The Cure deliver on album number thirteen, and indeed, it is every fan's dream! (4:13 Dream - The Cure)

Member Name: DanielKemp

Product:	4:13 Dream - The Cure
Date:	04/05/09 (131 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: The band's best singles since Wish in the early 90's, Robert's vocals still sound SO young

Disadvantages: A couple of the song's don't stand out, production is a little hit and miss

Expectations were high for this 2008 release by The Cure. Since their album Wish in 1992, Robert Smith has been threatening to break up the band as every subsequent release gets panned by the critics.

This album gets its name as this is the thirteenth studio album by The Cure and it sees the band back to a four piece. 4:13 Dream was originally intended to be a double album, although this idea was scrapped during the latter stages of finalising the track listing. Perhaps a wise decision considering it would draw comparisons with their classic 1987 double album, Kiss me, Kiss me, Kiss me. Robert Smith confirmed that during the 4:13 Dream sessions a total of 33 songs had been recorded, so a future release of these currently unavailable songs is not only likely, but entirely expected.

In my opinion the most vital factor of this album's success was Smith's decision to get guitarist Porl Thompson back on board in 2005. The result is that this is the band's most energetic recording since Wish. Not necessarily their best recording, as that'd be Bloodflowers, but it is certainly their most lively. Prior to the re-hiring of Thompson, keyboardist Roger O' Donnell and guitarist Perry Bamonte had been fired from the band. With regards to The Cure as a live band, the songs were given a fresh breath of life, as Porl stood in for the loss of a keyboard with his incendiary guitar work. Having said all this, keyboards are still present on 4:13 Dream, albeit played by Smith and then overdubbed at a later date.

Let me start with the singles, two of which are Cure classics. Each month leading up to the release of the album a single was released on the 13th, with the exception being the month of September. The Only One is the band's best pop moment since High from Wish. Your typical Cure arpeggio is swiftly followed by Smith's exceedingly youthful vocal performance, which induces a sense of disbelief that a man of almost 50 is singing in the same voice that he did on the band's debut 30 years earlier. Smith starts each verse with the line, "Oh I love what you do...", furthering the popular opinion that he never really grew up and would much rather play host to his Peter Pan persona.

Freakshow seems to be harking back to the Kiss me, Kiss me, Kiss me days and is a fine summation of that album's greatest moments. It's a psychedelic monster with some expertly crafted guitar work from Thompson, while Simon Gallup plays some of his funkiest bass since Hot Hot Hot!!!. Clocking in at 2 minutes 30 seconds it makes for the perfect single.

Sleep When I'm Dead had originally been written for the band's 1985 album, The Head on The Door, but hasn't made an appearance up until now. Why it decided to rear it's ugly head on what is to many people a comeback album, is beyond me. There isn't actually anything wrong with the way the song is designed, but the production is awful and really brings it down a notch or two. The instruments have been made to sound really compressed, which is most unfortunate. If the song had been given a little room to breath then we might have been looking at a more successful resurrection of this old demo. Similarly, The Perfect Boy is a poor choice of single and a meagre addition to the album. Again, the production is dull and somewhat lacking in attention grabbing sequences.

I have a real soft spot for The Real Snow White and find it an exceptional moment on the LP. The song starts out most ominous thanks to Gallup's pounding bass and Smith's sinister spoken intro, but during the bridge to the chorus the music suddenly turns all summery and becomes one of the loveliest pieces in the whole history of The Cure.

I recommend This. Here and Now. With You for the very same reasons I suggested that you should give The Real Snow White a listen. It's essentially built the same way, plays by the same rules and sounds just as enticing to the listener. It's true when people say that The Cure have been using the same template with their songs for years, but if it isn't broke don't fix it.

Surprisingly The Hungry Ghost and The Reasons Why hark back to the band's debut, Three Imaginary Boys. These songs are somewhat more guitar driven, with less importance given to the intricacies of the instrumental layers. Instead, your attention is drawn toward the lyrics. They are both fine additions to the album if a little unspectacular. This is the sound of The Cure on auto-pilot, but it still sounds good.

The Scream and It's Over make an enthusiastic end to the album. The band plays with real passion and zeal during this closing couplet of songs, particularly on the latter, where the band sounds as if it has the rhythm section of the entire Music Hall of Fame; Smith's slide guitar tearing the intro in half.

I challenge you to find a band which is 30 years into its recording career and can still create as many lyrical hooks and sound as fresh and spritely as Smith and Co do here. Whilst it is most apparent that the band is no longer able to surprise us the way it once did, it is only fair to conclude that the magic is still there.

8/10

Daniel Kemp

Read more of my reviews at www.danielkempreviews.co.uk

Summary: For an album 30 years into their career, they have no right to sound as good as they do here!