Time Machine Tuesday - The Cure

The Cure

Last week, Glastonbury announced their acts for this year’s festival and The Cure are one of their headlining acts alongside The Killers, Janet Jackson and Stormzy.

The Cure first headlined Glastonbury in 1986 and it will be their fourth time headlining the iconic festival. Last year, they celebrated 40 years being a band by playing a dark but on trend set at Hyde Park.

The English rock band began releasing music in the late 1970s. Their dark and tormented music was an essential part of a new genre known as ‘Gothic rock.’ Although they were identified as ‘Gothic rock’, the band repeatedly rejected the classification of being a ‘Gothic rock’ band. Lead singer Robert Smith said: “it’s so pitiful when ‘goth’ is still tagged onto the name of The Cure… we’re not categorisable.”

Although he is notorious for his smeared red lip, thick eyeliner and scruffy black hair, he denies any credit he gets for creating the ‘goth’ trend and points out that it is merely a coincidence when he sees people dressed like him.

The Cure were one of the first alternative bands to gain commercial success as an alternative band. Interpol singer Paul Banks said: “The Cure is the band that all of us at Interpol can say influenced us.” In 1984, The Cure released ‘The Top’ which was a Top 10 hit in the UK and their first studio album to break the billboard 200 in the U.S, managing to reach number 180.

Their worldwide success stemmed from the release of ‘Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me’ where they reached number 6 in the UK and top 10 in several different countries. However, their most popular single in the US ‘Just Like Heaven’ and was the first to enter Billboard’s Top 40. In 1989, the band released their highest charting album ‘Disintegration’ which was critically praised in many parts of the world and sold over 3 million records worldwide.

Overall, they recorded 13 studio albums and 5 live albums with their last album 4:13 Dream being number 16 on the US Billboard 200 chart and 33 in the UK albums chart, selling 24,000 copies in their first week.

During their success, they have won numerous awards including 2 Brit Awards for British Group and British Video of the Year, an MTV Video Music Award for Viewer’s Choice and an NME award for the Godlike Genius Award as well as being nominated for 2 Grammy Awards for Best Alternative Rock Album. Recently, The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame chose The Cure for induction in its Class of 2019, being nominated once before in 2012.

Robert Smith- Lead Singer of The Cure

Recently, the band have announced ‘huge shows’ according to the NME to celebrate their 30th anniversary of ‘Disintegration’ as well as announcing a 2019 tour that will start in Cape Town, South Africa and end in Paris, France.

Click here to listen to the best of The Cure on Spotify.