From The Boston Globe:

Cure is hit or miss on diverse bill

By Tom Kielty, Globe Correspondent | August 9, 2004

MANSFIELD -- The sun battling against a gray sky provided an ideal setting for the Curiosa Festival at the Tweeter Center on Saturday. In the midst of a dismal summer concert season, this ambitious outing of eight bands proved an impressive success, even if the headlining set by the Cure was clouded at times by a determination to introduce material from their latest release, simply titled "The Cure."

The goth heavyweights played for an audience that was easily the biggest of the day, though not near the venue's capacity, with many fans arriving only for their headlining set and blowing off what was a wonderfully diverse bill.

For longtime fans, the Cure's set was a mixed bag. "Lovesong," driven by a prominent bass line, was followed quickly by the terrifically dour "In Between Days." The show reached its first peak when the band continued with "Just Like Heaven" as iconic frontman Robert Smith, in signature lipstick, eye shadow, and teased hair, gave the tune an extended ending on acoustic guitar.

Unfortunately this threesome was sandwiched by new, lesser-known material, and many in attendance grew impatient. The club beats and ringing guitars of "A Forest" proved an impressive remedy, but ultimately the set was plagued by the hits' being left behind in lieu of new songs.

For those who had arrived early, however, there was an abundance of vibrant new music by bands -- all selected by Smith -- who have embraced the Cure's alter-ethos. An expansive second stage set in the Tweeter's parking lot flowed seamlessly with the main stage, and a crowd that ranged from old-time goth rockers to parents chaperoning children moved with ease between the two performance spaces.

The earliest of these arrivals were greeted by sheets of guitar rock from Scotland's Mogwai, following an introductory second-stage set by Head Automatica. Mogwai's main-stage set showed a beauty in noise that at points recalled My Bloody Valentine. The proceedings then moved back to the lot, where the Cooper Temple Clause managed to showcase an ambient mood, albeit a loud ambience, that was at times driven by four guitars and at others by synthesizer and keyboards.

The Rapture was the first band to benefit from the removal of seats by the stage, as a dancing "pit area" embraced its punchy beats. The action then moved back outside as Auf der Maur, the latest project from onetime Smashing Pumpkins and Hole member Melissa Auf der Maur, showcased a guitar-driven sound that paid homage to her earlier work but grew monotonous.

This was followed by Interpol's main-stage performance. The debonair rockers introduced new songs that draw from the same winning Joy Division-influenced sound that fueled their debut, "Turn on the Bright Lights."

The Muse was the final act to play on the second stage and the only to benefit from darkness. The British threesome put the lack of daylight to good use, punctuating their energetic set with a brilliant light show that was only marred by attendees' quick exits in anticipation of the Cure's headlining set.

(Thanks Michael)

I am just now coming down to earth a bit after the Curiosa festival this last weekend in Mansfield (although I just want it to go on and on!). I wanted to tell all of you to have a great time when you go see the festival in other cities. Be sure to arrive early enough to see all the other bands. In my experience, Mogwai was utterly fantastic. They must be heard live as their albums cannot come close to matching the intensity of their live sound. They came out right after their act to see the Cooper Temple Clause performing on the second stage and I got to compliment them briefly as they
stood on the sidelines. Unfortunately many of the bands playing before The Cure did not attract appreciative audience and Mogwai, being the first act
to play on the main stage, had very few listeners (they played right after Head Automatica on the second stage, also under-attended). Don't miss any of them!

The fans in Boston were a bit quiet - or something - during all the pre-Cure acts. I was enjoying the entire show but noticed many people were just
milling about looking almost bored, also a majority arrived late only to see The Cure, so they forfeited the whole point of the festival. However when
The Cure took stage the crowd woke up and came alive. Everyone was on their feet the whole time (at least where we were). You can read all the reviews and see what others think but parts of these reviews are so blasted nit-picky and seem to miss the point or focus only on the superficial, when
there are other, certainly more worthwhile, experiences that should be mentioned. I personally tire of reading the same negatives about not hearing
a fav song, hating/not wanting to hear the new or pop songs or about Robert missing words on the lyrics, etc...my god it is a live concert, and doesn't
anyone believe in creative license? The Cure played from their soul, explored a wide range of emotions with their music, and it all was so very
memorable.

Lost set a very somber mood to begin, lest we forget that dark and hopeless feelings are frequently at the heart of Cure music. When the bleak agony of songs such as Lost are juxtaposed with some very hopeful buoyant feelings in other songs (especially as in this set, when Lost was sharply contrasted by directly following it with Plainsong), this creates a strange dizzy sense of ambivalence that is a mark of The Cure's unique signature. By ambivalence, I mean that the listener is so assaulted with strongly conflicting emotions that you are left drained and not knowing what to feel, but thereafter, it almost has a cleaning effect and you can sense the simultaneously conflicting emotions in the music more intensely. Indeed it is worth
mentioning that creation of this ambivalence forms the nexus of Robert's mature musical expression. Lost made me feel utterly and uncomfortably alone while surrounded by a large concert crowd. Perhaps this might be the helplessly bitter human emotion that Robert is trying to evoke in those who are willing to let it in. Listening to this song on a stereo in your safe and secure little home would never capture the same stark experience while
hearing it live surrounded by a large focused audience. However, the majority of the crowd can't seem to embrace the painful despair of Lost (and
most seem repulsed by it); the song is NOT pleasant, after all, if one is only listening to satisfy shallow entertainment values. Many in the crowd
have their minds all caught up in the anxious hours before The Cure takes stage, then are so frenetically intent on hearing that One Fav Tune once the band steps out and takes their instruments; the sad result for those fans is that much of the depth of The Cure concert experience passes them by. If the set list you hear begins with Lost, try not to miss the raw soul-numbing/life affirming experience Robert might offer you at the beginning of the show. In Mansfield, he ruthlessly drew everyone down into the despairing, almost inescapable black depths of Lost and then flung us soaring up into the exquisitely crystalline-sweet relief of Plainsong; it was a brilliant marriage of two opposing forces, so well done and complete.

I won't bother to comment on the rest of this wonderful concert, much has already been said by others. I only wanted to offer with this review a
different opinion about Lost as the opening song.

- aroid

Like most of you, I was very mixed about this festival. It was cool to check out some new bands (The Rapture, Interpol, and CTC were very good), but at the expense of a much shorter Cure set than I am used to? I also decided not to go to more than the one show this time around for this and other reasons. I was not happy they didn't come on until 9:20 even though everything was set by 9 and Muse had already stopped playing. but anyway

Lost - I know I will probably get The Promise, but I can't get into this song. Robert really feels this one though.

Plainsong - Very surprised to hear this in the same set and was really hoping for SDS, It sounded great though.

Fascination Street - Good version - Perry's guitar too low.

TEOTW - This song is starting to grow on me and sounded good here.

Anniversary - One of my faves from the new record, good performance.

Lovesong, IBD, JLH - gotta have singles, right? a lot of the real pop was last show - these ones are alright with me.

Jupiter crash - Nice surprise and sounded good. I love this song and you can tell that Robert does too.

Pictures Of You - good, crowd likes it a lot.

Before Three - I don't know about this song, I don't hate it but?

FTEOTDGS - Powerful, Perry a little low in the mix again - what is up with that?

Disintegration - I have this weird thing with this song live. It is one of my absolute favorite songs ever, but it just never sounds exactly right. I can't explain it. The mix is always just a little off or I am or something. The last time it sounded perfect to me was '92. I also look like a fool that doesn't know the words to a song they're singing, but try telling people it's the singer, not you :)

One Hundred Years - Great as always, made me want more from Pornography

The Promise - OMFG! Can't even describe how good this was - an instant live classic.

M - This is the best live version of M I have ever heard.

Play For Today - Love this song - good performance.

A Forest - This song is sacred to me. Remember when it was almost always the last song? Short but powerful - Simon's bass and Roberts guitar
amazing. Did I start the clapping first? I like to think so :)

Going Nowhere - I have the double LP and this is on it. My favorite next to the Promise. It sounded very good even though it was hurried.

I think this was a good show overall. It was not as great or long as I've been to many times before, but I appreciate and respect what they are doing. I hope they come back after the festival. If they do, I will probably go to 2 or 3 shows. I haven't heard SDS or Faith live since '85, maybe the 10th or 11th try since will give them to me - It's just a matter of time:)

- Doug

Well, my Cure adventure started last Sunday night, when I watched them preform at the Tweeter Center in NJ. Awesome show! Still feel the CURE
when I hear Plainsong, the lights, music, very happy expierence! I took my 19 year old step brother, needless to say, he has been Curified! I got the set list, too cool!
Ok, next it was on to Columbia, Md for the 2nd concert. Out of the 9 shows since the WISH tour, it was by far the best time I ever had. I got Rogers autograph, I fell in love with my best friend of ten years, who was just a buddy till I kissed her during Lullaby, I don't know if it was the atmoshpere, the music, but once was a friendship, The Cure pushed me into her. Awesome feeling, The Cure there again to help me thru my life, as since 1989! So I got the set list again, and then stayed up till 4 with her talking about the show, and getting another person into The Cure.
After waking up at 10am, I got $25.00 dollars special lawn seats at Mansfield, a 6.3hr ride according to mapquest...ended up 8hrs, with traffice jams in Rhode Island?!!!!! After getting there all by myself, the whole mood there just sucked, the people there were rude, and it wasn't even packed out, what the f**k?! After listening to the new album, I wasn't a big fan of all the songs, but after hearing them live these three dates, I fell in love with the new material. the final song was great, but couple of the songs Robert guitar did not seem to operate the way he wanted and it showed. Seemed very rushed. But I must say, Pics of You, takes me back everytime! Now if I can just find a way to see them on the west coast or overseas, it will complete me!!!!

- Chris

Saturday, August 7th, 2004. Mansfield, Mass. Fourth show.
~*~ l o s s . f o r . w o r d s ~*~

What a disaster. I am still trying to figure out what happened Saturday night.... Partly the reason I feel so 'lost' writing this is due to the fact the drive from Baltimore to Boston took ten and a half hours. Yes. Ten. and. a. Half. Hours. How? I haven't a clue. We arrived at the venue at 8:45ish. Rushing inside, oddly enough, we run into quite a few people who were also at last nights show. Telling these people our ride took 11hours they were looking to me as if I had 4 heads. Most seemed to have gotten there from MD between 6 and 8 hours. Don't ask...... Mass is very, uhm, proper.....? Felt very out of place as a sleezy nyc boy in that 'new england' area. Buying alcohol past 11pm? HEAVEN FORBID. The whole state seemed to have been shutdown by 1am. Wasn't comfortable up there, at all.

The venue seemed nice, big as well. This was my first time there. I didn't get to see it in the light. The seating looked rather empty compared to the last few shows..... Again with the alcohol laws, they would not serve me their overpriced beer, as I didn't have 2 forms of ID since I was from 'out of state' Not a problem, I was able to get 2 drinks in me before the show started. The show started late at that... So I get to my seat, I wasn't happy with it. I had 2nd row on Roberts side. I was expecting to be maybe 5 feet to the left of him, turned out being about 10 or 15 feet to the left of him. Again, never been to this venue before (note to self: do not rely on seating charts) So I was upset over this too. So I managed to con my way into the pit, it was too crowded, walked right back out. Also, I was not relaxed due to all the rushing to get there. Every other show I was completely relaxed and
ready for everything. Mansfield I wasn't, thus my review will probably be biased from this, something I can only blame myself for, but this is how I saw the show, in all honesty. I have read the reviews as well, I usually don't read them before I write mine. I like to do them without bias or influence, most of you seem to have enjoyed the show, unfortunately, I can't say I fully enjoyed it. Mmmmm, okay, on with the review.

Took the stage with Lost a few minutes late. Still comparing things to last night when they started way earlier, this did not put me in a good frame of mind. I also have a problem with opening the set with Lost, I don't think it brings forth a good emotion to start the show with, so I went to get another drink. So I'm walking back to my seat, grumbling, drinking nasty beer, listening to the end of Lost. Which quite honestly, didn't sound that bad~!! Also noticed that my seat was damn close to Robert and I should stop my whining.

Plainsong, might this save the show? Doubtful. Plainsong sounded great however, could not save this set... A previous reviewer said he saw the
Anniversary sign stage left and the Faith sign in the pit. Not really. I was left with the Faith sign, and I assume the Anniversary sign was in the pit. And I already apologized to him for ripping off the idea, but I will do so publicly as well. I was (and still am) in desperation to hear Faith again before the West coast shows~! I know now that it's going to happen =/ Robert did come over to me looking at the sign. I of course walked up to the gate, he didn't smile, he looked to me, his eyes lit up, his mouth was open, he looked as if he didn't know what to say, we stared at each other for a few seconds, then he put his arms up, someone threw a teddy bear at him and he walked away. Quite possible the highlight of the show along with Going Nowhere. I don't recall a rodie holding up a paper last night. I did walk away for a moment during end/world....

Fascination Street. I knew I couldn't be so lucky to get two shows in a row with no FasciSt. So I took it with a grain of salt, and danced to it for the 92347629476270570th time =) The End of the World. Don't like this song much. Live version doesn't save it. Not being impressed with this show. Was I spoiled from NJ & MD? Or just in a poor mood overall? Not quite sure, but I do know this set reminded me all too much of the NYC show....

Things started to pick up here. Anniversary was great, this was the best I've heard this song played so far. Lovesong, Inbeween, and JLH....
Couldn't get more predictable.... Love them all though, sounded great, nothing to stop me from dancing..... Jupiter Crash was beautiful, SO happy this is being played so frequently, didn't know if this one would have ever been brought back from the WMS burial site. Hopefully this one sticks around with Want.... A F***ing FABULOUS Pictures of You~!!! At this point I was completely enjoying the show. It got off to a very rough start, all was well now. Before three finally sounded excellent, * almost * as good as Coachella and HFStival, almost... Pretty sure he got all the lyrics correct this time, even the "yeah yeah yeahs". DGS was the usual, not too many hands in the sky though....... Disintegration was good, not as good as the night before, great nonetheless, one of my fav songs, I don't care how slow it's played or how many lyrics are wrong, I love it no matter what. 100yrs was perfect. By this time the person in the seat in front of me left and I made it into the front row~! =)) Really enjoyed the Promise last night. Puts new meaning and emotion into that song playing it live. Truly comes to life, and the solo at the end * swoon * One of the better versions of this song I've heard. Main set done. Seemed to go all too quickly.

Encore..... Was hoping to hear Faith and Charlotte. Nope. They go into the standard 17sec encore, as played in NYC. Too many similarities to
NYC for it's own good.... The encore sounded great. Like hearing M live more than anything. Play for Today was wonderful, but not many " whoaaa
ooooohhh ooooh's" I'm jaded with A Forest, the shortened version to comply with these curfews does not do the usual live version justice anyway. Lots of clapping at the end which was nice to see. So I thought it was over. Not yet.... He comes back out and starts talking about the curfew, blah blah blah, they're going to pull the plug, blah blah blah, we have 2 mins left. I was sure he was going to close with BDC. He grabs the Guild 12string, announces " Going Nowhere " <3 I couldn't believe this. I got so happy so quick. I started screaming, jumping, and just spamming in general. At one point I must have jumped about 4 feet in the air, lost control, and landed on a security guard!!! *L* I thought to myself OH NO! NOW IM GOING TO GET KICKED OUT AND MISS THE BEST SONG OF THE EVENING!!!!! So then I apologize to the guy, and he didn't really say anything....... That song is so beautiful, I just stood there speechless as if my mind had shut off and gone into shock, overwhelmed by this gorgeous song that I have never heard live. Going Nowhere is another one that cuts right through you. That song alone was worth going to this show.

Now the show is over, already? Yes, already =(* I wasn't impressed with it, too close to NYC, horrible setlist with the exception of a few songs. It was all too predictable and a very basic stripped down version of the Curiosa set. After coming up to this show from last nights 2 hour show, that rates right up there with proper Cure shows, it was hard to go into this one with an open mind. The first show has been the lesser of the back to back nights so far, 'tis easier to see a better show the second night than the first. If I had gotten there earlier, before Interpol, would have been perfect, and would have enjoyed myself a lot more. Not a bad show, not a great show. Was hard to top, or even come close, to last nights show. Had I walked into this one after a break, would have liked it a lot more. The setlist was very weak.... Going Nowhere was a treat..... I don't know. Nothing more I can Say...
See you all in Phoenix~!!! =)

- SugarandOpium

I was at the Festival, but only saw the Cure. My friend (not much of a Cure fan...yet) and I arrived at 5:00, but spent the next 4 hours chilling
in the lot (those $8 beers are a killer). Since we only had lawn seats (purchased on a WBCN promotion for 10.50) I didn't worry much about getting
our $$'s worth on the other bands, none of which we knew a single note. We could hear some of the other bands, but didn't pay much attention. On
Sunday, I regretted it a bit that we didn't hear more bands, but who has time for regrets? Especially when the Cure sounded so good.

I think the above set list was good, but would have liked to have heard 'Strange Day' and 'Open'. When they played those two songs at this venue
on the Dream tour, they were awesome. 'Jupiter Crash' was a good call, since it is not often played; if I could have picked a song from that album, it would have been the 13th (has that ever been played live?) and would have settled for 'Round and Round', 'Trap' or even 'Strange Attraction'. The hightpoints were 'Plainsong', 'Inbetween Days' (my introduction to the band {thanks V66} and still fave) and '100 Years'. The new songs sounded good and presented a good summary of the new disc. I look forward to a full tour by the Cure; I think the whole album live would give a better appreciation of the feel of it.

From our point on the lawn, the sound was really great. I've only seen them 7 times now, starting in 1989 (the last two dates of the the Prayer tour at this venue) and, barring the hiccup in 1996 in Worcester (first date of the American tour, I believe) they have sounded progressively better. It seems like a shorter set list than other dates so far, but they did some longer songs (plainsong, disintegration, 100 years, From the Edge). The punchline was I had listened to the '17 Seconds' disc that morning for breakfast (my 2 year old daughter liked 'Play for Today'), so it paid off for the encore. I didn't really miss Robert's chatter; as another reviewer noted, I usually can't understand him anyway. What's up with the 'you guys were fucking awesome!'? Is that now a staple of each show? I liked his comment about having the plug pulled, and then they snuck in 'Going Nowhere', which I have only heard once, when WBWC did their 18 hour tribute. I liked it, very emotional and heavy.

It was a great show, I just wish it had been a full set, they sounded that good. My friend was quite impressed; he didn't know the band very well, but as luck would have it, he had met Robert in 1997 during Goldfinger's show at the Middle East in Cambridge. That was after the Cure played the Orpheum in Boston as part of WBCN's Xmas Rave.   I saw that Orpheum show and it was great (especially after the mess in Worcester '96) and afterwards, Robert crossed the River to check out Goldfinger; another friend of ours got her pic with Robert, who was, as always, willing to be polite to a fan. Well, I'm happy to say my friend's now a convert and I'm really psyched to say that the Cure just keep getting better. Much thanks to them.

- Michael Lyons

After spending so much time and money on major trips to Coachella and WHFS, I really only had the energy to see the New York Curiosa date (I live in Manhattan). I told myself that if the NYC show absolutely blew me away, I would consider renting a car and catching the Maryland or the
Mansfield show. Well, the exact opposite happened. The NYC show left me wanting so much more. It was just so painful to see the setlist the next night in Camden... then reading the Cuyahoga Falls setlist made things worse.

I nearly had a nervous breakdown during the week stressing over whether to see another show... checking ebay over and over again for good seats... checking rental car prices...trying to decide between Columbia and Mansfield... I almost couldn't sleep a few nights. I didn't want to spend all the money and drive an 8 hour roundtrip to see the exact same setlist. Shouldn't I just save the money for their next tour, which hopefully won't be a festival? AHHHH! The indecision! Ticketmaster releasing PIT seats for Columbia and great seats at Mansfield in the 11th hour made me stress even more.

I ended up finding a friend who was a casual Cure fan who wanted to make the Saturday roadtrip to Mansfield with me. Ticketmaster had great $50 seats in the section 6, the center section right behind the soundboard. So I took the bus to LaGuardia, rented a car, picked up my friend in
Brooklyn and made the 4 hour trek.

We arrived right after the Rapture had ended. Kudos to the Tweeter Center for having free parking. Shame on them for their $8 beer. We made our way to our seats and were decently satisfied. I just knew that there would be tons of empty seats up close. All of the fucking ticket brokers
who bought up the good seats and couldn't sell them at their outrageous prices weren't going to be there sitting in them. I just don't understand how concert tickets work. Why does Tickemaster suddenly have good seats the week of? How do the Pit seats sell out in 10 seconds? How do the
brokers get so many seats? So ridiculous, all of it.

Anyway, I *highly* recommend that those of you going to shows on the rest of the tour do your best to upgrade your seats. All you have to do is wait for the ushers to distract themselves with other patrons and waltz right by. We were busted by one usher on the audience left side of the theatre, but we just played dumb and kept walking. Once we got to the other side the ushers weren't even paying attention. We made our way do dead center, 3 rows back from the PIT, where there was perfect stereo sound and plenty of space to move around. As someone else mentioned there was an enormous amount of empty seats around us. Such a shame!

Anyway, Interpol put on a good show. In NYC their show was 30 minutes earlier and it was too light out for them to use any lights. Their light show was fantastic and really added to the experience.

I wasn't able to get to the internet Saturday morning, so I had absolutely no idea what was played in Maryland. This was a good thing, because I really had no way to predict the setlist.

The low last night was 53. It was cold, dark, and it looked like rain. Surely my dream would come true and they would open with Plainsong! I had heard it once before as an encore in the Dream Tour Chicago show, but I wanted it again so badly. At 9:20 the band was nowhere in sight. I don't known why they started late... They only have until 11! Why would they start late!? This whole festival situation is so maddening. A roadie came out with a bottle of wine and poured it into several dixie cups for Robert to later drink out of. The rest of the band seemed to be drinking water. They are using DJ Shadow's "Private Press" album as house music for this tour. There is also a pre-show song they play immediately before the Cure comes
out. It's instrumental and lasts for just a couple of minutes.

The show finally started at 9:23 or so and I told my friend, "If Robert comes out last, I'm getting thet song I want." Of course he didn't. They went right into "Lost" and I was feeling terrible. I just knew I would get the exact same setlist I got a week prior in NYC and my entire trip would have been a waste. To be fair, it was a fabulous version of "Lost", much better than NYC with Robert actually getting close to the intensity of the
"third gear" part of the song as he does on the album. Then it ended and a black scrim started to come down to cover the white sheets. What? They didn't have a scrim in NYC... then the white lights started to flicker and the chimes were heard... it still took me a few seconds to figure out what was happening as I had completely written "Plainsong" off when they didn't open with it. But I was wrong! I jumped up and down and yelled like crazy. Just pure beauty. Robert walking to stage left and shaking as many hands as he could. Then doing the same for stage right in the outro. Just a beautiful time... Someone complained about the lights, but I loved them. The flickering whites were just beautiful.

Next came Fascination Street. I'm so over this song. I've just heard it too many times. Cure fans need to come up with some audience participation for songs like this. Like, I love the hands in the air bit on FTEOTDGS... there should be something we all do during Fascination...something to spice up this mainstay. Like, let's all pump our fists during "move to the beat". Something!

I think I saw the guys with the "Play Anniversary" sign audience left. I couldn't actually read the sign. It looked like Robert gave them a smile during "Plainsong" indicating they would get their wish. There was someone with a "Faith" sign in the center of the Pit. Roger had a roadie write "NO" on a white sheet of paper. After the roadie handed it to him he flashed it at the poster holders. Pretty funny, though sad to find out that we
would get no "Faith"!

TEOTW - boring. They should project the video for this behind them. Something. This song doesn't nothing for me live.

Anniversary - Nice to hear for the first time. I like it better live than on the album. They projected "7 August 2004" on the sheets. Very cool.

Lovesong - so stale and boring. Waste of precious time.

Inbetween Days - got the crowd rocking.

JLH - wonderful as always.

Jupiter Crash - a nice surprise. Plantetary imagery projected. The crowd seemed confused. Many sat down. I enjoyed it.

Pictures - great as always.

Before 3 - Robert got to the first "yeah yeah yeah"s for a change. This sounded better than the 3 other times I've heard it. Love the golden / moon imagery.

FEOTDGS - the best live song in the Cure's catalog. Hands up in the Pit... not too many in the back.

Disintegration - Very happy to get to hear this... but it really wasn't as strong as it has been in the past. Robert didn't seem to know many of the words and it really detracted from it. Also Simon's bass was really loud and abrasive... I know the bass drives this song, but it just didn't sound right to me. It picked up by the end with the "always, always" section.

100 Years - They really love playing this song, and they really rock it hard. However, I think it would be a good idea to sub it out of the list every now and then, just for variety's sake. Tonight's set, although it did have it's surprises was still a bit formulaic. The Cure have such a massive catalog... it would be great if even the hardcore COF readers couldn't predict what song was coming next.

The Promise - Awesome. Lots of people sitting down when it started-- casual fans who didn't know what it was or were tired of all of the dirges in a row-- but by the end, everyone was on their feet. This song has such an excellent build. Perry had a string hanging lose towards the end. He didn't care. Robert wailed away on his guitar. The feedback remained with us as the band left (much like Mogwai tends to do!).

When they returned for the encore Robert said something like, "I'm sorry I haven't really communicated with you all much tonight. Apart from singing, of course." The scrim came up, and I just knew a big red "M" would be there soon enough. I was right. This was a drag for me as I heard
the 17 Seconds encore last week. "M" was actually surprisingly aggressive. Much better than in NYC. "Play for Today" was fine. The sound was so loud where I was I couldn't tell if anyone was singing along to the keyboards. "Forest" rocked. Lots of handclapping.

I looked at my watch. 11:02. ARGH. Why did they start so late!?!?!? Robert came back and said they had 2 minutes...I just knew we would get "Boys Don't Cry" but was thrilled when "Going Nowhere" was played. Very pretty. Nice way to end the evening.

All in all it was worth the trek to see 4 different songs, a better sound mix, and better seats. A good evening. Of course when I got back and saw that Columbia had 14 different songs from NYC my heart was a little broken yet again.

Please play an indoor tour in the states this winter/fall!!!

- Charlie Todd

I attented the show this past Saturday in Mansfield, MA. and experienced another amazing performance by THE CURE. I was probably, one of only what seemed like a few fans actually dancing, jumping, moving, in general (maintaining an active pulse) during their performance. I must say to the same degree that I have never been disappointed by attending a CURE show, I also HAVE NEVER NOT BEEN DISAPPOINTED WITH THE CROWD!!!   ONCE AGAIN INCREDIBLY PATHETIC AND EVEN WORSE, APATHETIC!!    Luckily, I was with my sister and 2 other friends
who all tried to give back some energy to the band. Also, one true fan behind me who knew how to get into the music. I am always amazed that
during "Play for Today" , more of the crowd doesn't catch on to the classic soccer style chant that is supposed to be shouted by the audience (see the Paris live album) at various points throughtout the song.
Anyways, thoroughly enjoyed the show regardless. Although, for show #8 I will definitely be heading over to England to experience the real deal.

- Jared Mancini

I just got back from the Mansfield show and I can say that I have made peace with the latest album. Lost turned out to be a brilliant opener.
TEOTW–Anniversary was a great tandem. Before Three and the Promise came to life in a way that didn’t on the CD. The rest of the set was stacked
with old standbys which I’m sure many of us have heard live a few times. There was no surprise Bananafishbones or Meathook. I didn’t mind though.
They presented the new material well. Any forward thinking band should open a set with a new song and instead of shoehorning Boys Don’t Cry
into the last two minutes before the establishment threatened to as Robert said "pull the plug" we got a song missing from the American release. A poignant Going Nowhere which I had never heard before and was introduced live.

Oh, and I picked up a Muse album this morning after being very impressed.

- Peter Severy

You could tell it was going to be a pop-heavy night because of the wonderful weather and the gorgeous double rainbow in the sky next to the huge
raincloud that stayed far away...the band was super-tight, the sound was much better if you weren't close to the stage. Highlights were great
performances of Plainsong, Pix of You, Promise, M and A Forest, with Robert finishing with the decelerating up-and-down-the-guitar distortion like the end of the "Show" live version. JLH was impassioned and wonderful. But hearing "Going Nowhere" live was worth the price of admission! And Simon was like a man possessed tonight, absolutely blazing; actually all of them during the end of 100 Years were in that zone, they looked like they were on a crazed dancefloor somewhere with their instruments as their partners.

Robert didn't talk at all during the show except near the end when he apologized for not being very communicative. Before "Going Nowhere" he said that instead of fining you for breaking curfew some places just pull the plugs, so they had about 2 minutes.

The new songs were MUCH better live than on the cd. On cd "Anniversary" has atmosphere - live, it has majesty. The individual song sections contained more excitement, letting you appreciate how they are structured even more.

So overall, up there with the best Cure shows I've seen in terms of playing, and after the lovely festival day, I didn't mind the set list at all.

- Justin Budinoff

What an incredible night!

We get there shortly after the doors opened. My boyfriend and I had seats in Section 1, but I went over to the box office and ended up scoring the last pit ticket! I was beyond excited about this. We watched all the first stage bands together from our seats. Mogwai was really good and I was glad to have a chance to hear them as I didn’t know their music. They might be the sort of band that is better to listen to on CD at home rather than live, at least for me. But still good. The Rapture was better than I expected and fun. Interpol, one of my favorites, was fantastic. They played three songs from the new album too which was a treat. The lighting for them was particularly good as well. Heard a little bit of the second stage bands, the best of which I thought was the Cooper Temple Clause.

The merchandise stand was well stocked. Had a large array of t-shirts, some tanks, some girl’s shirts. Had the tour books, hats, bags, buttons, keychains, mousepads, tattoo sets, wallets, etc.

Now on to the important stuff.

My boyfriend stayed in the section seat while I went down to the pit for the whole Cure set (he’s a really nice guy). I had never been that close to them before and it was absolutely incredible. The band came out and Robert (wearing lots of eye make-up) walked around in front of the stage for a minute, looking at the audience with silly weird expression on his face. He did a little classic Robert dance move for someone in the crowd and laughed.

Robert’s voice was incredibly strong and clear and fantastic. The sound mixing sounded really good to my ears. They all played brilliantly. As
far as I was concerned, it was perfection.

They opened with Lost. It was even better than the album. I was especially curious to hear how this would sound live this night (after the stifling HFStival where it didn’t come across as well) and was completely impressed.

The Plainsong. Beautiful. What else is there to say.

Next was Fascination Street, which the crowd (rather sedate for the most part) really got into. I think this is a great live song and tonight was no exception.

Followed by The End of the World, which was not the best performance of the song but still quite good.

Then one of the best songs of the night, Anniversary. This sounded amazing live, absolutely fantastic. I’m so glad they played this and I love the song more than ever now.

The pop songs came next with the ever present Lovesong, Inbetween Days and Just Like Heaven. All the usual sounds but there are great sounds
and made the crowd happy. And watching Simon dance a bit to Inbetween Days was very cute. He plays with his usual scowl but every once in a
while breaks into a smile during the middle of it and this was one of those times.

Another highlight of the night for me was Jupiter Crash, in my opinion one of their most beautiful songs ever and was flawless.

Then another crowd pleaser with the usual (and still good) Pictures of You.

Not many songs from the new album overall but we got Before Three as one of them and with particularly impassioned singing from Robert. Wonderful to hear.

The real crux of the show was the next four songs – From the Edge of the Deep Green Sea, Disintegration, One Hundred Years and The Promise.
During these songs the boys really seem to come alive, particularly the last two. Perry broke a guitar string on The Promise.   Perry and Simon
completely jamming into One Hundred Years. I feel like that song has experienced a rebirth from how much it blasts open and through you they way they’ve been playing it lately. The Promise is even better after this lead up. I don’t think Robert is ever happier on stage then when playing the guitar in The Promise. These last four songs were an amazing powerhouse and really made the show.

The first encore was predictable but never gets old for me. M, Play for Today and A Forest. Not a very long Forest but they had already broken
curfew at this point. When Robert first came out for the encore, he said something about not having conversed much with the audience (which was true) but that’s okay. I can’t understand what he says much of the time inbetween songs anyway. Play for Today was particularly good. I’ve always thought A Forest was a great song to end a Cure show with so when they finished that, I figured that was it and was quite happy with the whole night with the exception of not having heard the one song I wanted most to hear…. They walked off the stage and then almost immediately came back out again. Robert said something about it was hard to break curfew because of having to pay for it and all so they only had about two minutes for one more song, one he said they haven’t played much….and it was the one song I wanted with all my heart to hear… Going Nowhere. I could have cried I was so happy. It was short but stunningly beautiful and made the night for me. Well, that and having a very good close view of Perry : )

All in all, there is not a thing I would complain about. When I heard them play at the Tweeter Center for the Dream Tour, I remember thinking how absolutely clear and strong and incredible they sounded and tonight was if anything even better. It’s a great place to hear them and it was a great show. I’m truly happy.

- Birdmad9

Ok so The show was a little later than 9:15 to start and we were getting anxious given all the curfew talk. But soon enough it started. I don't want to bore you with a song by song breakdown...suffice to say the boys are rockin on this little tour. they are tight, happy and smoking. I have to believe the other bands on the tour are giving them a little motivation to rock just a little harder...overall the show was awesome. Robert, Simon and Perry all had a little technical trouble at different points toward the encores.. Perry broke a string he was playing so hard on Promise, and Simon kicked his bass at one point on his way off stage...? the highlight for me was from ...the Edge to the Promise these four songs were just amazing.. I was completly lost in the show during Disintegration and 100 years and I just knew That Promise was going to be outsatanding when played live...and I was right.
Over all it was a hell of a show... Personally I was a little bummed at some of the poppier stuff (especially after seeing the Ohio setlist) but This was my first show of the tour since we just had a baby I cant really do the dreamtour thing all over the world...and I am just happy to see them again. Thay have so much material to draw from at this point that there will always be something I wished they played...all the more reason to catch multiple shows when you can...see you in Denver. ONE more thing... I am so happy seeing all the younger people at concerts getting turned on to the Cure...but come on people...tap your toes, bob your head move a little. I have never seen so many zombie like concertgoers. get up and DANCE its the Cure for ***$$%^ sake!!!!! 32 down and lots more to go...

- Creighton

I'm just back from the show in Mansfield, MA.

Overall it was a show with a good set list, energetic band, but offset by terrible acoustics and a sleepy crowd.

The different shows started at 5pm, with Head Automatica (giving a bad performance), certainly not on par with Thursday. Auf der Meur and Muse
were great, Mogwai was distorted by terrible sound, and Interpol were not on par with their New York performance.

The cure were slated for 9:15 but started nearly ten minutes late, causing Robert to break curfew by eight minutes.

There were a lot of free seats in the front-middle section (right behind the pit), I'm not sure why.

Now for the set...

Show started with a very disappointing version of lost. Thankfully, a good performance of plainsong served as the real opener. At that point it became clear the sound is going to spoil the show, you could hardly hear Robert's voice. He did go around and talked to the crowd in the front rows of the two side sections.

An ok performance of Fascination Street, followed by a good TEOTW. Anniversary was a nice surprise, ruined again by really bad sound. Love song and Inbetween Days were good as always, but the crowd refused to wake up, standing/leaning against their chairs. Just like heaven was not too convincing (NY performance was much better), followed by a disappointing Jupiter Crash. The band and crowd picked up a little for pictures of you, which was followed by a very disappointing version of Before 3 (although Robert did go through the whole yeah-yeah-yeah routine).

Edge of the deep green sea was done nicely but hands went up mostly in the pit. Disintegration was good (with weird sperm-eggs video in the background), followed by a great 100 years, and an amazing performance of The Promise (finally this song got some justice. It was bad in NY).

The band rushed to the first encore, playing M, play for today (few in the crowd cheered, they were deeply asleep by then), and a great performance of Forest. The band was already over time, so Robert talked to someone (stage manager), came back saying that he doesn't mind paying for breaking curfew, but they're just going to pull the plug, so they have two minutes. They did a great going nowhere, closing at 11:08. Robert didn't say much else during the show although he appeared to be in a pretty good mood. He didn't react when someone in the pit threw a shirt at him during the encore.

Overall, good performance, disappointing sound and crowd (time to start importing crowd from the UK or something).

One more thing about the venue: the tweeter center is really inaccessible without a car. I walked from the train station for 3 miles with a bunch of other people, who are likely to get stuck there tonight because the last train was at 10, and there are no taxis in Mansfield. Me and my friend were saved by two readers of COF, Danielle and Bill, so I really want to thank them!

- Uri Dekel

17 years ago to the day, as a 17 year old, I first saw the Cure on the Kissing Tour in Worcester, Massachusetts. So I guess it was only fitting that tonight, in Mansfield, MA, I experienced the "17 Seconds Encore" - especially Play For Today which I had to wait 9 concerts to hear!! What a gorgeous and exceptional show. The band played with such intensity and emotion, and Smith's voice elicited a power I have not witnessed since 1992's Wish tour, or possibly even 1989's Prayer tour. After reviewing each night's setlist, I was torn between Lost and Plainsong as the opener.   I consider Lost to be an assault on the senses - just incredible - and Plainsong is possibly my favorite Cure song. So when Plainsong followed Lost, I was floored. It was fucking beautiful.   I won't go into all of the songs, except to say that Smith and the boys gave their all on every song and the mix was near perfect (the beginning of Before 3 being the exception, but that quickly cleared up.)   100 years was awesome; FTEOTDGS was intense (not too many hands in the air though).   The crowd was louder than Robert on the first verse of JLH and even louder during Play For Today. The Promise blew me away - I love the CD version but I was amazed how overwhelming it was live - possibly the best song of the night.    When they left the stage
after that one, Robert did his shy smile and appreciative/ extended gaze at the audience. They returned for the 17 Seconds encore, and when they
ended that with the "short" version of A Forest, I knew they were coming back again!! They ended the night with Going Nowhere, which was a
fantastic and fitting end to the show.   The funny thing about that is that I saw they played it once (in Atlanta) and having the US version of the CD, I was afraid they might play it tonight and that I wouldn't know the song!! So I downloaded a live version from COF a few days ago, and it quickly became one of my favorite new songs. Overall, it was just a great night and all the boys were in fine form - even saw a few smiles from Roger and Perry. You can tell that Smith really appreciates his fans and I love the way he looks likes he really doesn't want to leave the stage. I always have trouble hearing what he says, but, thanks in part to the other reviews on COF (!), I did catch the "Thank you very much, it was fucking excellent"!!

My friend and I arrived at the show shortly before Melissa Auf Der Maur took the 2nd stage, but right away ran into a guy from our old neighborhood who we hadn't seen in years (and whose sister sat in front of me at my very first Cure show!!). So, I ended up not seeing anyone else on the bill, but Interpol (Joy Division?) certainly sounded good!!

Thanks, guys, for putting on a great fucking show!!

- Sean

Muse Setlist - Hysteria, Newborn, Bliss, Butterflies and Hurricanes, Time is Running Out, Stockholm Syndrome

Mmm.....it's good to be Cure fan.

So the day started off pretty well...nice weather, pretty venue, fairly smooth organization. Mogwai was predictably solid. Cooper Temple Clause was surprisingly good (The Same Mistakes and New Toys are great songs) and very interesting (though not as interesting as Head Automatica's lead singer's dancing). Rapture was OK and Melissa Auf der Maur was a little embarassing, but she seemed to have a strong contingent of fans. Interpol was very solid, although the new stuff (Evil, Narc, Slow Hands) is much weaker than anything off of Turn on the Bright Lights.

Then came Muse. Muse is such an awesome band, and an amazing live performance. It's a shame they're so obscure stateside, but on the other hand that did mean we got to get right up close to the stage. Their singer has one hell of a voice, and plays a mean guitar, and plays a mean piano, and has the coolest jacket ever.

Then we shuffled back to the main stage for the final time, and not long after Robert started wailing about not being able to find himself. I may think "The Cure" is the weakest album since The Top, but regardless, from the moment I heard his voice, I realized how meaningless all the bands that came before were. They were entertaining diversions, but The Cure's become such a part of my life, that they're as close to a religious experience as a godless person like me will ever get. The lushness of Plainsong contrasted nicely with Lost, becoming one of my favourite moments of the concert (even though the light display was totally inappropriate for this song...I just closed my eyes). It was also great to here Anniversary, which I feel is the best of the new songs. The Promise sounded fantastic live, and FTEOTDGS and Just Like Heaven were Great. I've never been a huge fan of Inbetween Days or 100 Years, but both of these songs were performed superbly in their own ways. Of course it wasn't a perfect concert, and some songs felt disappointingly tired, like Love Song and Fascination Street. But the performances got a lot stronger and Robert started talking a little bit
as the set moved out of singles territory. The encore was a nice trio from 17 Seconds. Then came the real surprise: the band came back out and told the crowd they had two more minutes before the staff started pulling out the plugs for their instruments and equipment. So Robert said they would only do the first verse of a song, and introduced it as one they didn't typically play. And it was--Going Nowhere! Woohoo! My second favorite off of The Cure, and a real treat to hear in live.

Anyway, I'm sure some people will complain about the rushed feeling of the singles in the first half of the set, or how Robert wasn't as talkative as at other shows, or how the crowd wasn't going nuts, but I thought it was a great show and I can't be bothered with imperfections, cuz I've got a mellow high from having just heard my favorite songs ever played live by my favorite band ever.

- Bryan