Customer Reviews

4:13 Dream [VINYL]

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(37)
3 star:		(18)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

Full disclosure: I LOVE the Cure. They are my favorite band. However, I do not think they have released a first class record since Bloodflowers. I found the self titled album terribly disappointing, and this album, though better than the last, still leaves much to be desired. I fear Robert Smith is trying to remain young and relevant by embracing the modern emo/hardcore aesthetic, rather than the aesthetic that made them amazing in the first place. This was especially apparent with their choice of producer on the self titled album (Produced by Ross Robinson, who had previously worked with bands like Limp Bizkit), and with the emo bands bands they chose to remix their material on their latest EP, Hypnagogic States.

While I think the writing on this album has improved dramatically, I think the production is HORRIBLE, and that damn near ruins the album for me. The bass and vocals are almost always mixed way too high, the drums sound thin and quiet, and the guitars are mixed so low they are sometimes hard to heard. This is a special shame, since it sounds like the shimmery guitars may be back on this record, but are often buried far too low. Working with another producer that is more familiar with and better able to handle the sound that the Cure are so good at (I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to see Alan Moulder get his hands on a Cure record), I truely think this could have been a return to form and another amazing record. The Cure need to embrace their role of elder statesmen of a genre and STOP trying to be a modern emo band. They are wonderful at making huge sounding, dense, dreamy music, and I would love to see them do that once again.

Picture this: Disintegration is the beautiful model you see in a glossy magazine picture, glacially gorgeous, but in some ways unapproachable. Wish is the pretty girl you see at a party, and while she may not be Disintegration-beautiful, she's a hell of a lot more fun, and a lot easier to get into. Wild Mood Swings is the plain girl with a crush on the guy that will never have any interest in her, and that only makes her try harder and harder to please him, never able to really give him what he wants or make him into her. Bloodflowers is a dark, mysterious beauty, and when she isn't busy cutting herself, she's illustrating to you that she does in fact understand something about life, love, and pain, and you just have to stick with her long enough to get her message. The Cure is just an angsty emo girl sitting in her room decrying the state of the world with embarrassingly childish notebook poetry, listening to the bands that her daddy served as the greatest influence for. And now, we have 4:13 Dream, who just so happens to be the fun, cool, pretty girl that every guy wants to be around and every girl wants to be. Suffice to say, 4:13 Dream is probably the best album the Cure have released since Wish, depending on your personal preference for Bloodflowers.

4:13 Dream opens with what is easily the best song Robert Smith has written since Disintegration, Underneath The Stars. This is a dark, swirling, brutal kind of song, washing over the listener in layers of reverb guitar and plaintive echoed cries. Smith's singing and lyrics on this track are top notch, standing as the best track on the album, and one of the best Cure openers ever. The album moves on to the fun pop of The Only One, which I reviewed at length on its release. Track three, The Reasons Why, is a Wish-era pop rocker complete with rocking riffs and some glorious embarrassing lyrics about suicide. Freakshow is a fun funk track it he vein of Why Can't I Be You? And Hot Hot Hot!!!, though it fails to light quite the dancing fire that those songs did. Sirensong is a gorgeous strummed ballad, akin to something off of Bloodflowers, if Bloodflowers weren't so completely dark, and its definitely one of the album highlights, creating a bit of respite between the string a rockers that start with The Reasons Why. The Real Snow White and The Hungry Ghost work brilliantly together, building a tension based on a mass of riffing guitar and driving bass lines, with Smith singing with vigor and great subtlety. Switch is one of my less favored tracks on the album, failing to be as dark as the Pornography sound that influences it. The Perfect Boy, which I also reviewed upon its release as a single, is a smooth pop ballad, and definitely one of the best "love songs" that Smith has written since the `80s, though the whole "love" aspect of the tune is somewhat debatable. With The Perfect Boy out of the way, This. Here and Now. With You sets up the rock roller coaster that is the final four tracks of 4:13 Dream. It's a surprisingly spry track, and one that will likely grow on listeners as opposed to having instant appeal. Sleep When I'm Dead is a solid alt rocker, but not one of the best tracks on the album, weighed down with some strange God-complex lyrics. The Scream is the brutality that Switch fails to be, closing with an epic scream the likes of which I don't think we've ever heard from Smith. Closer, It's Over, is surprisingly fast paced for a Cure closing track, but it's good and works the album into a frenzy just before its abrupt end.

All in all, 4:13 Dream is one of the best Cure records we've seen in a very long time, and I have no doubt that in years to come it will be at the top of many a fan's list. The Cure have recorded one of the best albums of the year, so don't miss out.

9.5/10

If you hated The Cure's 2004 self-titled album, you might like 4:13 Dream more. But I liked the last album, although the grungy sound would have been more timely in 1992. Despite its flaws, I think I listen to it more often than to Wish. I'm less enthusiastic about this album, however.

What's especially noticeable, to me, is the crudeness of the vocals. It's not necessarily that Smith's voice has gotten worse, but it seems that there is much less variety in his performances. He doesn't emote much anymore. In most of these songs, he sort of half-yells, half-recites the lines, and it sounds like he's having a harder time fitting them into the music, like his voice is straining to keep up with the rhythm. For instance, the music in "The Only One" is almost exactly the same as in "High" from Wish (the intro induces serious deja vu), but Smith's vocal is much tighter and catchier on the 1992 album. And since his voice is loud in the mix here (like on the 2004 album), every flaw is made especially apparent. This "loose" feeling doesn't serve The Cure well -- somehow I suspect that this exact same song, with the same words and music, would have sounded a lot better if Smith had sung it ten years ago, with the more disciplined approach he had then.

At the same time, "less catchy" is still pretty catchy, in this case. Even if you only listen to the first thirty seconds of "The Only One," you might not be able to get it out of your head. In fact, you might have a better impression of the song if you only listen to the first thirty seconds. But if you're willing to forgive Smith everything as long as he can still summon some of that addictive pop magic, well, he does enough of that to get off scot-free again.

The band is going for more tonal variety on this album than on the last one. They've done away with the chugging alt-rock guitars. This time, the target seems to be The Head on the Door ("Sleep When I'm Dead" was actually written during those sessions, which may explain why it has the catchiest chorus on the album) or the sunny parts of Wish. But unfortunately, they don't recreate the clean sound of The Head On The Door. For some reason, every Cure album after Disintegration has been plagued by a somewhat muddy production, which blends the instruments together into a formless blur. This style actually worked pretty well in 2004, when the guitars were more aggressive, but it doesn't suit a sunny pop album -- rather, it just makes the songs sound more similar than they really should.

It may also be that the band has become content to sketch out basic "Cure-like" grooves rather than actually writing new hooks. "Underneath The Stars" almost evokes the majesty of "Plainsong" with its expansive sound (it helps that this is one of the few songs on the album where Smith tones down his delivery a little), but this is entirely due to production sleight-of-hand. Recall that "Plainsong" also had a towering guitar line and thunderous percussion to add to the production, which are missing here. None of the songs can compete with "Lullaby" or "Fascination Street" for memorable musical content. I sometimes think that the band's latter-day albums would sound a lot better if Boris Williams were still drumming for them. Jason Cooper is good at playing typical rock patterns, but Williams always had all kinds of original rhythmic fills that were memorable pop hooks in and of themselves. Simon Gallup gets one chance to shine here, on "It's Over," but his bass is quickly overwhelmed by the noisy production.

At least Smith's writing has improved a little. He still relies on rhymes like "head/bed," "cry/die," "please/squeeze," but at least these lyrics are less primitive than on the self-titled album. "The Hungry Ghost" is a critique of consumerism, a favourite topic for aging rock stars, but it's oblique enough to avoid sounding preachy. And there are even times when everything seems to come together almost like in the gloomy old days -- catchy lyrics, a good guitar hook, interplay between instruments... For example, look at the lovely guitar lines in "The Hungry Ghost," or the keyboard/guitar interaction in "The Reasons Why."

It's not such a bad album. Objectively, it's probably better than the previous one, in some ways. But, paradoxically, it's less attention-grabbing, actually harder to listen to. Unlike the self-titled album, which tried to modernize their style, albeit using outdated grunge templates, I just can't see 4:13 Dream attracting a new audience, or even reinvigorating the old one.

It appears that the majority of reviews for the new Cure album are favorable, and mine is no different. I grew up more of a hair metal fan in the 80's (I know...yikes), but I also dug The Cure and their eccentricities, even if I didn't have any of their albums. As I've gotten older, I've learned to appreciate them even more, and now they are at the top of my favorite band-list. This latest effort is superb, with the same melodic guitar delivery and Robert Smith's angst-driven vocals. Every song seemed to flow effortlessly into the next. There is always a comfortable quirkiness about any Cure song, and this album is no exception. They just seem to take the listener somewhere musically and emotionally that no other band can. My favorite tracks on 4:13 Dream are the fantastic opener Underneath The Stars, The Reasons Why, The Perfect Boy, and This Here And Now With You, but honestly, there isn't a bad track on here. It's all genius, as you'd expect from The Cure.

Reading the many reviews, good and bad, suffice to say everyone has their own opinion, and I am just yet another small voice mixed within - I do insist that their latest effort is a masterpiece in disguise. It takes several listens to appreciate its diversity and surreal beauty - not at all for the casual Cure fan. If you're expecting Kiss me Kiss me 2, or Disintegration 2, then skip this and keep on listening to their old albums. Why leave bad reviews for new material because it doesn't appeal in the same way as the older stuff do? Forget everything they've ever done, and just enjoy this for what it is - a beautiful, original piece from the heart.

I'm not going to make this a long-winded technical review. The Cure is my favorite band, and I was thrilled to get a new CD by them. But happiness quickly took a turn for disappointment when I listened to it. The songs, in my opinion, are very good. Unfortunately, I can't enjoy them because - as other reviewers have criticized - the mixing on this CD is incredibly poor. Muddy, dissonant, unbalanced. I think that (and I say this in all seriousness) I could have gotten a better result producing this on my home computer. I don't know what they were thinking releasing this CD as is.

I never was really able to bond with the self titled album from 2004. And I had almost given up hope that I would feel the way I used to feel when first listening to a new Cure album. But this one is truly inspiring. Underneath the Stars opens the album somewhere between Open and Plainsong. The Reasons Why and The Hungry Ghost bring you back to pre-Head on the Door times while maintaining their own new sound. The Scream could've been placed somewhere on Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me. Don't get me wrong: this isn't textbook-heard it all before-Cure... 4:13 Dream has maintained what has always been great about The Cure, while creating a whole new world to get lost in.

When Porl Thompson rejoined the Cure a few years ago, he rejuvenated the band by bringing a sense of new energy and enthusiasm to the live shows. He even seemed to regenerate the interest of Robert and company and even managed to help expand the ever-questionable future of the Cure. Not only did it renew the interest of the fanbase but it also provided us with the hope that a new album would recapture some of that Cure magic that made us fall in love with them in the first place.

Fortunately, that magic reappears instantly within the first few seconds of the opening track. With it's mark tree chimes and the lengthy instrumental introduction to Robert's soft-spoken vocals, Underneath the Stars combines all the elements of the trademark Cure sound. Some may even be surprised to learn about the song's rough beginnings, which took place in an early instrumental demo for the Wish sessions. Nonetheless, it's easily the best song on the album and it's not difficult to see why. The first single taken from the album, The Only One, is vintage Cure pop with some pretty exciting lyrics to boot. It's basically a reworking of the song High off of the Wish album, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. The rest of the songs are pretty much hit and miss, although there are more hits than misses. Sirensong and The Perfect Boy are fun, romantic pop while The Hungry Ghost and The Scream are a bit darker in tone and more serious. The second single, Freakshow, is quite an adventure even for the Cure. Switch features Porl's wah-wah guitar but it's a bit redundant since we've already heard it before on the b-side All Kinds of Stuff. The Real Snow White and Sleep When I'm Dead are interesting at first listen but eventually falls flat over the long haul. The exciting and energetic It's Over completes this 4 star album. With the exception of Underneath the Stars, nothing on 4:13 Dream can be labeled as classic. But the majority of the songs are very good and enjoyable. Fans who fell in love with the band with albums like The Head on the Door and Wish will surely enjoy these songs.

While the tunes themselves are good, the audio quality of the album is horrible and leaves a lot to be desired. It's one of the worst CDs I've ever heard -- and I've heard many over the years. This is surprising, especially coming from Robert Smith who's built a reputation for releasing some excellent sounding records over the years. I would have a hard time believing that even he is satisfied with the uneven sonic mess that is 4:13 Dream. Robert's vocals are not only unclear at times, but also hard to hear when it's mixed underneath the instruments (the most obvious example of this is on the b-side Down Under). During numerous times, Porl's playing gets drowned out by all the other instruments. You can hear him making some interesting noises in the background, but what exactly he is doing is unclear. Jason's drumming on the album is sometimes buried underneath the layers of noise. Most surprisingly is Simon's bass which is muddy and is not mixed low enough to begin with. Unfortunately, the LOUD and compressed mastering done by Brian Gardner doesn't help matters at all and only contributes to the problem. At the end of the day there's not much dynamics left in the mix and there's too much compression on anything you can name. As much as I'd love to see the Mixed Up and Wish remasters out later this year, perhaps Robert should get to work on making 4:13 Dream at least somewhat listenable.

Since the Cure have been around for a long time, it's understandable how it becomes more and more difficult to please everyone, especially the hardcore old-school fans. I became a Cure fan relatively late, sometime around when Bloodflowers came out, so I am somewhat disengaged from the chronology of their albums and have very little expectations for them to deliver "that particular album that I heard when I was sixteen." That being said, I think this is a fantastic album in that it makes a statement that the Cure are not interested in shoveling out the same-old same-old in an attempt to please a fan base with expectations that are all over the place and impossible to pinpoint to begin with. I know teenagers who are just discovering the Cure and are falling in love with them because of albums like "The Cure" and "4:13 Dream" because it genuine and relevant to the late 2000's. It's no longer the 80's and despite the fact that the Cure still hold certain stylistic elements to that particular era, it is important for them to create works in the here and now. The Cure will probably be around for a long time and I can't wait to see where else they go. Keep creating and changing and the love will be there.

Let me state upfront that Robert Smith and I are roughly the same age (he is one year older than me) and that I essentially grew up with these guys from the late 70s on. So I have been on this ride for a long long time. After the utterly disappointing 2004 self-titled album, here again comes Robert Smith (the only remaining original band member of the Cure) with a new album, after another 4 year lay-off. I had heard/read encouraging things about the album, so I was eager to hear it when I finally had the chance.

Well then... "4:13 Dream" (13 tracks; 53 min.) is, I am sorry to say, yet another utter disappointment. I have hold off posting a review for a while, playing this album quite a bit in the last few weeks, to make sure I wasn't missing the mark, but here I am. To state it bluntly, there is only ONE track on here that bears repeated listening, and it is the opening track "Underneath the Stars", a beautiful, doomy track with a long instrumental intro, finally giving way to what is in essence a revisit to "Pictures Of You". Well done. After that, though, I hear the music, but absolutely none of the remaining tracks have any lasting impact, frankly. What a major disappointment, to say the least. Looking back, the last meaningful album of the Cure was 1996's "Wild Mood Swings", as uneven that album was, but at least it had a number of memorable songs on it. No such luck here (other than "Underneath the Stars").

I've had the good fortune of catching the Cure live in concert a number of times over the years, including in their early days in the 70s when I still lived in Belgium and they weren't the superstars yet that they would become. That said, if I have another chance to see them live, I will do so again, no questions asked. But "4:13 Dream" is simply not a great album, and I'm being mild.