Review Summary: The Cure's masterpiece is a return to their gothic roots.
After perfecting their pop sound with 1985's "The Head on the Door" and its follow-up, the double album "Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me", "The Cure" (or more specifically, Robert Smith) decided to master the gothic sound they started with "Seventeen Seconds" almost ten years prior. Having achieved international fame thanks to the huge success of both "Head" and "Kiss Me", the band's record executives believed the album would lead to commercial suicide. It was a terrible record to them, but Smith felt that it was his masterpiece, something he wanted to achieve before he reached the age of 30. The album, titled "Disintegration", had been released in May 1989 and had become another big success for “The Cure”. It has been included in many "Best of" lists ever since and is arguably the band’s most definitive work.
“Disintegration” is a sad, but hauntingly beautiful album. Atmospheric to the extreme, it achieves a certain majestic sound at times that its dark predecessors had lacked. You might be crying in your soup by the time it’s all over, but you’ll be glad that you did, because this record is really one of the best sad albums ever made. Unlike its cousin “Faith”, the song arrangement in “Disintegration” is actually quite wonderful. Each track naturally flows into the next leaving the impression that you’ve just gone on a very hypnotic journey at the very end. Robert Smith’s vocal performance is quite mopey throughout which compliments the album’s overall moody sound. But there are a few pop singles including “Lovesong” and “Lullaby” which help keep the record from being too much of a downer.
The first time I heard the album was in August of 2006. Needless to say, I was a little late to “The Cure” party. But this was the first record that ever got me into a band. It left an impression because I could relate to the lonely lyrics and the atmospheric sound just moved me. I found “The Same Deep Water As You” to be especially quite surreal and the last untitled track perfectly summed up the sad mood I had at the time. That last song on the album also does perfectly cap off an exhaustingly moody, but ultimately great record. The discography of “The Cure” is quite impressive, but “Disintegration” is undoubtedly their masterpiece. Robert Smith was indeed able to achieve his dream of creating his greatest work before reaching 30. This is a truly original album that still stands the test of time.
