Album Title: The Cure Release Dates: Japan - June 25, 2004 (Most of) Europe - June 28th, 2004 Australia - June 29th, 2004 North America - June 29th, 2004 Sweden - June 30th, 2004 Total running time: 51:23 (US) Working Titles: The End of the World was The Machine   Doesn't Work alt.end was Precious Advice Never was Jason #3 (I Don't Know What's Going) On... was   Strings Lost was Back On The Promise was The Broken Promise Truth Goodness & Beauty was Someone's   Coming Before Three was Cold, Cold, Cold? Number of tracks on album: 11-15 Number of tracks recorded: 20  Missing Songs:  A Boy I Never Knew Why Can't I Be Me? Your God Is Fear Read fan reviews of the album Read the lyrics

Produced by: Ross Robinson & Robert Smith   Recorded at: Olympic Studios in London   Record Label: Geffen / I Am Recordings   Formats:      CD     Deluxe CD (includes 'making of The Cure' DVD)     Vinyl

It all begin with this statement posted on Oct. 3rd, 2000 at the official Cure website:

"there's a whisper that when we finish in australia we may be going back into the studio.. more news coming.. ".

That was changed to "there's a whisper that when we finish in australia we will be going into the studio... more news coming...". Notice the change from "may be" to "will be"?

Then we had many interesting quotes from Robert while on the Australian tour:

While most indications seem to point to the break-up of The Cure by the end of this year, Robert Smith hasn’t
been sitting around despondently, even when on break from the band’s Dreamtour, staged in support of their most
recent album Bloodflowers. On the contrary, Smith has been busy writing a new batch of songs, in an approach that
embraces the future while paying heed to his past.

“It’s what I’ve been doing this summer,” he explains, “’cause we’ve had about two months off. I’ve pretty much
finished writing another album. I’ve actually gone back to how I wrote The Head On The Door album (1985). I’m
using the same equipment, I dug it out of an old box in my garage that I hadn’t opened up since I moved. There’s a
little four-track and various old effects pedals. I plugged them all in and thought ‘well this is how I used to do it’.
“It’s really nice, actually, getting back to that incredibly simple way of just putting four things down that have to
work with each other to make a song.”

Adding to the ‘are-they-breaking-up-or-aren’t-they?’ riddle that is both tantalising and terrifying Cure fans the
world over, Smith is non-committal as to whether the resultant LP would be a Cure album or a solo release.

“Either way I’d probably get the others to play on it anyway,” he says. “I’m getting on with them so well I can’t
really see any point in asking anyone else to do it. In some ways it’s really whether I want to think ‘is now the time I
want to be a solo artiste or do The Cure make another record?’ To me it’s more important what it sounds like. I
don’t really worry about what it’s going to be called until I’ve done something else.”

(September 29th X-press Magazine)
 

If his audience does wonder what will come next it is perhaps because Smith himself struggles to maintain a firm
path. When the latest album, Bloodflowers, was released, Smith noted that it would represent the band's last studio
album. Now he's not so sure.

"When we were making Bloodflowers I certainly intended it to be the last studio album, but I think the enjoyment
I've derived from the shows we've played so far this year has changed my mind a bit in that regard. I've never
enjoyed the band as much as I have this year in all the years I've been doing it. I've never had as much contentment
I suppose, on stage as well as off. We're playing really well and the shows and audiences have been fantastic. I
thought it would be pretty dumb to say 'let's stop now'. I'll probably be tempted to record something after this tour
of Australia just to see what happens and I won't mind if it doesn't work. I don't have any long-term plans. If
Bloodflowers ends up the last studio album The Cure makes then I will be happy with that. I will be content. It was
supposed to be."

(Sydney street paper The Drum Media Oct. 3rd, 2000)
 

D.J - The moment I heard Out Of This World from Blood Flowers it sounded like a goodbye from a much loved
friend. Was that the sense you had when you made Blood Flowers that it was like saying goodbye to friends who
had travelled a path with you for over 20 years?

R.S - Yeah I think that particularly with Out Of This World I was just trying to get that sense that I often have
which is a kind of curse that whenever I'm enjoying something im always thinking that its gonna end... and then i
realised that within that framework that I could actually make you know , use it to like you know....use it too..... i
was imagining that I would be on stage singing it when I was kinda like fine tuning it. So it was intentional opening
the album like that , we open the show with it as well we have done every night this year and it kinda sets the mood.
The weird thing is that in the course of this year ive had so much fun with the band I think because of the songs that
weve been playing and just the mood generally onstage that um , im very loathed to just walk away from it without
trying something new so um at the moment weve got a pretty firm plan to go back into the studio virtually as soon
as we get home from Australia.

D.J - Robert Smith there , never say never they might still record a new album. Playing tonight in Adelaide

( interview on Triple J radio on Oct 12th, 2000 (recorded at the Triple J studios on Oct. 9th or 10th)
 

With the future of the Cure uncertain, Smith has long talked about a solo album. But he says now it might turn into
another Cure album. "I'm torn. I like the idea of BloodFlowers being the last Cure album, but I'm not sure I
wouldn't rather see what this line up (of the Cure) does with some of the songs I've earmarked for my solo record.
"There's no big career plan. I'll try something. If it works it'll probably be a Cure album, if it doesn't I'll probably
get some real musicians in!"

(Australian Herald Sun newspaper on Oct. 12th, 2000)
 

Caller: "I just wanted to ask about the possibility of you making a solo album after The Cure are finished."

RS: "Um yeah I've already sort of done it. I keep putting it off because I'm enjoying myself with the band too much,
so most of its written and I've contacted the various people, other artists that I want to play on it to see if they're
interested and most of them have said yes. So I expect I'll start it sometime next year, probably next spring. But I
think what we are going to try first when we get home from Australia, I think we're all going to into the studio and
try another Cure album. See what happens, but if it doesn't work, you know....anyway, thank you for asking."

Caller: "My question is you've mentioned doing some demos for the next album, I was wondering if it will be along
the same lines as the trilogy or whether you're going to have a new direction once again?"

RS: "Well the others were expecting me to, I mean usually I react against, you know like when we did
Disintegration, the next we did was Mixed Up which was like remixes, I think the others were expecting me to do
something similar, but I'm surprised myself actually by continuing on in pretty much the same vein as Bloodflowers,
I think because I've enjoyed making the album and playing the songs this year that the songs I've written are in a
similar mood, if anything, they're more miserable. But I haven't quite decided on how to approach it lyrically yet,
but certainly musically it's very, the more atmospheric side of the band, sort of like that part. There are no radio
singles I fear on the next album either."

(Robert as guest DJ on Triple J radio - Oct. 14th, 2000)
 

So mid-November came around and nothing happened. Obviously, the recording plans were scrapped. Plans were then made to go into the studio early in 2001.

Then on Jan. 31st, I posted the following on the COF news page:

"A source spoke to Robert last week and provided us with this update on the status of some of the things being
discussed for the near future:

New Album - The band is on holiday now but they will start recording next month, working on some new ideas and if
something good comes out of that, they will eventually release it. But only if they think it works. Everyone is said to
be very excited and they really want to record something."

Well once again, plans changed. This time however, no one was saying anything about the sessions being pushed back or rescheduled. It looked like there wouldn't be any studio work until after the summer (if then).

But by mid-April, rumblings about the sessions begin to surface again, and then Dave Gahan appeared on WLIR
radio in New York on April 12th and had this to say:

"Andre (DJ): Do they still put you guys in the same classification now as The Cure or are you hearing less of that
now? Because you guys have been compared sometimes.

Dave Gahan: Well I think that's good company. I've always liked The Cure and I know they're making a new
record right now, so that's cool. And actually, our friend Daryl who used to work for us, he works for The Cure now
and we still stay in touch."

Ah ha! So the new album had not been abandoned after all. Great news, but how much does Dave Gahan really
know? Could he be believed? How recently had he spoken to the band? And when were the new sessions scheduled
to begin?

Those questions were answered when I was sent this e-mail from someone who had been in contact with Perry a few
days ago:

"we are due to go into a studio in may to start demos for a new album"

And NME mentioned the new album in a story about the band's upcoming appearance at the Roskilde Festival:

"The show will be the band's only festival appearance this summer, although a UK spokesperson for the band told
NME.COM they had been in the studio this year working on new material."

Unfortunately, the sessions have been delayed yet again. They are now "penciled in" to start in mid-August.

And that's where we stand as of now. As more news comes out, I will post it here and on the news page. Let's just
hope that everything works out, the sessions go well and that the album is ready for release late this year.

Well, looks like we won't see the new album until sometime in 2002 at the earliest. The band are now working on new tracks to be added to a Greatest Hits collection due out in November 2001.

March 2002 - While work on the new album will continue this year, the album probably won't be released until 2003.

April 10th, 2002 - The new album has entered the early demos stage and the band have had their first "demo listening".

June 26th, 2002 - Robert made the following comments about the new album to German magazine Zillo (July/Aug.
issue):

- solo album is done, still has to be mixed

- at the moment, Robert favours adding it as a bonus disc to the next cure album

- band will go into the studio september-december with a possible release in spring

- new album will be released on their own label, signing a deal with an american indie label as distributor shortly

- robert's songwriting has changed: more intellectual ideas like where the birds always sing, the lyrics shouldn't be
about him any longer

- still mistrust about the new songs, as the more intellectual ones are rarely his faves so far, not that convinced
about the new stuff so far

- but he has to sing them during rehearsels for the 1st time

July 2nd, 2002 - Robert made the following comments about the new album to German magazine Sonic Seducer
(July/Aug. issue):

- at the moment stuff is going into darker directions, wrong number, will probably be the last song that can be seen
as sth different

- his solo album is recorded has still to be mixed

- takes too long to work on his solostuff, so it should come out with the next cure record, and people will hopefully
be positively surprised

- he enjoys doing new stuff with the band

July 14, 2002 - Robert has been doing some interviews while on the festival tour and made these interesting comments:

- The recording of the new album may be pushed back, due to a "mystery"event (Robert wouldn't say exactly what
it was) in October. Robert said they have an offer for a very special one-off event that could possibly turn into a
DVD, and that was so unique and important to him that he's considering starting the recording of the new album a
little later than originally planned.

- Apparently 40 new songs exist for the upcoming album, and Robert is currently in the process of selecting the 10
or so to be recorded for the album.

Well as we all know now, that "mystery event" was the Trilogy shows. And so 2003 brought us the Trilogy dvd,
numerous Robert collaborations, a couple of live shows and the preparation of the remasterd albums and the Dots
b-side collection. A busy year, yet still no signs of a new album. But late in the year, The Cure finally entered the studio to began pre-production work. That went very well, and recording of the album started on Jan. 26th,
2004. That brings us up to today and only leaves a few more months to wait. Yes, after a 4 year tease, we are
finally going to see a new Cure album!