July 2004 - Bravo (Russia)
*Translation below
THE CURE are cured to immortality
“We tried not to be popular. Popularity turns the band into horrible being” R. Smith
I’ve just heard a new album of The Cure. It’s not only the best album of the last two-three years. It’s real music, all these Franz Ferdinand and Modest Mouse in comparison with it are just childish lisping, plush muck of hot-dogs plasticine devourers. Nowadays there is the only really great band in the world. This is The Cure!
If there weren’t The Cure contemporary music would have been absolutely different. Beginning with HIM (The CURE are often called the fathers of gothic rock) and Linkin Park and ending with Miss Kittin and Benny Benassi. Not even speaking of every The Rupture…
A producer of the new Cure album Ross Robinson who has created the unique sound for Nu-Metal bands such as Korn, Limp Bizkit and Slipknot says: “a few years ago I was on backstage during one of their concert. There were road containers for band’s instruments and equipment. In that moment I thought if only I could make a record with them, I would simply end my career! What can be done after that?”
Well, Ross, you can calmly retire… Although stop! You have signed The Cure for two more albums!
The Cure was founded in 1976 by Englishman Robert James Smith. He is a permanent leader and the only constant member of the band ever since. At first the band was called Easy Cure. Shortly this “easy” disappeared. The band played somber guitar music with existential lyrics. Their first album was released in 1979. It was quite a successful start…
In the 80s the group had released 12 albums and the most successful of them became melancholic “17 seconds” (1980), paranoiac “Pornography” (1982), crazy “The Head of the Door” (1985) and magnificent “Disintegration” (1989). There were gloomy melodiousness, romantically-depressive painfully sincere poetry and well-remembering carnival-funeral image. Musicians often fell into depressions linked with drugs and alcohol, the band’s line-up constantly was changing. But all of this didn’t hinder them to become a cult group. In 1992 the band released their most commercially successful CD – “Wish”. “Bloodflowers” (2000) was welcomed by music critics with delight but at the same time was called “the swan song of the group”. Here is the new record…
Robert Smith is one of the greatest English rock-poets of the 20th century. Monument of him should be placed in the center of London just because he wrote such songs as “Lovesong”, “Friday I’m in love” and “A Forest”. With the new album in the 21st century Smith still stays the same great person as he was in the 20th.
And this is forever. This is what’s called “immortality”. Gleb Davidov
Facts
>> Robert Smith is married to Mary Poole. They met when they were 13 but married only in 29.
As a wedding present Robert wrote “Lovesong” for her.
>> In the age of 6 Smith learned guitar chords with the help of his elder brother Richard.
In the age of 13 Robert got his first guitar as a Christmas present.
>>During their tours The Cure often were arrested by police as hooligans. For instance in Holland musicians bathed absolutely naked in a city fountain.
>>Once musicians aired their own pirate XFM radio station. On the night from the 31st of August to the 1st of September 1990 during four hours Smith with specially invited DJs from US had been broadcasting the songs from the new remix album and the records of his favorite artists, interviewed the rest members of the group and related anecdotes.
>>In the end of the 1986 before touring Spain and France Robert Smith made his legendary hair short. Cure fans were extremely shocked.
>>Cure shows are always very emotional. From time to time Robert Smith left the stage crying. It happened that musicians had a fight with an audience.
thanks so much
Lusie from
Russia for the translastion.
