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16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
4:13 Dream.... the best dream I ever had, 22 Oct 2008
Well, I tried to stay away from the Internet until the album official release, but the curiosity got the better out of me... The only excuse is that I'm going to buy the CD anyway (all 4 singles & Hypnagogic States EP are already on my book shelf, thanks to Amazon.co.uk and German S&M) =)
What can I say? "4:13 Dream" gets better with every listen. Interesting, sometimes heart-wrenching lyrics, the music you can't get out of your head... Awesome guitar and bass parts, all kinds of sounds that make you wonder, experimental, unusual vocals (You can argue with Robert's choices on that matter as long as you want to - it wouldn't change the fact that he really thought over all the nuances...). What else can you wish for?
But I have to warn you - "4:13 Dream" is not as "accessible" as some people might think. It seems to be pretty upbeat - mostly, but the lyrics are not (with some exception, of course), Robert managed to wrap a serious, sad, honest words (he sounds like it all is heartfelt) into bright, feathery melody (The Reasons Why, The Hungry Ghost). This kind of album will not be the love at first sight - it makes you listen attentively and think hard, only then you will really HEAR it.
When I saw the track-list for the first time, I was worried it wouldn't work, making "4:13 dream" a compilation of the new material instead of a proper album. I was wrong. The track-list is just the way it should be, all the singles fitted perfectly. The record might not be smooth... still it is cohesive, not as monolithic as Bloodflowers, but very solid nevertheless. The shortest 52+ minutes of my life. And after the album ends, you want to play it again. Immediately.
I was surprised that some people who hated "the Cure 2004" liked this record, because it's like a balance between Wild Mood Swings complicated landscapes and rawness of the self-titled. The traces of Wish and HOTD are evident here, too. Still it sounds fresh.
Favourite tracks: UTS (of course! It's mind-blowing and ethereal...), The Reasons Why (Rome live version was softer but I got over it quickly enough - those who refused to listen to 4:13 Dream live before studio release were right - don't let the concert to ruin your experience, this piece is really brilliant), Sirensong (the most romantic 2 minutes 22 seconds on this record), The Hungry Ghost (I love the chorus and don't understand what the negative fuss is all about), Switch ("And I'm tired of being alone with myself/ And I'm tired of being with anyone else" - one of the best lyrics ever), This-Here-And-Now-With-You (The Rome show doesn't do any justice to this wonderful song, believe me!), Sleep When I'm Dead (clearer and dreamier than mix 13), Scream (Lost + Forever = masterpiece).
Or should I say "most favourite"? No filler for me here. Skip button goes to Hell...!
Classic? Experimental? One step forward? Back to roots? I don't know but I absolutely love it...
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Does What It Says On The Tin, 29 Oct 2008
I approached the new Cure album with a few worries. Why was it getting such negative press? What's wrong with it? Still, I bought it and I'm not dissapointed. This is exactly what it says it is on the cover. A Cure album!! What was everyone expecting after 30 years? A compilation of well thought out Chris De Burgh covers produced by Mark Ronson and Rick Rubin?
Please Cure fans, make up your own mind on this. Yes, you can hear some trademark Cure moments as you listen but by no means is this a rehash or repeat of old material. It's not the best album they've ever done but by no means is it the worst. Enjoy.
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24 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A classic Cure album, 15 Oct 2008
After 31 years, 10 lineups, and about 26 albums (including live and compilation releases), The Cure release their latest studio album. Originally planned as an expansive double, "4:13 Dream" is the first part of a whole : the first, and more upbeat, record. With 20 songs not used from the album sessions, the intention is to release a second album of more introspective material in the near future. In that respect then, "4:13 Dream" resembles a 'classic' Cure album of yore, made of upbeat pop songs alongside punctuations of light and shade.
There's songs here as positive as "Just Like Heaven" - singles "The Only One", "Freakshow", "Sleep When I'm Dead" and "The Perfect Boy" all roll along with that bittersweet brand of melancholy and optimisim that makes The Cure unique. And There's nothing as unstoppably bleak as "The Same Deep Water As You" or "The Funeral Party". On the other hand, some songs sound like Cure-by-numbers : the floating arpeggios of "This, Here And Now With You" sound like an out-take from the underappreciated early 90's "Wish", and "Underneath The Stars" is a large scope opener of the type that could have come from any Cure album of the past two decades. Not that this is in any way a bad thing, as it demonstrates the consistency of the band - utilising drama and tempo to evoke and invoke.
Shorn of the keyboard sweeps that gave the band a distinctive epic sound, the four piece Cure have replaced these with the more than able Porl Thompson whose guitar skills see him replicating effortlessly the huge vistas of the bands previous vision. Many were skeptical that The Cure could maintain their sound when reduced to a four piece, but this transition is barely noticed through judicious use of Porl's large sonic palette. His guitar work, which is distinctive, shows that his role in the band is integral and that he is an unsung power in the band and live he manages to replicate guitar, keyboard parts, and other instrumentation through a breathtaking selection of effects pedals. Around Porl's work, the rhythms of Simon Gallup and Jason Cooper whip up a sonic storm. Unlike previous Cure records (with rare exceptions such as "Fascination Street"), Gallup has stepped to the fore with his work, and the basslines sound like a lead instrument instead of the supporting cast : "It's Over" moves on a remorseless bassline that underpins the rest of the song to a fierce, locked groove as Smith intones the platitudes of finality and Porl creates a wave of guitar sound that drowns subtlety. As an album closer, it's as effective as 1992's "End" though twice as fast and half as long.
The bands lineup now contains, as it has for a long time, a longstanding but evolving lineage of inception. And make no mistake, The Cure are no revolving door of salaried jobbers, but a cohesive artistic entity with their own individual identities. Lead by Robert Smith (and with no current member with less than 13 years in the band, and a total of 86 years in The Cure between them, a shocking figure), this new lineup have created an album the equal of almost any previous Cure album ; neither a definitive artistic statement nor an obvious clunker (as "The Top" was).
In many way, "4:13" reminds me of the "Wish" album more than anything else the band have done - an eclectic selection of guitar-heavy pop with a distinctly individual edge that presents both light and shade. If you are a fan of The Cure, then "4:13 Dream" is a fine addition to the canon, a snapshot of the band as they are, a reflection of the bands fiercer, more vital end-days phase and a worthy listen. Not back from the dead, but back on a new and interesting journey.
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