jonnews!
I finally got a job! Well, it's more of a hobby
than a job since I don't do it much and it doesn't pay much. It's
with HOT HOT HOT HOT... 94.9....The Blaze. I now do some
weekend board-op work. If you were listening to the station last
weekend you totally could've heard me screw up pretty bad. See
the Blaze van was at the ultimate fighting championship and they
called in their little propaganda speeches for people to come
to the event. For some reason I neglected to edit out me talking
to the guy before it went on air. Nobody's complained yet.
I finally beat Metroid, my favorite Nintendo game.
As a kid, I actually destroyed the main, bad-thing, the Mother
Brain, but I always failed to escape the planet on time before
the bomb timer ran out. Well this time I did it with the help
of a Nintendo emulator, an under-the-table password code and an
illegal save feature. When you finish the game in a certain amount
of time you actually get to see yourself without your armor. Hey,
I'm pretty cute!
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flipped a u-turn and then J.R. got in my car and we chased them
for a while. J.R. and I got bored so we met at Dover and loitered
some more. According to the odometer, I drove 44.8 miles. |
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death
by cure
As promised, I will now resume my coverage of the inevitable world takeover
by The Cure, by reviewing the new cd, which I surprisingly still don't
own. On June 28, When I went to go pick it up at the MODified midnight
release party with my jailbait friend Naomi, I asked for the Japanese
version (which has a few extra tracks). I paid for it, but found out that
they were out of Japanese versions and they'd get back to me. They still
haven't gotten back to me, so I had to steal Naomi's copy, which is the
standard US release with a bonus making-of dvd.
 Anyway,
the thing is self-titled. After a dozen studio albums, this is the first
time in the band's quarter-century history they have named an album after
themselves. The gimmick might be a promotional tool for young people.
After Smith guested on Blink-182's first self-titled release, a Cure self-titled
release for the (hopefully) new fans Smith gained would make sense. Of
course it might just be laziness. Maybe during a titling brainstorming
session one of the bandmembers just yelled, "Hey, we never bothered to
just call one 'The Cure!'" Of course, this is the band's first cd with
a new record company. A lot of people think the reasoning is a sort of
rebirth.
Robert Smith has probably been aching for a rebirth for several years.
I think that aging rock stars is a tragic concept for two reasons that
the masses don't quite fully realize.
Most adept musicians start bands not for money or even for women (although
many claim the latter, I believe successful musicians humor us by saying
they do it for the chicks). Real musicians do it for the music alone and
real rock stars do it for the concept of rock 'n roll music in and of
itself. Eventually the concepts of rebellion, power and youth that came
so easily with the beginning of a rock star's career become baggage as
the rock star can no longer deny he's actually young. Soon the musician
must fake all rock qualities in order to maintain credibility in the rock
world. This then causes the rock star to hate himself in his own hypocrisy.
The second big problem rock stars have with aging is versatility. Robert
Smith has been in a rock band since he was 17 years old. For the past
five albums he's threatened to break up the band, but he always changes
his mind. I think that he doesn't change his mind because of the band
or even for the fans. I think he keeps the band together as a sort of
self-preservation. Being in a band is all he knows how to do. He's never
done anything else. He's been with The Cure for twice as long as the time
he hasn't been. He's scared. If he doesn't keep The Cure up, he'll have
to go on welfare.
With all that said, let's look at the album:
LOST: 
The cd starts with an obligatory whine session by Robert. It's instrumentally
minimalist with Robert yelling over and over "I can't find myself!" Eventually
the guitars crescendo into something more interesting, but we can't help
but say, "C'mon Rob! Get over yourself!" A few goth kids will probably
crank this track up on especially bad days. Robert turns a corner with
the last lyrics though: "I can't find myself/ I got lost in someone else..."
LABYRINTH: 
This would have made a much better opening track. The middle-eastern sounding
guitar drone would make an excellent background score for Ali-baba if
he were in the Cretian labyrinths. Mixed with the hollow drums, we're
back in the midst of the deep darkness of The Cure that we have come to
love so much. The song, as I hear it, is about familiar things becoming
complicated. Robert again pulls us in a different direction with his Shyamalanesque
final lyric: "Everything has to have changed.../ Or it's me..." Blast
Robert! It was someone else and now it's all about YOU again! Blast!
BEFORE THREE:
Too bad "Lost" had to begin the album. If not, "Before Three" could have
been track two and its title would be cleverer. Robert begins here with
his first happy song by starting out fittingly: "The happiest day I ever
knew..." Unfortunately the song sounds a little too much like Grandpa
Robert sitting on the porch in a rocking chair telling stories.
THE END OF THE WORLD: 
We all know this resistible at first, but ultimately irresistible first
single. Everybody sing along at the first set of "ooo-eee-ooo" right after
"We want us like everything else!" I think the song is about playful devotion
despite impending separation.
ANNIVERSARY:
Here's some more painful nostalgia. The haunting echoey chords sound a
little like X-files drearydom. The vocals are a distraction from the musical
mood.
US OR THEM:
The band plugs back in and deliver a scathing F-bomb induced letter to
Dubya. Robert probably included this, because, like all other musicians,
he had to take a stand on the American president. While I don't completely
disagree with his opinions, I do wish he didn't bother including this
song, because I'm sure there are better songs they left off the album.
Still, this song might be the loudest on the album. When turned up it
packs a Cure punch similar to another personal favorite: "Never Enough."
alt.end:
The guitar layering reminds me of some of my favorite work from the Head
on the Door album. The chorus is beautifully sing-alongable and is followed
by a sudden contrasting slow-groove in the verses. Tight, noticeable snares
snap in the background throughout. Robert seems to be singing about all
the other fish in the sea being pretty boring.
(I DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GOING) ON:
I gave this song an extra star because it must be the shortest Cure song
in years clocking in at 2:57! They should've skipped the parenthetical
title and just gave it a ridiculously short name as well. This is probably
the most obvious pop delight on the album.
TAKING OFF: 
This song falls in the middle of a "pop block" on the album and is an
excellent extension of "(I DON'T KNOW..." The instrumentality is at a
high perfection here with a feel good driving jangle. Robert sings here
about anticipating change, but thoroughly enjoying the moment.
NEVER:
Here's the conclusion of the pop block. It's about lazy, annoyed pity
on one's lover. The musical style bounces between old school Cure pop
and present-day rock. The verses contain the delightful pop (a switch
from the pop being in the chorus as in "alt.end") while the chorus is
pretty groovy-rocky.
THE PROMISE: 
Funny those ten minutes just fly right by! If this is the last Cure album,
it's only fitting that it concludes with a ten-minute steady drone. Still,
as ten-minute steady drones go, this one's pretty good. It sort of gets
under your skin and lives there for a little while while you pay your
bills or something.
Right now, the Cure pop harder than they rock and they rock harder than
they mope. Final Grade: 
Bring on the Cure pop music!
The liner notes of the US cd contain the following passage: "This Album
was Recorded Live in a Candlelit Room & Mixed Very Loud in The Dark...
We know You should Turn Down the Lights & Turn Up the Sounds for Your
Optimum Listening Pleasure..." I think it's pretty good advice.
Oh, btw, in a couple of weeks I'll be attending the Curiosa Festival
with my jailbait friend Naomi. I promise to conclude my summation of The
Cure's takeover of the world after I report on the concert.
Related: the symptoms of the cure
(6aug04)
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