The Cure - Faith

Here I go with another review of something from the past updated in the present.  This time it's The Cure's album Faith.

As many of you may have already known, recently the Cure had played a series of shows called Reflection.  The basic premise was that they were playing back to back and in sequence, their first three albums.  Three Imaginary Boys, Seventeen Seconds & Faith.  Unlike their Trilogy concerts where there was a general mood being set by the choice of albums, the Reflection shows were basically a musical journey documenting their transformation from post-punk to goth (or whatever you consider the darker majestic side of this band).   It's the final album in the set that I want to concentrate on, because it's the first time the Cure emerges with the sound that they've become known for.  It's the album where the combination of big keyboards, tribal drum patterns, the melodic yet driving bass lines and the melodies being played on the bassVI all come into play to create a particular mood that the Cure would employ again and again (and again and again and again).

Like I said, it was seeing them play the album in it's entirety live at New York City's Bowery Ballroom on the final night of the tour and presumably the last time they do these Reflection shows, that it all came to me.  Possibly as a result of hearing the three different albums in sequence, I was able to see the metamorphisis of the group.  It wasn't as apparent to me before I think because of the production of Faith being what it is.  While I always felt Faith/Pornography/Disintegration seem more of a Trilogy than Pornography/Disintegration/Bloodflowers, hearing the Faith album live and loud and surrounded by both the atmosphere and the moodiness of songs such as The Holy Hour, All Cats Are Grey and the highlights of both the recorded album and the live show The Drowning Man & Faith really made apparent that this was to be the album that set the tone and informed all the albums to follow until Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me.

A big deal was made of these shows because Lol Tolhurst would join the band for the first time since his acrimonious departure around 88-89.  Although, his inclusion seemed like a gimmick.  He was relegated to playing extra keys and percussion on just the Faith portion of the show and since they were doing a reflection on their past, it would've been great to have him behind the drum kit again since that was what he played on those albums.  I'm sure he would've struggled but it would've been great to see.  Especially since their latest drummer Jason Cooper plays the songs more generically and with a lack of style that both Lol & Boris possessed.  He didn't murder the songs like he does with 'Push' from Head on the Door  but if they were going to make a big deal about Lol being on stage,  it would've been great to have him up there for more than the Faith set and doing more than adding percussion that was never in the original songs or playing minimal keyboards.