Cureuphoria» Miscellaneous

The Cure for Valentine’s Day

Gian — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 23:40:57 +0000

To be honest, I am not much of the Valentine’s Day kind (or, to be more precise, I am not at all).

However, why not to take the occasion and make a Cure playlist, a selection of songs that inspire, you know, the feeling that is associated with the Day Of Love?

After all, I already did it for Halloween, and even if I am sure that for many the Day Of The Dead is more associated with The Cure and easily calls for an Halloween Cure playlist, there are so many songs in the Cure repertory that seats on the bright side of the spectrum whose evoke the feeling of falling or being in love, so let’s put them toghether.

Or, maybe, let’s put toghether those about the joyful and saddish moments that sometimes relationships produce.

Surely enough, I left out songs that others would have put in, which are obviously associated with LOVE in the Cure universe. Songs such as “Just Like Heaven”, for example, as with the meaning of the song and the video and all.

But the criteria for this selection of mine is based on the way a particular song make me think and feel about “the one”, or about “it” in general.

So, rather than making a selection of Cure songs that talk about love, I’ve listed those that talk “to me” about love, and maybe more with the music that in the lyrics, I must say.

The playlist, in non particular order, goes like this:

Pictures Of You
Catch
Sirensong
Sugar Girl
(I Don’t Know What’s Going) On
Lovesong
This Twilight Garden
There Is No If…
Close To Me
Trust
A Letter To Elise
Halo
Before Three
Treasure
Six Different Way
Home
Ocean
The 13th
Strange Attraction
High
Bare
The Only One
The Perfect Boy

Anyway, you are welcome to share your personal list, here in the comments, or on the forum.

And… happy Valentine’s Day! (I never thought I’d say something like this. I am getting old. Or pink. Or something. Mmm…).

The Cure for Halloween

Gian — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 00:01:39 +0000

Halloween time, and for those who can’t help but thinking of what Cure songs best suits the darkest night of the year, there are quiet some to choose from the lot, aren’t there?

Well, I’ve put up a selection of what I consider the songs from The Cure that better evoke the Halloween atmosphere, and I tried to omit those that even being dark or obscure or sad or whatever, just don’t make me think of an Halloween soundtrack or feeling, kind of thing.

I must say that of all, the most representative for me is Fear Of Ghosts, and surely not because of the title. The sound of this song really outputs this overall atmosphere that is just so… well, Halloween, I might say.

And, Pornography is there almost in its entirety, obviously.

So, here’s the list, in no particular order at all:

Lost
The Scream
Anniversary
Prayers For Rain
Watching Me Fall
The Promise
The Drowning Man
Pornography
Bloodflowers
Lament
The Kiss
All I Want
Fight
Fear Of Ghosts
Last Dance
All Cats Are Grey
The Figurehead
Charlotte Sometimes
Shake Dog Shake
Want
Adonais
Cold
Pornography
A Short Term Effect
End
At Night
One Hundred Years
The Hanging Garden

Everything’s there, I think, or did I let out anything?

Related reading on the web:

My Top 5 Cure moments

Gian — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 13:43:35 +0000

To answear to my own topic on the forum, titled What are your Top 5 Cure moments, here are my Top Cure moments.

As it got too long to suit a forum post, I decided to publish the thing on the blog section. Feel free to go to forum, and publish your list.

Here’s mine…

1) The sneaking into the soundcheck at the Royal Albert Hall in London, 2006.

I actually did that. They let everybody in while the band was still busy with the soundcheck. Of course, all the doors to the theater were shout and there was this “no-access belt” in front of them. I had a ticket for the 3rd row on the ground floor, right in front of the stage, but while waiting to go in I decided to go to the bar that was on the 3rd level.

I was with this japanese girl I just met outside the venue. While walking to the bar you could hear the sound of the band playing inside. I looked around and noticed that there was no security stuff in that particular area and moment. So I went under the “no-access belt” and tried to open the doors to the balcony. Surprisedly they weren’t locked or anything, so I helped myself in and said “Come, come!” to the japanese girl (her name was Nobuko).

I couldn’t believe it: I found myself on the balcony of the totally empty arena of the Royal Halbert Hall with just the band right there in front of me, busy playing Open. I was on the left side of the stage. I felt like I was stealing a magic moment to life.

Adrenaline kicked in, and for that little while I imagined that I was having the immense privilege of having The Cure playing a private concert in one of the most prestigious venues in the world, and for me only. Well, AND for the japanese girl that I pulled in.

She was so happy. She never actually saw The Cure before then, and that show was to be her very first Cure concert. So she must have felt so special seeing them like that, in secret, outside of the normal concert context.

I made sure we would both keep our heads low. I was sure that at any point someone from the security staff would get there and walked us out by the ears and that we would be forbid to see the actual concert as a punishment for breaking the rules (it’s England, what do you know?).

At some point Robert spotted us and turned his look toward us and stared at us for a while, with his head a little inclined, you know, the way he does when he stares up at people on the balconies when he’s performing actual shows.

I instinctively waved at him, kindly, not frantically, and he kept looking toward us.

So, there I was, living the dream of having The Cure playing just for me, and having Robert’s attention on me for a moment.

Well, as cocky as it is, for me the episode makes it number one of the list.

2) The announcement of the Trilogy Concert in Brussels

When the Trilogy concert – and the concept behind it – was announced, one couldn’t help but feeling that the event was going to be a big milestone in the history of The Cure.

The fact that it was to be performed on two exclusive nights in Berlin and filmed for a DVD release, made it even more exciting.

Despite the great pleasure for such an epical event, I felt frustrated of knowing I wasn’t likely to make it to Berlin to see the albums Pornography, Disintegration and Bloodflowers performed live in their integrity.

Then something magic happened: The Cure announced that there would be a third concert, just a couple of days before Berlin, and that it would be in Brussels, at Forest National.

Now, not only I live in Brussels, but I did live at five minute walking from Forest National. Pure magic.

Call me crazy, but I felt like it was a deserved gift for loving The Cure so much.

And when I walked there – because I just had to walk to get there! – the moon was right up the venue, big and bright and full, and that moment seemed like the perfect night to watch The Cure playing three amazing sets. And it was.

3) The Taormina concert, 2005

Well, I will never mention it enough, you know, the beautifulness of the Taormina show. Never.

Watching The Cure in the ancient greek-roman theater, under the summer sky, has been the most joyful and amazing Cure experience I’ve had. It all just felt so much different than a standard concert.

Everybody’s mood, from the band to the fans, was so special and the sound was the best ever. It didn’t even felt like a concert. It felt like a Cure party, with The Cure them self playing for us. Can I say more about it? I could, believe me, I could.

4) The release of the Wish album

Even thought in retrospective it feels weird to me, Wish has actually been the first new album since I start loving The Cure.

I started to gradually get into the Cure world and music right after the Disintegration release. Then I started to literally get my hands on everything that The Cure ever made. And of course, there was so much stuff to catch up with, and almost about anything was new to me. So it was exciting to dive into that world, made of so many different things – mostly being songs, of course.

But somehow the excitement I got when a brand new album was released after I was officially addicted to The Cure, is the kind you don’t forget. Also, at that time, there was no internet yet, so, back then, those were the days where one couldn’t find much information about the upcoming songs, and the surprise factor made the waiting and the discovery of an album, much more exciting, I think.

5) Making and publishing Cureuphoria.

The willing of making Cureuphoria has been present in my soul for a long, long time. Putting a lot of efforts and some of my professional competencies in web design to build a website that would be at the same time a personal tribute to the band and their work, and to all fans out there – Cure lovers like me – has been and is my way to give what I can to the Cure world. And it is an experience that I enjoy very, very much. The publishing of this project, to me, represent one big moment in my life as a Cure lover.

Otherwise, other than the Top 5…

Ok, the list was actually quiet hard to make for me. I was tempted to extend it to a Top 10 or something, considering all the other Top Moments that I thought deserved to be in mentioned. Anyway, I feel like sharing some of the moments that didn’t make my list but that really could or probably should. Think of them as… b-sides.

B-side #1: The New York double show in 2008

Well, being in wonderful New York, knowing that you are going to see the band playing two show in a row, one day after the other, in two epic venues (Madison Square Garden and Radio City Hall), is just the kind of thing that would deserve to make a list like this one.

B-side #2 Listening to Want live, when it was an unknow song

When the band played some festival in the summer of 1995 they decided to open the show with Want. It was a new, never played before song. And right then, to me, it sounded like the most Curish thing ever. And I got tears in my eyes.

B-side #3 The first time I saw The Cure

Well, I guess that this should be an “everybody’s top moment”, you know… watching The Cure live for their very first time. Mine was in Florence and I got there with my super friend Roy, with a night train. And after all this time, it is still such a beautiful souvenir.

Wrap up.

Ok, there it is, long as it sometimes get when emotions are called to play.

Anyway, without it having to be this long, I’d enjoy knowing everyone else’s Top 5 moments in their Cure life. I am sure there are some, and that you don’t need to dig that deep to find them. Right?

Official Forum Closed!

Gian — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 16:27:42 +0000

Sadly enough, as lots of you have surely noticed, the forum on the official website is currently closed. While the reason for this are officially unknown, there are big chances that the shutting down of the forum service has something to do with the rumors of The Cure leaving Universal.

Anyway, since a lot of funs on that forum have signed up here at Cureuphoria, I suggest you to use the forum here to keep your Cure life going…

Really, the forum doesn’t bite, I promise, and it will be imporved in the future, so it seems to be the perfect time to liven it up a little.

Suggestions are always welcomed and taken into consideration.

So, go on and rock it on!

The Cure and this late, inexplicable flow of things

Gian — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 11:55:20 +0000

Ok, we waited for 4:13 Dream to be released for a long, long time, but eventually it did find its way out (some of us lost hope at some point), and now it’s in our hands (or on our CD shelf, for what matters).

We got a fantastic tour, full of energy and general enthusiam, that the band performed with an outstanding intensity that we couldn’t believe possible.

We got 4 singles out of the album, which is a good number considering the fact that singles usually means b-sides, and b-sides means more songs from the recording session (and we all know how eager we are when it comes to Cure music). So, cheers to that.

And, right now, we face the possibility of an official DVD release with the recording of the Paris concert from the past tour.

I admit it, as a fan, that is pretty cool stuff to be happy about it.

However, something in the whole releasing process feel somehow weird to me.

No, I am not going to diminish anything of what I just stated above.

But I’d like to simply take the focus on the course of events and outputs around the last album, which I personally don’t seem to get quiet right (and I must not be the only one).

I’m not even going to bring up the delays for the official release date (getting used to that) and the canceled tour and all of that. What I want here, is to point out at the unusual order in which things were (and are) delivered.

Correct me if I’m wrong, but normally the conventional order of producing stuff around a new album is as follow:

1) A first, “lead” single, is released from the upcoming album.
2) The album comes out, within a short time after the lead single (1 month at the latest).
3) A tour, promoting the brand new songs, kicks off.

Sometimes (but more and more often) a first promo-tour starts a little before the official release date for the new album, like a couple of weeks or so before, with the band/artist playing the new songs.

4) A real, major tour follow soon.
5) Some more songs from the album are released as singles.

What else?

6) At some point during the tour, some concert may be filmed and a DVD of that particular show is afterward produced and released, once the tour is over.

This, without doubts, is the common (and probably logical) progression of a band/artist activity when it comes to promote a major release.

Now, with no exception to such a conventional routine, The Cure delivered their stuff in the above order for the past years, and if I’m not wrong, for each and every other past album.

Well, until 4:13 Dream, that is.

Again, let alone the neverending delay for its release date, if you step a little back and do a little analysis, here’s the order in which things were actually provided:

1) A Tour. And, as stated above, a very good one too. But… Way before that the new, very awaited, studio record was released. During the tour, 3 of the new recorded songs were initially played (The Only One, Freakshow, A Boy I Never Knew ), and 4 more songs were performed when the tour moved forward (The Perfect Boy, Sleep When I’m Dead, Underneath The Stars, It’s Over).
2) Release of all the singles for the upcoming album (four), one at the time with an interval of a month between one and the other. Again, and surprisedly, all out before the album release.
3) Release of the album, with a single show (Rome) promoting the new songs (all!), a week before the official release date.
4) Some occasional single shows, in which the songs of the new album weren’t played at all, with the exception of the ones already played during the past tour, plus one, The Hungry Ghost.

What else?

5) The prospection (as of this moment) of a film on DVD for the Paris concert, whose setlist includes only 2 titles from the new album.

Now, doesn’t all this look a little upside down, or even totally messed up, there?

Very likely, it does.

An album comes out, a major tour ends before it comes out, no other tour is announced. All singles are out before the album release. A DVD will probably be released with basically no titles from the new album. How odd is all that?

Why does 4:13 Dream, an album that seemed to have struggled its way out, deserve such an exceptional treatment?

You may ask, at this point: “We all saw this with our own eyes, what’s your point here, dude?”

Well, honestly, I’m not sure myself, but it’s not a complain or criticism of any kind (and if you felt like one was coming, than I’m sorry to disappoint you).

I guess I am simply overwhelmed with a feeling of wonder for the reasons behind such an inconsistent and inexplicable successions of events and releases that looks and feel like some kind of nonsense. Well, at least marketing-wise.

I am curious to know how come that the band didn’t follow the natural flow of things and broke the rules of conventional promotion. And why?

Especially, I am asking myself: “Was this intentional?”

Or things just slipped out of control at some point for some unknow reason?

Obviously, something must have happened.

Is this evident caotic marketing mess the result of the always so rumored commercial discords between the band and the record company? If so, how can such frictions affect the whole activity of a band?

To me, it all boils down to this: choices or compromises?

And… Considering how things are at the moment, what’s to expect next?

Will this way of managing (or unmanaging) things become a standard habit, or are we going back to normal at some point?

Yeah, so many questionmarks, umh? But as I said, questionmarks are probably my point in the article.

The biggest frustration and disappointment out of all this state of things is, for me, the fact that most of the new songs from 4:13 Dream seem to be neglected in live performances (with the exception of the usual suspects), and seems like they don’t deserve their place in a shows setlist (thinking about The Reasons Why. I’d love it to make the setlist).

Anyway, all things considered, I feel I should wrap this article up by saying that althought we’ve all witnessed this uncommon way of delivering the goods, at the least we got some very special stuff out of it all, what with a great album and an amazing tour (and a DVD?). And that is what really counts in the end, probably.

And yes, it has been (and is) the werdiest way to release and promote stuff and all, but when it comes to The Cure, weird is the least one should expect. Isn’t it?

Why can’t you be me? This time is Brian Molko who gets to play with it.

Gian — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 19:55:17 +0000

Looks like Brian Molko from Placebo played around with a line that is very much associated with The Cure, in one of the lyrics from his band’s recent studio release.

The line is from The Movie On Your Eyelids, a song that appears as the last track on the deluxe edition of Placebo’s new brand album, titled Battle For The Sun (which is very good, by the way).

The words that Brian Molko repeatedly sings as the last ones on the most (only) intimate song of the album, are a clear and evident reference to a Cure song. He sings: “Why Can’t You Be Me?”

Actually, I said “…a Cure song”, and of course I was referring to the famous single “Why Can’t I Be You?” out from the Kiss Me album (1987), but I should probably have said two, Cure songs, the other one being a b-side of the Taking Off single from the album The Cure (2004), titled Why Can’t I Be Me?

It’s evident that in this latter song Robert had some fun using the words of the dance-upbeat single, and changed them around to give a totally different meaning (and the sound of that song is anything but dance-upbeat).

As I stated before on this post, when reviewing The Perfect Boy single, I find it cool of Robert to play with his own art, and I love the way he managed to reformulate some famous lyrics to express another kind of feeling.

But I didn’t aspect some other singer to take the lyrics game further and continue the saga of this identity play.

Yeah, maybe I am wrong all the way, and Brian Molko singing Why Can’t You Be Me? got nothing to do with the two songs of The Cure, but I can’t help making the link, especially considering the fact that Placebo is one of the many bands that were inspired by The Cure. And that it’s common knowledge the existing friendship between the two bands. So…

So, looks like we got Why Can’t I Be You?, WhyCan’t I Be Me?, and Why Can’t You Be Me?, out there, right?

To close the circle, now we just need someone to go out there and sing Why Can’t You Be You?

Billy Corgan, are you reading this?

PS: You can listen to the song here.

Where was I when they played Taormina?

Gian — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 13:53:42 +0000

In the summer of 2005 The Cure decided they would headline some major festivals in Europe. Participations to a given event were announced one by one, as they got officially confirmed.

During the announcement flow, a name and a date stood out from the lot. 20 August. Taormina, Italy.

Now, knowing that Taormina is an ancient greek theater on the beautiful coast of Sicily, I am preatty sure one big title screened up in everybody’s head: THIS IS GOING TO BE CURE IN ORANGE 2!

Yes the chance in a lifetime to witness the band playing in the best possible fitting scenery ever: ancient ruins under an open sky in a summer night in the south of the mediterranea sea.

That said, if you wonder were I was on that particular day, well, click here and find out.

I’ve found that picture among thousands of wonderful pictures for that show posted by fans on the internet. When I saw it, I looked closely and said: “Mmmh, I must have been there somewhere, let me see…”, and than squeezed my eyes a little and recognized myself (actually, I squeezed my eyes A LOT…).

Well, since I am writing about some wonderful pictures of the Taormina concert, and since no one probably care about the above picture, I just realized and decided (now on the fly) that I could post some nice photos of that night, that I downloaded from the internet back then. Just to make the post more interesting and less about me.

So, after some sorting out and editing, here they are, in a nice gallery format. One little selection from a memorable concert… Click and enjoy!

PS: With the exception of one picture, I don’t seem to be able to track down the authors of the photos, so, if any author want to be credited here (and they should be, actually), I will do it. Just send me an email. And if for any reason an author wants his/her pictures removed, I will do that too.

Play For Today effect in The Reasons Why?

Gian — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 23:20:56 +0000

I always wondered, since I first listened to The Reson Why, if it is my impression or if there is a very similar background effect, almost identical, than in Play For Today.

I am talking about a little loop sound, like a whiplash (?), which is by the way a little more prominent in Play For Today.

I don’t think I am able to explain it better, but accurate ears should detect the sound I am talking about.

Listen closely… What you think? Did you notice it as well?

Yeah, just needed to share a useless doubt, there…

Why can’t you be me? This time is Brian Molko who gets to play with it.

Robert’s top 30 favorite songs from the 80s

Gian — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 09:55:15 +0000

Following is the list of the 30 favorite songs from the 80s, that Robert revealed when hosting “My 80s Top 30” Countdown on SIRIUS XM’s 1st Wave Channel.

You can find different downloads (mp3) of the show, at the Chain Of Flowers blog, on this page.

Here’s the list (in chronological order):

ABC, “The Look of Love”
The Associates, “Tell Me Easter’s On Friday”
Bananarama And Fun Boy Three, “It Ain’t What You Do It’s the Way That You Do It”
David Bowie, “Let’s Dance”
Kate Bush, “Cloudbusting”
Cocteau Twins, “Persephone”
Cristina, “Things Fall Apart”
Daf, “Sex Unter Wasser”
Depeche Mode, “Personal Jesus”
Dinosaur Jr, “Freak Scene”
Echo And The Bunnymen, “The Killing Moon”
Peter Gabriel, “Red Rain”
The Human League, “Human”
The Jesus And Mary Chain, “Some Candy Talking”
Joy Division, “The Eternal”
Chaka Khan, “I Feel For You” [Really? - ED.]
Madness, “Return of the Los Palmas Seven”
Mel And Kim, “Respectable”
My Bloody Valentine, “Lose My Breath”
New Order, “Everything’s Gone Green”
Yoko Ono, “Walking on Thin Ice”
The Pixies, “Gigantic”
The Pretenders, “Don’t Get Me Wrong”
Prince, “Starfish and Coffee”
Psychedelic Furs, “Heaven”
Siouxie And The Banshees, “Dear Prudence”
Soft Cell, “Tainted Love”
The Sugarcubes, “Birthday”
Suzanne Vega, “Small Blue Thing”
Tom Waits, “In the Neighborhood”

Although I know (and appreciate) most of the artists in the list, I must admit that I don’t know most of the songs (with some exceptions like for Dinosaur Jr’s Freak Scene, Siouxie And The Bnashees’s Dear Prudence, Depeche Mode’s Personal Jesus), which is strange and unexpected, I think.

So, I am sure that I’ll go and check the songs out (especially Cocteau Twins and New Order).

(After all I am a list fanatic, à la High Fidelity, see?).

(Photo credit: click here)

Official site down…

Gian — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 01:16:41 +0000

Looks like the official site is down since a few hours now. The very first page is on, but when you click on enter, you get an error message.

So, I wonder: technical issues? Or, are we about to get a new official website?

Update: Of course, technical issues it was…

Official Forum Closed!