Customer Reviews

Disintegration

5 star:		(297)
4 star:		(23)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Disintegration is the best album ever....

God bless the boys from South Park. Kyle may have gotten it right. This album is epic. Before this record The Cure's music was underground club type music, and fit very nicely in the "post-punk" label. The music on this record has an incredibly beautiful melancholy to it. Most of the songs have a slow tempo and just ooze with a dark moodiness that makes you feel. I don't know that it can make everyone feel the same, but it will definitely make you feel.

The songs are a bit long, but that is not a bad thing as each is beautifully orchestrated. There is no filler in this record, and actually some of The Cure's best work is on this album. "Pictures Of You", "Love Song", "Lullaby", "Fascination Street", and "Prayers For Rain" are probably the best songs, but every song is incredible. Overall it's as bleak as any album I've ever heard, and it is painfully intimate. It's one I simply can't stop listening to, despite the dark melancholy of the music.

This is The Cure album for people that aren't even Cure fans. You don't have to be into moody, gothic, synthpop to appreciate just how great this record is. The album is nearly 12 years old, and doesn't sound dated at all. The material is still fresh, timeless. Enjoying this record is simply a beautiful experience.

You could have knocked me over with a feather when I heard The Cure's "Pictures of You" in an advertisement for some camera or film on TV recently. But I did have to stop for a second to listen to this classic song. It brought back many memories and once again I had to pull out the CD and listen to "Disintegration," something I hadn't done for several years.
In 1989 when "Disintegration" was released I drove my family and friends nuts with multiple playings a day at home and in my car. What was it I was/am attracted to in this particular CD? The glorious sound of it of course, the voice (Robert Smith is a God), the lyrics, the general mood of despair and sadness for sure. But with all of that said, "Disintegration" is always hopeful, always "up." The Cure revels in their downtrodden and bleak view of life but they do it with a wink, a knowing smile and not a smirk; which pretty much says it all in regards to them and their music. And anyone familiar with their playful "Let's Go To Bed" has to agree: they're misanthropes with hope, if that makes any sense at all. The Cure are of the Light not of The Darkness.
"Disintegration" would definitely be on my list of CD's I'd have to take with me if I were sent to spend the rest of my days on a desert island, so that I could forever marvel at their wit, their attitude, their playfulness and their unrelenting spirit and drive to make this world a better place in which to live. I'd listen to "The Same Deep Waters as You" over and over, until I wasted away to nothing and returned to the earth from whence I had come.

Disintegration was the first Cure album I bought back in 1989 after hearing Fascination Street on the radio. I wasn't really into their music at all up until then, but I got home, put the tape into my stereo and from the opening seconds of Plainsong I knew that this was my favorite band in the world. They haven't let me down since. This album is musically incredible and lyrically fascinating. Many songs, such as Plainsong, Closedown and Untitled are awash in long, lush intros followed by Robert Smith's introspective lyrics, back into an extended outro. Quite simply, these songs move me. They are haunting, beautiful and captivating. These are some of the best lyrics put to music I've ever heard. On 'Plainsong', Smith proclaims 'sometimes you make me feel like I'm living at the end of the world' 'It's just the way I smile, she said' is his response. I can't recommend this album enough. Many hail this album as among The Cure's best, which it is. It is also seen, quite rightly, as a pretty dark album in mood. But it's the lyrics and the music that raise the beauty of this album above its somber mood and make it a great addition to your music library.

It's hard to come up with anything to say about DISINTEGRATION that hasn't been said hundreds of times before. On this album the Cure take the dark mood of their "goth" period to a new level by expressing it in the context of pop music, resulting in a lush, emotional album that is as amazing for its accessability as its quality.

The Cure are able to keep the listener's interest through the soundscapes alone, never mind the irresistable melodies and the best lyrics of Robert Smith's career. The individual songs are stunning in their emotional impact, particularly "Fascination Street" and the jittery "Lullaby," but the whole of DISINTEGRATION is much, much greater than the sum of its parts. Listening to the songs out of context doesn't do this album justice; it begs to be heard in one sitting, with the volume turned way up (just like the liner notes tell you to do) to let the gloom wash over you. This is the best rainy day album in history, and I doubt it will ever be challenged.

Recommended for all fans of any kind of music.

i admit i was never the biggest cure fan in the world. i thought kiss me, kiss me, kiss me had some great songs ('hot, hot, hot,' 'catch,' 'like cocatoos,' 'why can't i be you?' and, of course, 'just like heaven') and i was mildy amused by songs like 'the walk,' 'let's go to bed' and 'inbetween days.' i remember being in high school and watching postmodern MTV (when MTV actually had a redeeming quality) every night with that goofy host, kevin seal, and ocassionally catching a cure video (me, well, i was more in the DM camp instead of the cure). don't get me wrong, i liked the cure, but to my adolescent mind they couldn't top the mighty mode.

however, my opinion of the cure forever changed when i saw the 'world premiere' of the video for 'fascination street.' who was this new cure? robert smith and co. always gleefully played in the darkness, but 'fascination street' seemed more purposeful and direct than previous cure songs i'd heard. it kept the cure's trademark darkness, but there was something else to it. what was it? 15 years on i still don't know.

i went to the sadly defunct crandall audio in orem, utah and bought 'disintegration' with my hard-earned lawnmowing money that week (i still have the old cd 'longbox' cd's used to come in). nothing could've prepared me for the beauty of the album's opener (and standout, in my opinion), 'plainsong.' everyone who's said 'disintegration' (appropriately titled, by the way) is a moody, atmospheric album is spot-on. few albums drum up the raw emotions we all feel inside quite like 'disintegration.' it was an interesting blend of peddled-guitars, tinny bass, spooky synths, and robert smith's trademark yalps.

it was shortly thereafter i saw the video for 'lullaby.' i thought i was having a nightmare. it's still a brilliant song and the second best song on the album (in my opinion). most of us will also probably feel some nostalgia for 'pictures of you,' and 'love song,' too. they're the kind of love songs that could only come from the cure.

as someone else correctly noted, 'disintergration' is very much a concept album. how else do you explain every song coming in at 5+ minutes? (well, most anyway). in short, 'disintegration' is indeed the cure's defining moment, much like 'violator' was depeche mode's, 'the innocents,' was erasure's, 'earth sun moon' was love and rocket's, and 'technique' was new order's. now that i think about it, the late 80's and early 90's had some truly great music. 1989, the year of 'disintegration,' is particularly noteworthy.

if you're new to the 'movement,' 'disintegration' is essential listening. it's huge, bold, experimental, purposeful, direct, nebulous, moody, eerie, creepy, spooky, heartbreaking and ultimately beautiful.

i'm still not a huge cure fan, but i'll disintegrate anytime.

Ambitious, emotional, utterly brilliant; those are just a few adjectives to describe this Cure masterpiece from 1989. The aura is evident right away on "Plainsong," from the ethereal sound to the echoey vocals, to the way it seems to take the album a while to get going, this is one special piece of music, which continues the entire way through. Robert Smith takes a long time before singing on most of these tracks, as if he's purposely hoping to lull listeners into the sound and mood he's in. The drums on most of these tracks are simply played, big and booming, '80s style, amid a whirlwind of more complex music that is consistently grandoise and sweeping.

A hopeless romantic, lead singer Smith wears his heart on his sleeve when he passionately sings. Musically, the guy is pretty boundless: The quiet guitar hooks are honest-to-God hooks that sweep you in, and the same can be said for the more important keyboard work on the album from Roger O' Donnell, which makes for an extremely catchy combination, despite the overall dark ambiance. At 73 minutes long, nothing on this album is chintzy; it doesn't skimp out on anything, and thus, listeners will get a lot out of it in more ways than one.

Not surprisingly, the dark pop radio hit "Lovesong," at three minutes, 28 seconds, is sort of an oddity on "Disintegration," as much for its short time span as its quick, get-to-the-point message. Another anamoly is the fabulous "Lullaby," a quirky tune with breathy vocals. From the fragments of an anxiety-filled dream, the song comes off as entertaining and humorous, especially given the generally somber mood of the rest of the album.

The meat of these outstandingly created, brilliantly windy songs takes place at the dark but somehow joyous and experiment-seeking "Fascination Street." From that point on, no song is under six minutes. "Prayers for Rain" is bold but majestically hopeless and desperate-sounding; "The Same Deep Water As You" owes a debt to the Doors' lulling rain-drenched intro and outro heard on "Riders on the Storm." Actually, both songs possess the same seductively mellow vibe that slowly draws listeners in. The title track has a much more immediate effect, an apologetic urgency, a sound of admittance, shame and guilt. Its simple piano hook is repetative and beautiful, making the long song perhaps the best one on the album.

Though the final two tracks sound a bit tacked on, they're outstanding tunes, and they fill out "Disintegration" with grace, surely what Smith was going for. "Homesick" retains the spacey, atmospheric vibe of earlier songs, while "Untitled" might be the prettiest, most stripped-down tune on the entire record. Overall, this album is best heard as an entire entity -- if you have the time, that is. No doubt, if you're seeking solace on an endless windswept prairie of sounds, this is the music for you.

I can still remember the first time I heard this album. The day it hit the shelves, I borrowed the disk from a friend and sampled it while on break. Like no other album before or since, the brilliance of this work immediately overwhelmed me. I listened to the first 30-45 seconds of each song, track by track, through the whole disk. I kept waiting for weak songs to skip over, but they never came...
I bought a copy for myself immediately after work and listened to it in it's entirety, twice, that very night.
To this day, so many years later, Disintegration remains one of my favorite albums. It is pure, raw, distilled emotion set in an environment that encompasses such a depth and breadth of feeling that you could lose yourself there. For a time.
For me, this is the Cure's Magnum Opus. If you don't own it, get it.
If you have it, go listen to it again.
If you listened to it and don't like it, try again. You didn't hear it first time around.

Although they are often seen as the quintessential doom & gloom band, The Cure is also one of the most versatile groups to come down the pike, having touched base with nearly every musical style in existance, from metal to jazz, synth-pop to salsa. Ironically, they've also made some of the most exuberantly happy music ever created ("Why Can't I Be You?," "Doing the Unstuck," etc.) - but DISINTEGRATION is, overall, closer to the darkest and bleakest side of their music.

I love nearly every Cure album made, but to me, they amazingly kept getting better and better until they hit a peak with this one, widely considered to be their masterpiece (with the possible exception of PORNOGRAPHY). Robert Smith's songwriting had clearly reached a new level of sophistication in songs like "Pictures of You," "Last Dance" and "The Same Deep Water as You." While continuing in the same vein as PORNOGRAPHY which is quite harsh, tortured and full of despair, DISINTEGRATION is dreamier, full of lush beauty and sadness, with more melancholy than raw pain. It also boasts more lighthearted moments, whereas on PORNOGRAPHY, "A Strange Day" offered the only ray of light in the form of escapism.

The following are some of my personal impressions of DISINTEGRATION:

"Plainsong" - Like waking up only to find yourself in a dream-state - The opening wind chimes set the stage before gorgeous, droning synths come crashing through. The guitar is so dreamy, it almost sounds like a slow-motion Hawaiian riff. "it's so cold it's like the cold if you were dead . . ." *****

"Pictures of You" - so catchy, it should've been a bigger hit but I"m glad it wasn't. One thing that has kept The Cure from being bigger than they are is Robert Smith's voice which some find too whiney. It's a question of taste, but I love his voice - it's undenyably unique and very expressive (although I admit it does sound a bit more grating on their latest self-titled release). "Pictures of You" is one of those feel-good-yet-sad pop songs the Cure do so well, similar to "Just Like Heaven" in that respect. *****

"Closedown" - isn't structured like a typical pop song; the vocals don't come til the end (which isn't the first time the Cure has done this). It's absolutely gorgeous and a classic example of the dreamy DISINTEGRATION sound featuring particularly excellent drumming from the super-talented Boris Williams. As far as drummers go, his style is very musical. *****

"Lovesong" - unfortunately, this one got overplayed on the radio and I temporarily became sick of it (yes, it's fantastic, but why did corporate rock radio have to play the same one over and over when there are so many other great Cure songs out there? - thank goodness those days of letting radio dictate what I listen to are long gone). "Lovesong" is warm and cozy with a sort of almost 60's vibe from the keyboards. This is a pure love song just as the title suggests. Longtime member Simon Gallup turns in yet another totally addictive bass groove. *****

"Last Dance" - After "Lovesong," the mood turns gloomier and hazier, soon augmented by an angular, twisting guitar part and a dramatic string section. "Last Dance," about a relationship coming apart, is one of my favorites and some of Smith's best, most descriptive lyrics. *****

"Lullaby" - so tuneful and playful, this is one of the Cure's best melodies and a really creepy-yet-fun song. *****

"Fascination Street" - intense song and the rockin-est one on the album. A great change of pace that stands out as something different yet it fits well on the record. *****

"Prayers for Rain" - probably the most dismal, nightmare-ish cut on DISINTEGRATION, this one's heavy, grim and foreboding. "I deteriorate I live in dirt and nowhere glows but drearily and tired the hours all spent on killing time again . . ." ****1/2

"The Same Deep Water as You" - possibly their most achingly beautiful song ever. *****

"Disintigration" - heralded by the sound of breaking glass, the title track is driven by a bold, repetitive bass line. Not really their greatest song, but it's intiguing, filled with strange sounds and distorted, high-pitched vocalizations. Probably the best thing going for it is the absolutely devestating lyrics. ****

"Homesick" - Robert Smith sounds barely alive on this brilliantly lethargic number with spiralling guitars and first-rate jazz keys, probably played by Roger O'Donnell. Every member of the Cure at this point oozed talent except for Laurence Tolhurst. The only remaining original member aside from Robert Smith (who virtually IS the Cure), poor Lol was on his way out due to his outrageously excessive drinking. ****1/2

"Untitled" - ending the album on a comparitively upbeat note, "Untitled" neatly sums up the themes on DISINTEGRATION and washes away the dream world with what sounds like a rather staid accordian, or possibly a harmonium. ****

Extra Note: in '91 or so, a few years after I got DISINTEGRATION, some dude who was fairly well connected to the music business in Washington D.C. at the time (he sang in a band called Broker Karsh) gave me a copy of what he said was a bootleg Robert Smith solo album. Sadly, only one track has survived (which I had stuck on a mix tape). It goes something like, "Come on outside, there's a whole new world . . ."

The whole album was light and airy and quite happy with lots of acoustic guitar and keyboards. It certainly SOUNDS like solo Robert Smith, and there are no drums, as I recall. The voice is unmistakably his. I wish I knew more about the album, but I can't find anyone on-line that knows anything about it, only the typical rumors of an impending solo release. This old bootleg sounded like it could've been recorded around the time of THE HEAD ON THE DOOR. Sure would love to get my hands on it again!

The Cure's best selling album, its single, "Love Song" reached the highest of any Cure song on the US charts...#2. "Love Song" is a beautiful recording that Robert Smith wrote for his wife before their wedding; the rest of the album is gorgeous gloom and doom. Along with their 2000 release, Bloodflowers, I believe that this is the best the Cure has ever done. This was the first Cure album I ever purchased, mostly because of Love Song and the snappy dance hit, Fascination Street, but it is the rest of the album that keeps it almost permanently in my CD rotation. The real strength of this album lies with the power of Prayers for Rain and Disintegration (goth rock), and the absolutely mesmerizing Plainsong, with its beautiful windchimes announcing its opening, and the winding, easy to sing along to, Untitled, that closes this masterpiece of an album. Buy this album and you'll never stop listening to it.

Honestly, I've never been a Cure fan considering I purchased their greatestt hits album and was somewhat disappointed. Sure, there were a few good songs on their greatest hits album, but "Disintegration" is not the same case at all! I purchased this album upon a friends recommendation and I was incredibly pleased and in awe of Robert Smith's genius. This album is not upbeat, fun, Cure pop, it's a journey through heart-break that is so enthralling and captivating I can't stop listening to it! I consider this to be a classic album not only for The Cure, but in general.
The most upbeat song on the album is "Love Song" (I'm positive you know this song) but songs such as the title track, "Lullaby", "Prayers For Rain", and "Pictures Of You" are the true gems on this album. Robert Smith's talent shines through on each track.
I can't recommend this album to you enough. I am extremely discriminating when it comes to music, and it is so hard to find an album from an artist that resonates originality, honesty, and has you going back for a listen continuously.
I do consider myself a casual Cure fan, but if there is one album you must own from The Cure, this is it! It got me hooked on them, and I have been pleased ever since.