Japanese Whispers - The Cure

Japanese Whispers is a compilation album, consisting of a number of singles and their respective b-sides that The Cure released between 1982 and 1983. At this time The Cure had been reduced to a duo, Simon Gallup having left the band after the tour of their previous album, Pornography. Robert Smith's friendship had disintegrated with Gallup, a fist fight ensued and Smith decided to cut all ties with him. Thankfully this wasn't a long term decision, and by the time of 1985's The Head On the Door, he was back in the band, playing brooding bass lines once more. Another change to the line up was Smith's decision to have Lol Tolhurst exchange the drums for the ...  Read the complete review

'Japanese Whispers' was a practical way of collecting material from the three singles 'Let's Go to Bed,' 'The Walk' and 'The Lovecats' released by the Cure between 1982 and 1983, back when singles tended to be kept separate from full-length album releases. Not considered a 'proper' album by the band and others, it still stands strong against the competition, mainly failing due to its disappointing length of just under half an hour. As these are singles intended to reach a wider audience, Robert Smith's typical gloominess and introspection is largely absent here, replaced with overt catchiness that's perhaps more enjoyable, certainly in the case of the ...  Read the complete review