Former Cure Members Perform At Cure Convention- Orpheus Will Techno-ize Cure Songs; Convention To Sell Cure Collectables

Orpheus, which is the new band by ex-Cure drummers Lol Tolhurst and Andy Anderson, is scheduled to perform at a Cure convention to be held on Dec. 28 at the Palace in Hollywood, according to a spokesperson for London Calling, the company promoting the event.

The spokesperson says that Tolhurst and Anderson will be on hand to sign autographs as well as perform onstage. Orpheus, an electronic act which was formed in 1996, features Tolhurst on keyboards, Anderson on percussion and loops, and Cindy Levinson on vocals.

The spokesperson at London Calling says that at the convention, the group will be performing some of their own original music, as well as remixing old Cure material in techno fashion.

The spokesperson also says that rare videos and previously unreleased Cure music will be played for fans to dance to throughout the night. In addition, the convention will house approximately 10 booths, mainly for selling Cure collectables, and will feature rare and promotional item giveaways, a Robert Smith look- alike contest, and a Cure sing- alike contest.

For more info,check out The Cure Convention 1997 webpage

Robert Smith Discovers Cure For 'Greatest Hits' Syndrome

The vaccine is called Galore, a single's collection that includes one new song.

Addicted To Noise Senior Writer Gil Kaufman reports : If Robert Smith has his way, he won't have to see a record company release a 'greatest hits' album of what it considers the most commercial Cure songs.

At least while the Cure are still together, that is.

Rather, Smith is happy, once every decade, to compile the band's singles onto a CD. And if the band's first singles collection, 1986's Standing on the Beach, is any indication, so are the Cure's fans.

"I've always held it in my mind that when the group finishes, the last thing that's going to come out that's called 'Greatest Hits' and has the Cure's name on it will be my choice of songs that have meant something to me through the 20 years of doing it," Smith said. "Not someone's decision of what's commercially the best choice."

The Cure singer/frontman said it was he who pushed for the upcoming collection of singles, Galore-- The Singles 1987-1997 (Oct. 28), which features one new track, "Wrong Number."

Now is the perfect time to release Galore, Smith added. "I figured if it didn't happen this year, it wouldn't happen at all, because it [all the singles] just fits in the 75-minute time constraints of a CD," said Smith, 38. "I knew that trying to argue for a double-CD of singles wasn't going to wash."

Smith said the 18-track collection, a sequel to 1986's Standing on the Beach singles sampler, was primarily his way of staving off the dreaded "greatest hits" album he's been fighting against for the past four years, as well as collecting all the band's commercial singles since the last compilation.

Consider it a case of semantics, though. "Because our greatest hits, as far as I'm concerned, of the past 10 years, are all on this album," Smith noted.

The rest of the tracks on Galore are: "Why Can't I Be You?," "Catch," "Just Like Heaven," "Hot Hot Hot!!!," "Lullaby," "Fascination Street," "Lovesong," "Pictures of You," "Never Enough," "Close to Me," "High," "Friday I'm In Love," "A Letter to Elise," "The 13th," "Mint Car," "Strange Attraction" and "Gone."

Fittingly, the new song on the album, "Wrong Number," will be its first single. Recorded with ex-Tin Machine guitarist Reeves Gabrels, the uptempo rock track is full of buzzing electronic noise, funky staccato guitar licks, a grinding dance-floor beat and dramatically spooky see-saw vocals from Smith.

The track was recorded this summer in London over a whirlwind weekend and co-produced by Smith and Mark Plati, who mixed Bowie's latest album, Earthling. The two had been recording over the past few months, popping in and out of studios for two or three days at a time to finish one song, Smith said. "I'd got this song 'Wrong Number' and it really sort of stuck out," Smith said of the churning number, which sounds as if it could have fit in on the band's 1990 remix album, All Mixed Up.

Smith said he has been waiting for a new single so he could convince the record company to go ahead with Galore. Full of inspiration, Smith phoned up Plati, who he'd met in New York earlier in the year. By chance, Gabrels, who he'd also met and played with earlier in the year, was in town and willing to drop by that weekend. By Sunday night they had the single finished and mixed.

"It's just such a pure single, really," said Smith, pointing out that the bright, machine-like song is not pertinent to the new, and "very different," Cure album he's currently working on. "It's a very rock song," he added. "It's not very Cure, but I've never worked with anyone as fantastic as Reeves."

Smith said he was so taken with the Gabrels' collaboration, in fact, that he's been talking with the group about working with a number of "outsiders" on new Cure material to allow him to broaden the scope of the band and experiment with new sounds. "I think the next Cure album will be a very different prospect," Smith said, preferring to not elaborate on which musicians have already been approached to record parts for the album, due during the first half of 1998. [Mon., Sept. 29, 1997, 9 a.m. PDT]

CURE-ALL: While many acts consider a collection of hits a nice gift for fans, the Cure"s Robert Smith would not be one of those artists. In fact he sees "Galore," the group"s Oct. 28 release that covers singles put out by the band since 1987, as "the least fan-orientated record we"ve released in 10 years." Smith says previous singles collection " "Standing On A Beach" was really successful because people who wouldn"t buy the rest of our albums because they think we might be too difficult for them bought that. This will be the same thing. It"s aimed at the people who this is the only Cure album they"re going to buy." The album will come out on Fiction/Elektra in the U.S. and on Fiction/PolyGram in the rest of the world.

"Galore" contains plenty of evidence why the Cure is considered one of the founding fathers of the modern rock movement. Among the 18 tracks are four that went to the top of Billboard"s Modern Rock Tracks chart--"Fascination Street," "Never Enough," "High," and "Friday I"m In Love."

The affable Smith says his favorites on the disc are "Just Like Heaven," "Mint Car," and the collection"s lone new track, the instantly catchy, techno-influenced "Wrong Number."

Throughout the years, the members of the Cure have always treated their fans with a devotion and respect that is all too rare in rock music. With the invasion of the Internet, the Cure has turned to cyberspace to provide followers with special packages and to keep in contact with fans. Its last mini-release, April"s "Five Swing Live," was available to fans only via the band"s World Wide Web site. Additionally, last year the group released an alternate version of the videoclip for "Mint Car" on its Web site. During the recording of the band"s new studio album, a select number of fans have been able to hear the proceedings via an Internet hookup with the recording studio.

So it should come as no surprise that, with "Galore"s" release still weeks away, Smith is already hard at work on another project dedicated to the faithful--a new B-sides collection. "I wanted to put it out now, but the labels said it would muddy the waters, so we"re going to put it out after Christmas." says Smith. "It"s filling up three CDs of space right now, so I have to find a way to condense it. A lot of these songs are unavailable unless you"re willing to pay through the nose, so I really like the idea of providing a collection of them in one place." Smith says decisions are still being made as to how to distribute the release, but it may be through the Web site.

While the label turned down the idea of releasing the B-sides collection before Christmas, Smith nixed the idea of a best-of retrospective spanning the group"s career since its inception in the late "70s. "The label wanted a greatest-hits, but I didn"t want to do that," he says. "I didn"t think it would appeal to more people. It would be ludicrous for me to put half of "Standing On A Beach" on "Galore"; it would dissuade people from buying this thing."

Amid the flurry, the Cure is also working on the new studio album. "We"re currently halfway through," says Smith. "I"m doing the album in tandem not just with a group, but I"ve invited a couple of other people to take part as well." Among the guests are guitarist Reeves Gabrels, who plays on "Wrong Number." Smith is aiming for a release date of April 1, 1998. After that, the group"s future is uncertain.

"After that, I have no idea. That"s our last album to Elektra and PolyGram, so I don"t know after that," Smith says. In terms of what he may be looking for in a new label contract, Smith swears, "I don"t know what I want, I don"t care about those kind of things."

However, he adds, while he doesn"t know what will happen with the Cure next after the new studio album, he does know what will happen last. "The final thing that will come out will be my version of the greatest hits. It will be my personal selection of what I think our best work is," Smith says.

To celebrate the release of "Galore," the Cure will play at least two club dates, including an Oct. 31 New York gig. That show, which may be cybercast and radio simulcast, will be the Cure"s first U.S. club date in a decade. Smith doesn"t relish the idea of playing such cozy confines. "I did a club date last October in Paris to commemorate my 20th anniversary of playing onstage. It was going to be a day off, and I thought, "We"ll just go to a bar and talk about the old days." So instead we went and played one obscure song from each album. There were about 900 people there, and it was really sweaty, and I really hated it," he says with a laugh. "When it gets down to 1,000 people, I get really nervous because I can see everyone, and it makes me try too hard." Sounding a little like Goldilocks, Smith adds, "I hate really big places too, but I think there"s a happy medium with between 5,000 and 10,000 seats. You can still get feedback, but it adds enough drama."

At least Smith derives some comfort in the knowledge that no club date to support "Galore" can be as bad as the gigs during the Cure"s infancy. With fondness that only time and distance can bring, Smith recalls, "The first time we played clubs it was the end of punk. We were getting spat at. It was horrible! I had to drive after the gig back to the hotel, if we had a hotel. At least now, I don"t have to drive, and I know we have a place to stay."

And here's a small report from the Billboard website :

AFTER THE BEACH: The Cure has prepared a second singles collection, "Galore." The disc, out in the U.S. Oct. 28 on Elektra, follows the British group's popular "Standing On A Beach" anthology, which documented the act from its early days. "Galore" covers material released in 1987 and afterward, including "Fascination Street," "Friday I'm In Love," and "Never Enough," as well as one new song, "Wrong Number." The band is in the studio, recording an album tentatively set to be released in April of next year. Robert Smith and his bandmates are also slated to play their first club show in a decade on Halloween in New York.



I know many of you have been interested in the upcoming Cure Convention, and it's finally been confirmed for Dec 28th,1997 at The Palace in Hollywood,Ca.

Intergalactic Garage has the Wrong Number singles listed for pre-orders.

This info is from the IGG pre-order e-mail list (may not be on the website):

CURE WRONG NUMBER CD-5 (UK) 10/24/97 [$10] $8.99

CURE WRONG NUMBER 12 (UK) 10/24/97 [$10] $8.99

Brand new single NOT BEING RELEASED IN THE US

Here's a bit more of the new interview with Robert (as posted to Babble by Weezer):

Well I'm still sorting thru the tape of the interview last week, but here's some info you might find interesting....

Robert smith is working on a soundtrack for an independent film called FUR, he says he expects the film to have a "late night art film release, I'd be surprised if it gets a multiplex screening but you never know" He also went on to say the film will be "! a modern-day morality tale but with some bizarre twists on it." When asked about acting he said" Not after seeing my video's (he laugh's) "Maybe when I'm really, really old and craggy I can take over from where Robert Mitchum left off"........

And I recieved this in the mail today from David Sanchez:

"In Spain the most important radio station RNE Radio3 they started to air the promo of Wrong Number yesterday."

Also,Jason has moved his incredible Cure MP3 archive to a new server,so update those bookmarks to http://mcin-120.resnet.tamu.edu

"There is a strong rumor that the Cure are already booked to play the Tonight Show in L.A. on either the 23rd or 24th of October. I haven't been able to confirm this through NBC although someone in the record industry passed this news on to me. This could also possibly give a clearer date as to when they will play L.A."

It looks like there will not be a Wrong Number single in the U.S. , here's what a source at Elektra says:

"there are no plans for a commercial single. maybe a promo only release because they want all the old fans to have to buy the same stuff they already have to get the new song. if we change our minds, i'll keep people informed."

The official page says they may offer Wrong Number through Liquid Audio, but doesn't mention a price ($0.99 seems to be the average) or if any of the remixes will also be offered.

Here's the track listing for the Wrong Number singles to be released on Oct. 27th (in the UK,apparently it won't be released commercially in the US) according to Siren Disc:

CD Single-Wrong Number (Single Mix)/(Analogue Exchange Mix)/(Engaged Mix)/(P2P Mix)/(Digital Exchange Mix)

12" Single-Wrong Number (Single Mix)/(Analogue Exchange Mix)/(P2P Mix)/(Crossed Line Mix)/(ISDN Mix)

Coming Soon: Hits Galore From the Cure

On October 28, just in time for Halloween, gloom and doom rockers the Cure will release a new greatest-hits compilation featuring eighteen songs dating from 1987 to 1997. Seventeen of the tunes on Galore have appeared on Cure albums in the past, but one, "Wrong Number," is a brand-new song that has a few very un-Cure-like sounds. Why? Well, at first listen, you might think they've linked up with David Bowie, but in reality, the band has hooked up with Bowie's guitarist, Reeves Gabrels, who lends several riffs to the song. Gabrels swung by the studio while the Cure were recording the track, and when asked for his opinion, ended up giving it---musically.

Of course, this isn't the first time the Cure has put together a greatest-hit album. Previously, they scored a big success with 1986's Standing on a Beach: The Singles. And once Galore is on shelves, Robert Smith and the boys plan to start working on a new studio album that will, with any luck, come out in 1998.

Track list for the Cure's Galore 1. Why Can’t I Be You? 2. Catch 3. Just Like Heaven 4. Hot Hot Hot!!! 5. Lullaby 6. Fascination Street 7. Lovesong 8. Pictures of You 9. Never Enough 10. Close to Me (Closest Mix) 11. High 12. Friday I’m in Love 13. A Letter to Elise 14. The 13th 15. Mint Car 16. Strange Attraction 17. Gone! 18. Wrong Number --Karen Manning

The Cure have updated their Cure Plans page (finally!) with some very interesting news and one really petty,uncalled for statement (see if you can guess what it is).And just for the record,scroll down through this page and notice that just about every news item on this page has a source indicated.

News Flash: Cure Galore On New Singles Collection

Follow-up to 1986's Standing on a Beach: The Singles will include new song.

More than 10 years after they released their first singles collection, the Cure are back with a second collection of their hits, Galore, which will be released on Oct. 28.

The follow-up to the highly successful 1986 compilation Standing on a Beach: The Singles, the new career retrospective gathers the alternative pop group's singles released from 1987 to the present, as well as a new song, "Wrong Number."

The new tune was recorded in London this past August. "Number" features guest guitar playing by Reeves Gabrels (David Bowie/Tin Machine) and was mixed by Mark Plati, who also mixed Bowie's most recent album, Earthling.

The track listing for the new singles album is: "Why Can't I Be You?," "Catch," "Just Like Heaven," "Hot, Hot, Hot!!!," "Lullabye," "Fascination Street," "Lovesong," "Pictures of You," "Never Enough," "Close to Me (Closest Mix)," "High," "Friday I'm In Love," "A Letter to Elise," "The Thirteenth (Swing Radio Mix)," "Mint Car (Radio Mix)," "Strange Attraction" and "Gone (Radio Mix)."

The group has been mulling the possibility of a few live club performances in the U.S. around the time of the album's release. While nothing is definite, if the shows take place, there will be a limited number of them; they would be the Cure's first club shows in the States in over 10 years.

Cure leader Robert Smith is currently writing new songs for an album he hopes will be completed and released next year. -- Gil Kaufman [Fri., Sept. 19, 1997, 9 a.m. PST]

"A radio station here in Hartford, 104.1, just had a 1 minute interview excerpt with RS . . . the latest news? He says he's "leaving the cure in 1999 . . . because he doesn't want to be known as the guy in his 40's who's still with the cure . . ." I know he's said this a million times before, but this whole segment had an "announcement" tone to it . . . For the first time, I'm taking him seriously. (God, why do I feel so scared?? I knew this would come eventually) . . . He also said something about how he "wasn't really LEARNING anything new anymore" and so he wanted to move on. They mentioned that "Galore" will be due out in October. The interviewer asked what Robert's favorite songs were on Galore-- he said, "I think the best singles are Friday I'm In Love, Mint Car, and Wrong Number (smiling tone in his voice)." What else? Oh, he also said that they had done 6 songs for the new album and were planning to do 6 more. That one is due out April 1 . . . (April 1'st??? he always gets the last laugh, doesn't he?). There was no mention of any gigs, but that doesn't mean they aren't happening."

Well as I mentioned a few days ago had Robert on the phone yesterday and he had quite a few interesting things to say about the Cure and their future......I'll post more info on the interview later when I have more time...but for now I have a bit of sad news.......

Robert will split the band in 1999. Robert said he doesn't want to be know as "the guy in the Cure", when he is in his mid forties. "I think I'll have done all I want to do with the group by my fortieth birthday..(1999)

Also they will be doing small shows to support Galore and....he says the next time we see him here in the states he will be sporting a new hairstyle...:-)

More later......

My contact at Fiction spoke directly with Chris Parry today and says that the New York City (Irving Plaza) October 31st show is being planned right now! The actual date and venue are not for sure yet because reservations on airlines and at hotels need to be made, but The Cure are definitely planning to play in New York City AND Los Angeles somewhere around that date!

Every single released by the Cure since 1987 will be compiled on the album "Galore," due Oct. 28 from Fiction/Elektra. The 18-track disc contains songs from previous albums "Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me," "Disintegration," "Mixed Up," "Wish," and "Wild Mood Swings." The tracks include "Why Can't I Be You," "Hot Hot Hot," "Love Song," "Never Enough," "Friday I'm In Love," and "Mint Car." Also featured is one new track, "Wrong Number." The Cure's first singles collection, the 1986 release "Standing On A Beach-The Singles," was certified platinum by the RIAA.

Goth fans have a reason to celebrate now that the Cure is releasing an album of all their singles released since 1987. The album, titled Galore, features singer Robert Smith, bassist Simon Gallup, guitarist Perry Bamonte, Roger O'Donnell on keys and Jason Cooper on drums, and will include all of the band's hits as well as a new song called "Wrong Number," which hits radio in mid-October. Galore will consist of songs from the Cure's lengthy career, including "Just Like Heaven," "Why Can't I Be You," "Love Song" and "Friday I'm In Love." Galore hits stores Oct. 28, and a small tour may follow.

Just a week after its London launch, XFM is looking to expand throughout the UK. Xfm co-founder Sammy Jacob says the station will join in the bidding as a host of new radio licences around the country come up for grabs in the coming months. Jacob said: "We've been associated with an application for the Northwest - Manchester and Liverpool. We're the major shareholder and a few other parties are involved. There's another one in the Northeast of England and another in Scotland which Alan McGee is interested in. I hope that if we can make an impact on London they'll look at it seriously. They're the last of the large scale licences available. "We've been looking for co-investors for Scotland and Alan McGee is an obvious one. But it's still early days. We approached him and he was interested."

Meanwhile, Jacob revealed that station bosses considered delaying Xfm's launch because of the death of Princess Diana in the early hours of August 31. "We were in a real dilemma. There was a moment, where we thought, perhaps we shouldn't launch on Monday because of what was going on. It was a very difficult call but I think we handled it in the right way. We played Radiohead's 'Street Spirit (Fade Out)' then did our intro speech bit, dedicating the launch day to the memory of Diana and then kicked in with the MC5's 'Kick Out The Jams'."

The Cure has just finished work on "Wrong Number," a new song and single that will be included on "Galore," a collection of hits from 1987 to the present, due Oct. 28. A video for the track is being directed by Tim Pope, who worked on several Cure videos and directed the film "The Crow: City of Angels."

1. Why Can't I Be You / 2. Catch / 3. Just Like Heaven / 4. Hot Hot Hot / 5. Lullaby / 6. Fascination Street / 7. Lovesong / 8. Pictures of You / 9. Never Enough / 10. Close to Me (Closest mix) / 11. High / 12. Friday I'm in Love / 13. A Letter to Elise / 14. The 13th (Swing Radio Mix) / 15. Mint Car(Radio Mix) / 16. Strange Attraction / 17. Gone (Radio mix) / 18.Wrong Number

London's newest radio station Xfm has received a warm welcome from the music industry, which has hailed it as a long overdue breath of fresh air. At the end of its first week on air Xfm showed little sign of deviating from its mission statement of providing 24-hour exposure to alternative music by putting 22 tracks on its A-list, including The Verve's The Drugs Don't Work, Beck's Jack-Ass and Primal Scream's Burning Wheel. The inclusion of a number of dance tracks, such as Bentley Rhythm Ace's Bentley's Gonna Sort You Out and Chemical Brothers' Elektrobank, has also been welcomed. Nicki Kefalas, head of pluggers Out Promotion says, "Alternative means anything new and exciting, regardless of genre." While accepting that Xfm is still in its honeymoon period, Scott Piering, head of promotion company Appearing, believes it is already demonstrating an intelligent and professional approach. "I've been looking at the station from a number of perspectives and apart from not liking its bus shelter ads, I can't fault it." And Dylan White, head of radio at Anglo Plugging, adds, "The playlist is great and the presentation is spot-on. I only wish there was a station like Xfm in every region."

On Oct. 28, the Cure will release "Galore," a new compilation on Elektra. The collection will include singles released since 1986, the year the band's first anthology, "Standing On A Beach--The Singles," came out. "Galore" will include one new track . . .

British gloom-rock institution The Cure are in the studio recording some new songs for inclusion on a singles compilation slated for release in October. The collection, tentatively titled Galore, will include 16 singles and a handful of new songs. There's also been some scuttlebutt that the band will embark on a short series of club dates to promote the album. In the meantime, movie fans can hear some Cure classics in Career Girls, the new film by director Mike Lee ("Secrets And Lies").

As Xfm 104.9 switches on its transmitters today (September 1) and gears up for a £1m media blitz, the new London radio station is already preparing to roll out its alternative package across the nation.

The station's chief executive Chris Parry reveals that when DJs Gary Crowley and Eric Hodge cue up Xfm's inaugural record at noon he will be working on plans to pitch for at least two regional licences capitalising on Xfm's brand of cutting edge alternative music. He says he has approached Creation president Alan McGee to help fund and prepare a bid for one of them. Parry plans to spread the Xfm brand by bidding for the North East and Central Scotland licences, to be advertised by the Radio Authority in October 1997 and February 1988 respectively. McGee is being asked to help prepare the application for the Scottish licence and is expected to take around a one-third stake in the venture. "I'd like to get into other markets because there is a great opportunity in radio, especially if it goes well in London," says Parry. "I am trying to be in the position to reap the benefits of the future."

Parry says his preference for Xfm would be in urban areas, but the scarcity of licences on offer covering major cities has forced his hand. "Obviously Manchester would be great. It's a natural city to get into, but that may come and we can have a crack at it then," he says.