class of 2019.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Although the Cure had been eligible for the Hall of Fame since 2004, they were only nominated once previously, in 2012.<ref name="curehall">Template:Cite web</ref> The formal induction ceremony was held 29 March 2019 at the Barclays Centre in Brooklyn, New York.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> The members named by the Rock Hall for induction as part of the band were Perry Bamonte, Jason Cooper, Michael Dempsey, Reeves Gabrels, Simon Gallup, Roger O'Donnell, Robert Smith, Porl Thompson, Lol Tolhurst, and Boris Williams.<ref name="curehall"/> Gabrels was initially not included in the induction, but was added in February 2019.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> At the ceremony, the Cure were inducted by Trent Reznor before performing five songs.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Band members

• Robert Smith – vocals, guitars, Bass VI,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> keyboards (1976–present)
• Simon Gallup – bass guitar (1979–1982, 1984–present); keyboards (1980–1982)
• Roger O'Donnell – keyboards (1987–1990, 1995–2005, 2011–present); percussion (2011–present)
• Perry Bamonte – guitars, Bass VI, keyboards (1990–2005, 2022–present)
• Jason Cooper – drums (1995–present)
• Reeves Gabrels – guitars, Bass VI (2012–present)

Discography

• Three Imaginary Boys (1979)
• Seventeen Seconds (1980)
• Faith (1981)
• Pornography (1982)
• The Top (1984)
• The Head on the Door (1985)
• Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me (1987)
• Disintegration (1989)
• Wish (1992)
• Wild Mood Swings (1996)
• Bloodflowers (2000)
• The Cure (2004)
• 4:13 Dream (2008)
• Songs of a Lost World (2024)

Awards and nominations

At the Brit Awards, the British Phonographic Industry's (BPI) annual pop music awards,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> the Cure have won two awards from eight nominations (Best British Video for "Lullaby" in 1990, and Best British Group in 1991). They were nominated for three awards in 2025 for Songs of a Lost World<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Template:Awards table |- | 1990 | "Lullaby" | rowspan="2" | British Video of the Year | Template:Won |- | rowspan="2" | 1991 | "Close to Me" | Template:Nom |- | rowspan="2" | The Cure | rowspan="2" | British Group | Template:Won |- | rowspan="2" | 1993 | Template:Nom |- | "Friday I'm in Love" | British Video of the Year | Template:Nom |- | rowspan="3" | 2025 | Songs of a Lost World | British Album of the Year | Template:Nom |- | rowspan="2" | The Cure | British Group | Template:Nom |- | Best Alternative/Rock Act | Template:Nom Template:End

The European Festivals Awards were established in 2009. They are voted for by the public via the European Festival Awards website and receive hundreds of thousands of votes annually.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Template:Awards table |- | 2012 | The Cure | Headliner of the Year | Template:Nom Template:End

The Grammy Awards are awarded annually by the Recording Academy of the United States for outstanding achievements in the music industry. Often considered the highest music honour, the awards were established in 1958.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Template:Awards table |- | style="text-align:left;"|1993 | Wish | rowspan="2" | Best Alternative Music Album |Template:Nom |- | style="text-align:left;"| 2001 | Bloodflowers |Template:Nom Template:End

The Ivor Novello Awards are awarded for songwriting and composing. The awards, named after the Cardiff born entertainer Ivor Novello, are presented annually in London by the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors (BASCA).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Template:Awards table |- | style="text-align:left;"|1993 | "Friday I'm In Love" | Best Contemporary Song |Template:Nom |- | style="text-align:left;"|2001 | Robert Smith | International Achievement |Template:Won |- | style="text-align:left;"|2022 | Robert Smith and Simon Gallup | Music Icon Award | Template:Won Template:End

The Juno Awards are presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music. New members of the Canadian Music Hall of Fame are also inducted as part of the awards ceremonies.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Template:Awards table |- | style="text-align:left;"|2005 | "The End of the World" | Best Video |Template:Nom Template:End

The Los Premios MTV Latinoamérica is the Latin American version of the MTV Video Music Awards. It was established in 2002 to celebrate the top music videos of the year in Latin America and the world.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Template:Awards table |- | style="text-align:left;"|2007 | The Cure | Influencia Award |Template:Won Template:End

Lunas del Auditorio are sponsored by the National Auditorium in Mexico to honour the best live shows in the country.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Template:Award table |- | 2005 |rowspan=2|The Cure | rowspan=2|Best Foreign Rock Artist | Template:Nom |- | 2008 | Template:Nom Template:End

The MTV Europe Music Awards were established in 1994 by MTV Networks Europe to celebrate the most popular music videos in Europe.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Template:Awards table |- | style="text-align:left;"|2004 | "The End of the World" | Best Video |Template:Nom |- | style="text-align:left;"|2008 | The Cure | Best Live Act |Template:Nom Template:End

The MTV Video Music Awards were established in the end of the summer of 1984 by MTV to celebrate the top music videos of the year.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Template:Awards table |- | style="text-align:left;"|1989 | "Fascination Street" | Best Post-Modern Video |Template:Nom |- | style="text-align:left;"|1992 | "Friday I'm In Love" | Viewer's Choice (Europe) |Template:Won Template:End

The MVPA Awards are annually presented by a Los Angeles-based music trade organization to honour the year's best music videos.

Template:Award table |- | rowspan="2" | 2005 | rowspan="2" | "The End of the World" | Best Alternative Video | Template:Nom |- | Best Art Direction | Template:Nom Template:End

Music Television Awards

Template:Award table |- | rowspan="3" | 1992 | Wish | Best Album | Template:Nom |- | "High" | Best Video | Template:Nom |- | rowspan="3" | Themselves | rowspan="2" | Best Group | Template:Nom |- | rowspan="3" | 2004 | Template:Nom |- | Best Alternative | Template:Nom |- | "The End of the World" | Best Video | Template:Nom Template:End

The NME Awards were created by the magazine NME and first held in 1953.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Template:Awards table |- | style="text-align:left;" rowspan="2" | 2009 | The Cure | Godlike Genius Award |Template:Won |- | 4:13 Dream | Best Album Artwork |Template:Nom |- | style="text-align:left;" rowspan="1" | 2020 | The Cure | Best Festival Headliner |Template:Won Template:End

The Pollstar Concert Industry Awards is an annual award ceremony to honour artists and professionals in the concert industry. The Cure has been nominated seven times.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Template:Award table |- | 1985 | rowspan="3" | Themselves | Which Artist is Most Likely to Successfully Headline Arenas for the First Time in 1985? | Template:Nom |- | 1986 | rowspan="2" | Next Major Arena Headliner | Template:Nom |- | 1987 | Template:Nom |- | 1988 | The Kissing Tour | Small Tour of the Year | Template:Nom |- | rowspan="2" | 1990 | The Prayer Tour | Most Creative Stage Production | Template:Nom |- | Themselves | Surprise Hot Ticket of the Year | Template:Nom |- | 1997 | The Swing Tour | Most Creative Stage Production | Template:Nom Template:End

The Q Awards are the United Kingdom's annual music awards run by the music magazine Q to honour musical excellence. Winners are voted by readers of Q online, with others decided by a judging panel.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Template:Awards table |- | style="text-align:left;"|2003 | rowspan="2" | The Cure | Q Inspiration Award |Template:Won |- | style="text-align:left;"|2011 | Q's Greatest Act of the Last 25 Years |Template:Nom Template:End

Žebřík Music Awards Template:Award table !Ref. |- | 1996 | The Cure | Best International Enjoyment | Template:Nom | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |- | 2004 | The Cure | Best International Album | Template:Nom | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Template:End

General and cited sources

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Further reading

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External links

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