Vinyl Vault

Can it possibly be that The Cure have been around for 30 years now? Are we all getting that old? On the heels of their new album, we thought we’d take a song-by-song look back at two landmark albums in the band’s history: Their 1979 UK debut, Three Imaginary Boys (along with singles that found their way onto the US counterpart Boys Don’t Cry), and their 1989 masterpiece of gloom, Disintegration. We’ll start with the latter and work our ways back.

Disintegration (1989, Fiction Records/Elektra)

Side A

  A1. “Plainsong”
Who here thinks of the Top Gun love theme “You Take My Breath Away” when you hear the synths and crashing drums in the long instrumental intro here? The album was supposedly inspired by Smith’s fear of turning 30, and you can hear a little bit of that worry in the lyrics here, although the atmospheric music is far more resigned.

  A2. “Pictures of You”
The album version is highly preferable to the radio edit because of the way it allows the lovely guitar interplay to really build up before Smith starts to sing. Listen to the way he keeps his tone matter-of-fact in the verses, the emotion restrained by the flood of memories. Then Smith opens his eyes and sees the reality and the regret pours forth. This is magnificent sadness.

  A3. “Closedown”
The chord pattern recalls “Pictures Of You,” making for a kind of two-song suite, although this part is dominated by the thumping drum beat of Boris Williams and by some swirling synthesizers. “I’m out of step and closing down,” sings Smith, returning to the theme of running out of time.

  A4. “Love Song”
It’s up-tempo beat, although still framed by minor chords, helped push this song to #2 on the pop charts. The organ gives it a moody and mysterious vibe, which is at odds with the sentimental lyrics. Smith sounds almost desperate in pledging his loyalty, as if he needs to cut through the darkness surrounding him. His vocal performance is the best part of this well-constructed hit.

  A5. “Last Dance”
This is one song where all the synthesizer work sounds a tad dated, marring Smith’s lead guitar, which is reminiscent here of the soaring work of David Gilmour. Most of these songs take a while to get to the vocals. In other instances, you don’t mind, but, on this song, you’re grateful once the singer gets to his tale about a love unable to withstand time.

  A6. “Lullaby”
The strings, synths, and guitars set a nice table, but Smith spoils it with the horror-movie lyrics and a whispered vocal that’s one spooky effect too much.

  A7. “Fascination Street”
The ominous bass is the first thing that grabs you here, until one-by-one more guitar layers are added to the mix. This knotty track was an odd choice as the album’s first single in the U.S., especially considering there’s no real vocal hook to pull in fidgety radio listeners. But the complete effect is quite mesmerizing by song’s end.

Side B

  B1. “Prayers For Rain”
The long songs just keep on coming. This drone-a-thon is pitch-black, as Smith vents in front of a wail of wailing instruments about a destructive relationship. “I deteriorate” is typical of the bleakness on display here, and the music makes it seem like the worst is yet to come. Not for the faint of heart.

  B2. “The Same Deep Water As You”
A thunderclap heralds even more misery on the way for Smith here. The instrumental backdrops start to get a little familiar at this point, and more than nine minutes of this one begins to grate. When Smith sings, “We shall be together,” it sounds like anything but a comfort.

  B3. “Disintegration”
A little light tries to crack through in the faster tempo and jaunty rhythm of this song. Of course it all leads to Smith singing, “I miss the kiss of treachery.” By the end he’s wailing for his life, with his voice pushing the melody of the verses higher and higher as if he’s trying to get to a cathartic chorus that the song never allows him.

  B4. “Disintegration”
Built around a melancholy 4-note piano melody, this song slowly adds different elements to the mix until it’s practically a cacophony of frustrated sorrow. The vocals are again sidelined for the first three minutes or so, and when Smith finally sings, he sounds weary and defeated under the “blood-stained sky,” wishing to “never go home.” His skills as an arranger are probably the most underrated part of the band, though they’re often overshadowed by their poppy radio hits. “Homesick” shines a brilliant spotlight on them.

  B5. “Untitled”
No, it’s not Smith’s version of a polka, even though that sure sounds like an accordion at song’s beginning and end. Wallowing in the too-little, too-late scenario of a lost love, Smith’s lyrics are at their peak. “I’ll never lose this pain/Never dream of you again.” Considering the gorgeous images he’s been able to conjure up out of the netherworld all album long, you can understand why the inability to dream of his love would hit Smith so hard.

The Bottom Line

On Disintegration, Robert Smith channeled all of his crushed hopes and tormenting fears into Disintegration. Wallowing in sorrow has never sounded so delicious.

Go to Page 2 for a review of Three Imaginary Boys >>

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