http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/news/04-04/23.shtml

'The Cure have revealed plans to release their forthcoming 13th full-length on June 22nd, according to a report from Billboard. Though details are still a bit sketchy, the album, which is yet to be titled, is apparently being produced by Korn and At the Drive-In producer Russ Robinson. The record will be issued on Robinson's fledgling I Am Recordings label, which, weirdly, will make The Cure official labelmates of The Blood Brothers, Glassjaw, and September.

Though fans are concerned that Robinson's harder-edged style could detract from or overdigitze the band's trademark atmospherics, The Cure's decision to hire Robinson marks a step up from their previous two albums, which were produced by longtime engineers Paul Corkett (Bloodflowers and Steve Lyon (Wild Mood Swings)-- neither of which had much experience under their belt as full-fledged producers: Corkett had previously only produced for Suede and Placebo, while Lyon had only one production credit, for The Creatures.

The Cure are scheduled to promote the new release a week from today on NBC's The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and have also announced a handful of live dates-- including a headlining performance on the second night of the Coachella Festival on May 2nd. The group will then hit Washington, DC's RFK Stadium on May 22nd, alongside Jay-Z, Modest Mouse and Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and will also be making the rounds on the European festival circuit this summer. Additionally, an extensive North American tour is reportedly planned to kick off in late July, though dates have not yet been revealed. Dates, as they stand currently:

04-30 New York, NY - The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
05-02 Indio, CA - Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival
05-22 Washington, DC - RFK Stadium
06-26 Hamburg, Germany - Hurricane Festival
06-27 Stuttgart, Germany - Southside Festival
07-09 Manchester, England - Move Festival
07-10 Naas, Ireland - Oxegen Festival

In related Cure news, the band are apparently about the become the latest beneficiaries of Rhino Records' apparent campaign to offer expanded reissues of the complete discographies of every band that ever found a home in the Warner/Elektra/Atlantic stable. Four of The Cure's early albums are being eyed for an August 17th re-release-- including their 1979 debut, Three Imaginary Boys, 1980's Seventeen Seconds, 1981's Faith, and 1982's Pornography-- with the remaining albums to follow, Costello-style, over the next 18 months. Tracklists, however, have yet to be announced.

Those of you wondering if there'll be anything left over for the bonus discs of The Cure's forthcoming expanded reissues after the recent release of the four-disc rarities/b-sides box set, Join the Dots, can rest assured: The Cure vaults contain more than 4,000 tapes of scrapped recorded output spanning the band's entire 25-year history.'

Great to see they are doing a new album. I know they said the last album was their last, but I guess they say that a lot and I should stop believing them.

It was supposed to come out earlier, actually, but Smith postponed it to remaster the band's back catalogue for Rhino (or, perhaps, to supervise Rhino's remastering guys).

Robert Smith finally admitted in a recent interview that he's stopped saying "This is the last album." He's having too much fun right now to think about stopping.

I can't wait for the reissues - I had all their records back in the '80s on vinyl (including a bunch of imports), but I never got any of their cds. Looks like now's the time. (my favorite album of their's is still 3 Imaginary Boys).

i only own their greatest hits and the b sides. i love them, and can't WAIT to pick up the reissues. Rino does a great job with em. I love all the costello ones.

how soon until disintegration?

Glad to hear it. Glad Bloodflowers was not the end. And the recent box set is more than enough to hold me over until this come out...

is anyone going to see them in DC on 5/22? i would drive from NJ but a 1 hour set does not seem worth it.

My friends and I are talking about it but I doubt that I can afford tickets.

The new single is supposed to out this week, has anyone heard it?

it will be played live tomorrow on Leno.

'The End' In Sight For The Cure




The Cure's first album in four years will be a self-titled affair, frontman Robert Smith announced last night (April 28) in New York at the first playback of the upcoming release. "The Cure" will arrive June 29 on producer Ross Robinson's I Am imprint via Geffen. The group will perform first single "The End of the World" tomorrow on NBC's "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno" and headline the Coachella festival on Sunday in Indio, Calif.

"I think it's the best thing we've ever done," Smith said proudly. "The album is called 'The Cure.' If you don't like it, then you don't like us." Smith stood silently in the corner of the room by himself while the 14-track album was played for about 40 journalists and guests, occasionally taking notes in preparation for approving the final mix and running order.

The album kicks off with the slow, discordant "Lost," featuring the first of many impassioned vocal performances from Smith. A throbbing bass groove powers the tentatively titled "Labyrinths," with Smith wailing, "It's not the same / it never was like this / everything has to change."

The classic Cure sound is evident on such tracks as "Before 3," "Taking Off" and "I Don't Know What's Going On," which sport great melodies and foot-tapping tempos. The 12th track, the tentatively titled "Jason #3" provides the album with a late shot of energy thanks to a clever, melodically ascending chorus.

But the album has its share of dark and intense material, particularly the epic penultimate track "The Promise," which runs nearly 15 minutes and climaxes in feedback and noise. "Us or Them" matches its confrontational title with an emphatic chorus ("I don't want you anywhere near me"), while "Going Nowhere" wraps things up with sad, dreamy production accented by piano.

"There was a moment where we had to decide whether to do some conceptual experiment with nothing over 100 [beats-per-minute], and all of us with our heads down making a heavy, heavy album, but it wouldn't be as good," Smith said. "The best Cure albums have a balance."

Smith revealed that former guitarist Porl Thompson, who left the Cure in 1993, recorded parts for a couple of tracks. At Robinson's urging, basic tracks were recorded live, yet another throwback to an earlier time.

"Ross wanted to record us as a band, which we really hadn't done since the second album we ever made," Smith said. "The days would build up into these intense periods until we'd get the song. Everything was played live and I had to sing live."

Smith held back on giving details of the band's summer tour, which is rumored to feature such Cure-inspired new acts as Interpol, the Rapture and Mogwai, but promised, "You'll enjoy the whole thing because it was put together by us."

Here is the tentative track list for "The Cure":

"Lost"
"Labyrinths" (working title)
"Before 3" (working title)
"Truth Goodness and Beauty"
"The End of the World"
"I Don't Know What's Going On"
"Taking Off"
"Anniversary"
"This Morning
"Us or Them"
"Precious Advise" (working title)
"Jason #3" (working title)
"The Promise"
"Going Nowhere"

F'in Bob ALWAYS says "this is our best album" before each one gets released. Prove it, oh mopey eyelined one.

thank you, cdollaz! wow.

Sweet!