Mike76

Pop-punk with sixties shades here and there (Kinks, Birds) and with existentialist lyrics. For supporters, it's the most spontaneous and therefore sincere Cure album, while for detractors, it's the most "average" Cure album. The truth, as always (?), lies in between. Rating 3.5.

I’m currently studying them these weeks by listening to the "mega-summary" in 97 tracks from the Peel Sessions 1978-2004.

It's normal for a famous band, when they have nothing to say, to rely on pure and simple entertainment; however, judging by the single, the RHCP seem more bland and deflated than usual.

Indeed, the 15 tracks of this album are of rare perfection, astonishing that pieces so skeletal and with such "little music" can be so expressive, but it seems that Stuart Moxham, in composing, has studied a lot about pauses, the empty spaces between one instrument and another. A music that, thanks to Statton's voice, communicates a certain underlying purity even when the whole expresses negative moods like tension, resentment, or disappointment. I also have the reissue in 3 CDs mentioned in comment 59 and I must say it is worth it; the second CD has an excess of 26 tracks, nothing as perfect as in Colossal Youth but still interesting: instrumental motifs from the Tescard EP, early versions of debut tracks, and even some rarities that vaguely feel like Cabaret Voltaire due to that crazy beat-box (though the effect is quite different). The third CD, the one from the Peel Session, has the meager 5 tracks all already present in the first two, however the radio versions are recorded and produced in a clearer and more professional manner and highlight details that the Rough Trade records lacked. Highly recommended box set.

I’ve been a fan of The Cure and Siouxsie and the Banshees for over fifteen years, yet I only recently got around to listening to this project—what can I say? Pleasantly surprised. It contains many insights that were later appropriated by the parent bands (until 1983, only the Banshees had been somewhat psychedelic with "Kaleidoscope" and "Kiss in The Dreamhouse"). The ethereal yet driving "Like An Animal," for instance, feels like a close relative of the future "Just Like Heaven," and themes of troubled, unhealthy love, like those in "Punish Me With Kisses," would arise again in "Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me." The use of some previously unheard sounds-instruments (the flute and the sampled "ciaramella" from "Orgy") would only appear in the subsequent "The Top" and "Hyaena," just as the sounds in "Relax," a sort of instrumental version of the more horror-tinged Banshees, and "This Green City," which anticipates the more pop-oriented Siouxsie. But beyond the fan curiosities, this is a great album of good pop songs, melodic enough to feel “friendly” but with just the right dose of “weirdness” to keep them from sounding trivial: "Looking Glass Girl" has a dream pop vibe reminiscent of the Cocteau Twins, "Mr. Alphabet Says" flaunts strings that evoke the Beatles, "A Bles In Drag" is a highly successful and evocative instrumental interlude that I swear was lifted by Aphex Twin 14 years later, and "The Perfect Murder" presents an anomalous synth-pop sound. The bonus disc with Robert Smith's vocal parts is a pleasant listen, even though there’s a lingering doubt that they may have been re-recorded more recently (a bit of a scam, really). The original versions with Landray’s voice are no less impressive, and although she may not possess the charisma of a Siouxsie or a Smith, I think the improvised dancer-cum-singer did quite well. All in all, it’s a nice album that foreshadows the lysergic excursions of "The Top" and the more dreamlike ones of "Hyaena."

A bit boring, like all biographical films.

Well, as for Malaria! I wouldn't use the term "industrial," though they are certainly a bit "abrasive" here and there, but never too violent or iconoclastic. Their proposal always maintains a certain degree of cold romanticism, a humanity claustrophobically immersed in a technological world. To simplify, they could be described as a mix between D.A.F. and Siouxsie, sometimes leaning more towards the former, sometimes towards the latter. "You You" is the most pop track of the bunch, the one that flaunts a certain melody more than the others; it's not bad, but for me, it's also the least interesting. Much better when the tracks are drier and more martial with practically nonexistent melodies like "Geld," "Trash Me," "Eifersucht," "Leidenshaft," captivating gems from the alternative disco scene, even though the most legendary of all is the "pornographic" "Kalte Klares Wasser." Rating: 4.5.

Unfortunately, the review is so focused on presenting curiosities and anecdotes about the group (some of which are frankly uninteresting) that it loses sight of the album and the music, but above all, it says nothing personal or critical, which I think is the worst part.

Finally, I listened to it. Let's say that Gartside's voice leans towards the "bel canto" of Robert Wyatt, while the tendency of singers of the time was to move towards atonal interpretations or, at best, "dry" ones, if not outright out of tune (Lydon, Siouxsie, Wire, Gang Of Four), which is both "out of the mainstream" and "conservative" at the same time. The instrumental part, on the other hand, is more in step with the times: off-kilter rhythms with instruments sometimes out of sync with each other, a rough and battered guitar as punk dictated but without too much fervor and violence; moreover, here and there, both in the percussion and in the bass, you can hear dub and reggae influences ("Skank bloc Bologna" foremost).
In some episodes, you can hear a sort of Captain Robert Wyatt & his Magic Band (especially "28/8/78," which has a bit of "Trout Mask," albeit slightly more "tamed," but also "Bibbly-o-tek," "Doubt Beat," and to a lesser extent "P.a.s."). In short, it's music that doesn't make me shout masterpiece (there were dozens of better bands at the time), but nonetheless, Scritti's work is a peculiar and daring proposition, at least until they turned towards the sugary, swooning pop of "the sweetest girl" (the fact that the lyrics had hidden meanings doesn't matter much to me), and the "I wish I were Michael Jackson" of "Lions After Slumber," a pair of tracks that sadly close the collection, which is enough for me to say that what I have from Scritti Politti is more than sufficient.

Wikipedia is a remarkable tool for quickly finding information, but while I admire those who created it, I share Vortex's view: Wikipedia is a fast-food option that risks homogenizing culture and making it more superficial. Sometimes it's okay, but it's always better to go to a restaurant.
As for the availability of the comic being reviewed, at this moment on eBay, the reprint is on sale for €5, and the original is priced at €25.99.