The wait is finally over as The Cure put an end to years of teasing and release their long-awaited new track, Alone. It's been nearly five years since the band first hinted at new music, and their strategy has paid off. The anticipation has been building for ages, and the first taste of the new material excites as expected.
Alone is the opening track on The Cure’s upcoming album, Songs of a Lost World, scheduled for release on November 1st, 2024. This will be the band's 14th studio album and their first in 16 years. While a few tracks were previewed during their recent Shows of a Lost World tour, Alone is the first official studio recording fans get to hear.
To state the facts: Songs of a Lost World was written and arranged by Robert Smith, produced and mixed by Smith and Paul Corkett, and performed by The Cure. The album was recorded at Rockfield Studios in Wales. Smith designed the sleeve concept, while long-time collaborator Andy Vella was responsible for the album's art and design. The cover features Bagatelle, a 1975 sculpture by Janez Pirnat.
Alone harkens back to the darker side of The Cure, showcasing the existential despair in Robert Smith's songwriting and performances that helped solidify the band's status as goth luminaries. The seven-minute track is a profound, emotional epic, with deep lyrics and heartfelt intensity throughout. Smith's vocals are as expressive as ever, while the band plays with sharp precision, creating a cohesive sound that amplifies the song's core darkness with every second.
Robert Smith comments on Alone: “It’s the track that unlocked the record; as soon as we had that piece of music recorded I knew it was the opening song, and I felt the whole album come into focus.
“I had been struggling to find the right opening line for the right opening song for a while, working with the simple idea of ‘being alone’, always in the back of my mind this nagging feeling that I already knew what the opening line should be… as soon as we finished recording I remembered the poem ‘Dregs’ by the English poet Ernest Dowson… and that was the moment when I knew the song—and the album—were real.”
Given the slow pace at which The Cure has released new music in recent years, Songs of a Lost World could very well be the valediction of their rich, dynamic career—one full of contrasts, intense moments, and well-deserved acclaim. The album is already shaping up to be a truly illustrious chapter in the band's celebrated legacy.
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The Cure
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