I absolutely love the new Cure record, and have the two US singles. I love the raw feel of it, like "Burn" from the Crow soundtrack. I got Disintegration recently, and while I love the songs (and that smooth, keyboard-enhanced feel), I hate the way the drus are mixed. I have Galore and the Greatest Hits (with the acoustic bonus disc), and really seem to like the Disintegration-era stuff the most. The songs with trumpets are cool, but not my favorite, and I'm not too crazy about stuff like "Hot Hot Hot!" and "Lullaby."

Sooo...based on that, what Cure records should I buy next?

Thunderbird said:

Well Kiss me (x3) would not be the way to go...nor would wild mood swings. Stay away from Japanese Whispers or the Walk.

start with Wish...it's more rocky and less poppy...although High and Friday I buy Drugs are on the pop side of things. But there is a lot of guitar work that is really good.

Other dense records would be The Top or Pornography (which is sorta disintegration like but replace the keys with the guitars). You may like Head on the Door...but that's when they sorta went "poppy".

Kiss me Kiss me Kiss Me (1987?)

Wish

These 2 are my favorites

Thunderbird said:

If you like Disintegration, then the obvious follow-ups would be Pornography and Bloodflowers. All three albums are very downbeat and dark musically and lyrically. The Cure even performed all three together in their entirety over two nights in Berlin--the 'Trilogy' DVD.

sextonseven said:

I forgot about Bloodflowers...get that too.

bloodflowers is great - they have a lot of great older albums, but they sound awful. if you're wise, you'll wait for the remasters to be released.

Anxiety said:

That's my problem with Disintegration. I guess the box set would tide me over.

Thunderbird said:

You mean the b-sides box?

sextonseven said:

Yeah.

Thunderbird said:

That could tide one over for a long time....

regarding the reissues...any word on when this is happening? WHich are you all buying first? Kiss Me...is mine.

superspaceboy said:

i bought the box set within the first month or so that it came out, and i'm STILL trying to digest all that's on it.

superspaceboy said:

The Three Imaginary Boys remaster is coming out December 7th in the States, I think the week before overseas. Seventeen Seconds, Faith and Pornography are coming out next February. I'd recommend for a newcomer, to pick up those 3 albums. It's what they built their sound and cult on, and there are so many wonderful songs and ideas to return to on those 3. But honestly I'd say, buy them all. They're all worth it and you'll probably realize that after you give them some time.

Anxiety said:

Me too.

minneapolisgenius said:

Hearty meal, eh?

GangstaFam said:

i love that set!

endorphin74 said:

Could it perhaps be the best box set ever?

GangstaFam said:

perhaps!

GangstaFam said:

GangstaFam said:

i'll always have a warm spot in my heart for ryko's original david bowie sound+vision box set from way back in '89...i've probably listened to those discs more than any other box set i've ever owned...and the johnny cash "unearthed" box set is pretty awe-inspiring as well, though i'd be lying if i said i listened to it a lot...but i do like to just open it up and look at it sometimes - the packaging and the essays and the photographs are just gorgeous, and when i'm in the mood, of course the music is fantastic....

...but the cure box set is certainly, without a doubt, up there. way up there.

I am not a huge Cure fan, so my opinion comes strictly under the banner "Curious Onlooker", but for what it's worth, I found that a good introduction to the poppier side of The Cure was a double CD called Show*.

It's a live album, but doubles up as a greatest hits - and with the added advantage of a universal style of production throughout the album. There was also a sister album around the same time, called Paris, which was a single live album, but of more fan-friendly, obscure tracks. Not so much to my taste, but a great version of Lovesong.



(*I have seen a single CD version of this advertised, though, which doesn't sound like such good value for money to me)

Join the Dots B-Sides Box Set and Bloodflowers.

It's so hard for me to tell anyone else what they'd like of the Cure. Gangsta's right, it's alllll good. That said, the box set is the best I've ever owned and my fave albums tend to be Head on the Door, Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me and Disintegration followed by Wish.

RocknRollDave said:

The 'Show' single disc is the U.S. release. Elektra apparently didn't think Cure fans in the U.S. were willing to pay extra for a double live album so they condensed it onto one disc and released the deleted tracks on a seperate single called "Sideshow" (get it?). I bought both of them initially and tried splicing all the tracks together onto a cassette before finding the European double disc version of 'Show'.
[Edited 11/11/04 7:19am]

sextonseven said:

Thanks for the info!

Wonder why the US got the edited version? I may be wrong but I would imagine the US fanbase is significantly bigger..? Record companies are STRANGE...

it's all worth checking out... they're one of those bands that you'll eventually find you have to track down every album, every b-side, every rarity... and luckily, with the new box-set and the reissues coming, that will be fairly easy to do.

i would wait for the reissues before starting to delve into their catelogue. but for now, get the Join the Box b-sides set. It may be a little pricey, but it is well worth it, and gives an amazing overview of the Cure's career from the point of view of their b-sides, which are every bit as good as their singles/album material.

First off, wait for the re-masters.

My personal fave is Disintegration, followed by Pornography, Bloodflowers, Faith and The Head On The Door. I also highly recommend the live disc Paris.

I'm not too fond of Wish, although many fans seem to like it (fucking "Friday I'm In Love" is one of the most annoying songs ever written). Avoid Wild Mood Swings like the plague! Its bloody awful!

Oh, and the Join The Dots box set? Perfection!

Gangsta; check
Anxiety; check
Endo; check
Carrie; check.

I am not needed here. This man has gotten the most proffesional Cure help he's ever gonna get. Unless Thunderbird is a she. If he is a she, my apologies.

JediMaster said:

what??? Wild Mood Swings awful!!???? Lawdy lawdy lawdy. Am I the only one who loves that album?

JediMaster said:

True.

JonSnow said:

It's certainly not their best. But it's not as bad as people think. The singles plus Want, Jupiter Crash, Club America and Treasure are all really good songs. The b-sides are amazing too. I think following their cover of Purple Haze and the Crow song, people were expecting something different. I know I was. And I really couldn't be bothered with that album at first. In time, I forgave it.