The CaterPOLLar -- ILM Artist Poll #23 -- The Cure -- voting thread

I'll probably give it a go too. I'll likely not make 40 as I'm not a natural fan, but I'm dipping in & out and making a note of what takes my fancy. So far I've got 7.

I don't know any Cure after the Staring at the Sea comp, but I might give this a go anyway.

― Neil Jung (WmC), Wednesday, July 25, 2012 7:52 PM (4 days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

That's kinda my boat, too. I don't love them enough to be able to spit out 40 songs without a good bit of catalogue digging. But I'm drawn to contributing a ballot for sure...

I hope people who like at least 20 songs will vote.

Yeah, that's my target.

I can easily make 40, but mine will be weighted toward the three basic things I know: the first album, the singles, and the Head on the Door/Kiss Me/Disintegration run. I've tried and failed to get into the murky mid-80s stuff that a lot of Cure true believers love. (I think I actually own a copy of Pornography, but I'm not sure I've ever listened all the way through.)

Also a relisten to the first album the other night reminded me that "Grinding Halt" has to go on the list.

have always loved this despite it sort of being cure by numbers

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jl7jR4BAJ5Y

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jl7jR4BAJ5Y

there we go

Does anyone else think the bassline to Fascination Street sounds an awful lot like the one from Close to Me? I never noticed this.

I find myself often wishing those earlier records had a more naturalistic drum sound.

"The Upstairs Room" is such a great song.

xps to nate

I'm definitely a fan of the top down method for a ballot that's less than full.

"if you don't even like 20 songs your vote *should* be worth a bit less." I don't know if Ismael was kidding here or not, but I think even people who aren't superfans should be afforded the same value as a voter as everyone else. I mean, I could probably submit a 40 track ballot for The Cure, but after a while I'd just be throwing songs at it that I kind of like and the order would be arbitrary. That doesn't mean that the upper portion of my ballot isn't thought out and ranked as I see fit.

So yeah, top down scoring is only fair. My #1 will be just as valuable as the #1 of someone who has 39 other songs behind it.

Thanks, that's the way I'll do it.

Here's when my newfound affection for The Top will come in handy.

I'm totally in the dark post-Disintegration... Could a real stan recommend 3-4 albums to investigate? I wish I had time to comb through everything.

Bumping this for anyone who might've missed it. I've only had 2 ballots in 6 days and I'm worried that this thread is getting buried.

The deadline is still more than a week away, right?

I just put together my shortlist yesterday.

I wasn't kidding fwiw - there are usually a couple of *very* short ballots and I think it's a bit unfair when those three or songs get a huge boost up the rundown at the expense of all the other songs that haven't been listened to at all. But obviously it doesn't really matter.

Deadline:[b] Friday August 8th

did you mean Friday, Aug. 10?

yah nate confirmed it was a typo.

my "shortlist" has 93 songs on it and I think I'm still missing a few

I'm totally in the dark post-Disintegration... Could a real stan recommend 3-4 albums to investigate? I wish I had time to comb through everything.

there's only five albums since then! DJP will stan for the last two but rly check out the album Wish and the singles The 13th and Wrong Number and then relax, almost every single Robert guest appearance on someone else's record post-90s is better than anything on a Cure record in this period

if you want to hear another whole album get the Trilogy DVD, they played Porno and Disint and Bloodflowers in full at some German stadium gigs for that

oh wait post-Disintegration you totally need the single Never Enough too

lol see I knew I was forgetting something

I definitely thought I'd struggle to come up with a full ballot but my first draft had 36 tracks so I spent some time listening to a couple of albums I wasn't familar with plus a few b-sides (this thread really came in handy) and made 40 no problem. Have to say my ballot is heavy on the gloomier stuff - Seventeen Seconds/Faith will always the absolute pinncale of this band for me.

Totally forgot about that POX B-sides thread, but it's good to see I've stayed consistent over the years (four of the five tracks I named are on my shortlist, the fifth was "Man Inside My Mouth" which I waffled on before finally leaving it off).

I got u covered on that one ;)

10:15 Saturday Night - it's actually this that The Libertines were ripping from all those years, right?

Thanks for the tips... It turns out I actually have Wish on CD but I have no recollection of either acquiring or listening to it... Although I know "High" and love it.

I think my favorite Cure mode is when they balance the mope and the pop lift; they do this pretty damn amazingly well, but when they veer too far in one direction or the other they lose me.

as a package deal, the "High" single ("High"/"This Twilight Garden"/"Play") may be my favorite single by them ("Close To Me"/"A Man Inside My Mouth"/"Stop Dead" is the main contender)

"This Twilight Garden" will def make at least my top fifteen.

there's some post Disintegration stuff thats still half decent, but other than Wish I never find myself wanting to often go back to listen to the other albums when i've got the choice between them and everything before

Voted. An even more dogmatically old school ballot than my Depeche Mode one :)

man

I have 40 songs on a ballot but it's not even close to final

there are 55 other songs I have to go through and make sure I want to discard, then I have to rank

I am on the verge of NOT voting for "The Funeral Party" or "Let's Go To Bed", which can't be right

I listened to the first part of Wish on my iPod today (nice surprise realizing I had the CD), and "Apart" is a REALLY good song. I also forget how good some of those last few tracks on Disintegration are since the thing's so damn long.

Side thought: are The Cure the Iron Maiden of gothy postpunk?

I am on the verge of NOT voting for "The Funeral Party" or "Let's Go To Bed", which can't be right

must admit i'm intrigued what 40 could top these!

it's not an organized top 40 I will admit

"Apart" is a frickin wonderful song, one of those numbers where the lyrical repetition really paints a picture (I find it interesting that he most often does that to signify bleakness, like "Prayers For Rain" and "The Loudest Sound")

Fist rough draft and I have to leave out "One Hundred Years", "Inbetween Days" and "Piggy In The Mirror", which seems ridiculous. This is going to be impossiPOLL.

Ballot sent! Sorry "Pictures Of You", "In Between Days", and "Play For Today", I'm sure plenty of people will vote for you!

I can't imagine a ballet without those three. Two of those will most likely make my top 5. lol.

One of those is in my top 3.

One of those is in my top 3.

i think i am more or less done. can i post my 41-50 or is that bad form?

I'm usually really picky when I make a shortlist for these polls because I don't want to end up with 80 something songs. So I try to pick only the best of the best and reject the song if I have any doubts. That leaves me with about 40 songs and I just have to rank them. That's what I did this time too.

Except then I started thinking about my rankings, listened to a bunch of Cure ... and have been adding more songs to the list. I rejected "Disintegration", "Siamese Twins", and "Faith" the first time around? What was I thinking?

Some of these early bonus tracks on the deluxe editions - the sound quality is terrible! I used to wonder why bands didn't clear the vaults as a matter of routine, I guess this is why.

guys, i am voting in this poll, and limiting it to stuff i bought on cassette (w/the exception of 3 Imaginary Boys which I bought on vinyl because it was an import)

Wish is still the only Cure album I don't have, at this point I'm just waiting for the remaster (soon I hope!). I'm a little over halfway through the discography and my shortlist is nearing 40 songs as it is.

What was it like being a Cure fan at the time? I'm not getting any sense of what the hinterland is. Like if you were into U2 it'd be about passion & adolescence, or whimsy & kitchen sinks for The Smiths ... but what was it with The Cure?

There's a bit of teenage existentialism, a bit of romance, iirc they liked the booze - but that's all I've got.

for me, gloomy dark sloppy scary romanticism

i don't have time to contribute to this poll/thread, but you all have my blessing. i know you will choose well.