I am! I've waited a long time for this and it saves me the trouble of making it myself.

Monday night at midnite i will be Tower REcords with my credit card in hand!! I plan on staying up all night Monday listening to it. I'll be blurry eyed at work the next day but I don't care, it'll be totally worth it... is saying this is the "Holy Grail" for Cure fans too over-the-top?? LOL

Here's one fans review of "Dots" who received theirs early in the mail.

http://www.roboterkampf.com/index2.html

It's coming out next week?!!!

But I can't afford to get it right now. It'll be around, so I'm not too worried about it.

TRON said:

wow that's awesome, thanks for posting that!

Me for sure ~ If we aren't snowed in. Are you going to be waiting at midnight TRON? You will STILL make your own I bet ~ you won't be able to resist.

bratchildsfriend said:

Yeah, you're probably right. Just to have a backup copy. It's gonna be even more insane once all the remasters with bonus discs come out. I'm not sure who will be open at midnight. I guess I'll call around Monday. I wonder if there will be any Cure release parties around here. Wanna throw our own?

Is there anything that hasn't been heard before... other than remixes? I've heard all those covers.

TRON said:

Sure ~ but you better be invitin your friends from Minneapolis ~ did you ever make it to that one last summer? How long do you think we could listen without repeating anything? I'll bring the !!!

How much are they charging for this?

bratchildsfriend said:

Dunno. I've heard it's a lot cheaper on certain websites. I bet you could get the best deals at Best Buy or Circuit City if they get it in. Either that or Record Time if you have their January coupons.

I never did make it to MPLS. We will have a Cure party one of these days though. It's just going to happen. I think between listening and watching videos we could go at least 24 hours. Especially after those remasters come out. That would be the perfect time to plan a trip.

MrWhatever said:

I think this is mostly just to gather b-sides and promo mixes.

The rarer stuff will end up on the remaster bonus discs.

I was lucky enough to pick mine up at Record Time early. There are no stores around the Detroit area that do midnight sales anymore, so it was nice that they agreed to sell it to me tonight, especially with a huge storm coming the next couple days. And they didn't even charge me tax! It looks amazing. Can't wait to listen and read the liner notes by Robert.

TRON said:

Dammit I"m jealous... i have to wait til tomorrow morning at 9 when Borders opens. There was no way I was going to brave the ice and snow to drive to Tower Records tonight to get it at midnight... it's about a 30 minute drive. Dammit. And i have to work both jobs tomorrow... grrr... so i won't be home until 10pm. But at least i'll have it tomorrow morning. I'll be listening to it on my headphones at the office all day

JonSnow said:

I bet it's a fortune there.

I'll write a full review hopefully when I'm done listening.

TRON said:

yeah, but i live right behind it... and i have to be at work at 930, so it's either that or wait until Weds.





.
[This message was edited Mon Jan 26 20:20:32 PST 2004 by JonSnow]

JonSnow said:

I understand totally. Sometimes when you have to have something, it doesn't matter what you gotta do or pay to get it. That's why I raced there tonight. I didn't want to be snowed in the next few days without it.

have you listened to Possession yet? What does it sound like...

JonSnow said:

Well, I haven't been able to listen yet. I made it through half of the first song and my brother called. We ended up talking for like 2 hours and now I have to go to bed. But I did read the whole booklet, which is amazing. It's cool to hear Robert's descriptions of the songs, why they did or didn't get considered for a particular album, what he wrote them about, how they fit in with their A-side, whether he feels they were successful, etc. What I find really refreshing is when he really praises or finds fault with a song. He's really humble and can say when he feels something was a failed experiment or if the words and music don't mesh quite right. I love this kind of in depth insight from the artist.

I've always wanted to get into them. Is this the sort of collection I should start with?

I will be picking up on my way home from work tonight! I can't wait!

NWF said:

Yeah next week - January 27th.
Oh wait a minute thats today!!!
How could today be the 27th??
- it just seems like last week it was the 20th.
Snuck up on me.


I think the cold is affecting my thought processes.

I've already got all the tracks off it, so no I won't be spending cash on it. But it is worth it for those who are planning on getting it. Its killer!!!

For some reason I was a Cure fan who never much got into the b-sides & rarities so 3/4's of this box set is new to me.
Ordered it today so I'll hear it next week if I'm lucky.

garnis said:

Dude, it's worth it just for the packaging, liner notes and remastering.

And having them all in one place is a definite plus.

Xorn said:

I'd say probably not. It's brilliant to be sure, but it's mostly b-sides and rarities.

Go for the remastered albums coming out this year. After you have and know all of those, get this.

Great review from Newsday:

The Cure's Rx for American Success

New box set of B sides may get Brit band the treatment it deserves

Glenn Gamboa

January 27, 2004

Scrub away the teased-and-sprayed fright wig of hair, the heavy black mascara and pasty-white pancake powder that launched a million goth boys and girls, and the red, red lipstick. What's left? The clever, memorable music of prolific songwriter Robert Smith, better known as the mastermind behind The Cure.

Though The Cure has made impressively varied music since 1978, the British legends have never really received the attention they deserved on this side of the Atlantic. That is about to change.

The ground is softening for one more assault from The Cure, no doubt timed to the release of the band's latest album this spring, and will likely include a tour that will last beyond the already announced headlining gig at this year's Coachella Festival in Indio, Calif. There's the use of "Pictures of You" in the omnipresent Hewlett-Packard commercial. There's Smith singing on blink-182's new album. And there's the success of Cure-influenced bands like Brand New, whose latest single, "Sic Transit Gloria," even features Smith-like phrasing for its verses.

The most convincing statement for Cure success, though, is the band's new box set "Join the Dots" (Elektra/Aslyum), which collects 70 B-sides and rarities that sound as ambitious and powerful as other bands' greatest hits.

Broken into four CDs spanning the band's 25-year career chronologically, "Join the Dots" shows how serious Smith was at the outset to make The Cure's B-sides as catchy as its singles. The first CD is the most diverse, following the band through its breakthrough as a punkish upstart - in songs like "10:15 Saturday Night" and "Plastic Passion," which put the band in the same league as Joy Division and Siouxsie and the Banshees - into its dominance of jangly new wave, seen in "The Exploding Boy" and "A Man Inside My Mouth," which pushed The Cure to the top of the British charts alongside The Smiths and Tears for Fears.

On the remaining three CDs, the songs become more conventional, but no less interesting, offering alternate versions of shoulda-been smashes like "Wrong Number" and the recent "Maybe Someday," as well as the trademark "Just Like Heaven."

That doesn't mean, however, that The Cure holds back on the surprises on "Join the Dots." "Do the Hansa" is a giddy, nonsensical delight. "A Few Hours After This," with its majestic synths and dime-store tambourine, shows how The Cure could make its tales of love sound oh-so-grand, while maintaining a sense of humor.

The Cure's cover versions offer cool new ways to look at rock classics. The band's "Young Americans" turns David Bowie's model of sleek, blue-eyed soul into a squonky, lovable tangle of horns and synthesizer sounds. It turns The Doors' "Hello, I Love You" into a silly, delirious laugh-riot, while staying remarkably true to Jimi Hendrix's "Purple Haze."

And just think, as good as "Join the Dots" is, the band's "Standing on the Beach" greatest hits collections is even better. ("Join the Dots: B-Sides and Rarities, 1978-2001," in stores today; Grade: A)

TRON said:

I respectably disagree, Tron. A lot of times, the b-side was even better than the a-side. That's how I fell in love with the cure, by a copy of standing on a beach, the cassette version that had 12 of their b-sides.

I won't be able to afford this box next week, (and you already have it, you fucker! Record Time is clear on the other side of town from me...)

I DO want this, but other than the handful of previously unreleased tracks, I already have all these songs. So I'm more than likely going to wait until I get my taxes back, and grab it in March. BUT DO POST THAT REVIEW, TRON!

well... i'm still absorbing it. But i'm very very very pleased by Join the Dots. It's first rate, and it's evident that alot of care went into it. Robert obviously knows how important this project is to Cure fans and I believe he outdid himself.

The first thing that stands out to me is how great the tracks sound... the remastering job is really top-notch. It's especially evident on early tracks like Plastic Passion, where the bass just KICKS.

It's also very interesting to see which tracks Robert is keen on and which he wasn't happy with. Some of the B-sides were once thought of as possible singles, and some were candidates to be album tracks until late in the process. I was surprised that Robert was so high on Sugar Girl but A Chain of Flowers - one of their most brilliant songs in my opinion - barely rated a mention in the liner notes.

If I could ask for one thing, I would've liked something a bit more substantial as far as comments on the tracks... On most of them, Robert just offers a very short blurb. Fascinating yes, but the completist in me wants more details... But there are still plenty of great tidbits and surprising revelations (like Stop Dead was slated for inclusion on The Head on the Door until the last minute.. I would have thought The Exploding Boy, but maybe it was too similar to InBetween Days. I wonder what track got the nod over Stop Dead... Screw, perhaps?)

Of the previously unreleased material, the thing that stands out to me the most right now is the single remix of How Beautiful You Are - it's fantastic. They made a mistake in not releasing that as a single, no doubt. The Virgin Radio version of Purple Haze is so superior to the released version (IMHO) that it's not even close.

The weakest moment for me is the 8 minute long remix of Wrong Number... blah. I would've much preferred Spilt Milk, which seems to be the only strange omission. Everything else is pretty much included, and i'm sure the Remasters will more than make up for what is missing.

I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Join the Dots as a starting point for those interested in discovering The Cure. The material is strong throughout, and it's widely diverse and always interesting.

All in all Join the Dots is a treasure trove for Cure fans... Beautifully packaged and designed. I can finally get rid of all my CD-R B-Side collections, which is a very good thing I will be listening to this set for quite a while to come, I'm certain of that...

Well, tonight here in Columbus this club called Skully's is having a CD release party for the new Cure box set.

But I can't go.

But I'm not too worried. I mean this box set is something that I probably won't pick up right away. I mean, it will be around, so I'm not rushing to get it. Besides, I already have their B-sides collection on the "Staring At The Sea" singles cassette. Yeah, I know, that's not getting the whole shebang, but it's good anyways.

TRON said:

thanks for your help!