"Seventeen Seconds" was the second album released by the punk/goth band, The Cure. It was released in the April of 1980 although it did not probably make it into my vinyl record recollection until around five years later. Originally released on the Fiction record label this is the only Cure studio album to feature keyboard player Matthieu Hartley. In 2005 Fiction records teamed up with the band's current record label, Rhino and re-issued this album to mark its 25th anniversary. This re-issued version has been digitally remastered and not only contains the original ten tracks that featured on this album, it also comes with a second CD disc that ...  Read the complete review

In 1980 Robert Smith ensured that for the band's second release he would have complete creative control over the direction of their music. There have been two changes to the line-up of the band since Three Imaginary Boys. Firstly, Simon Gallup has replaced Michael Dempsey on bass. Secondly, Smith has employed Matthieu Hartley to play keyboards. It's fair to say that Matthieu's synth work adds a new dimension to The Cure, giving the band's music further depth. It's a far cry away from the New Wave/Punk sound that the band had fostered on their debut. So, without a further a do, let's crack on with the songs. I'm going to mention the ...  Read the complete review

'Seventeen Seconds' is a great step beyond its predecessor 'Three Imaginary Boys' released only a year earlier, introducing the Cure's atmospheric gothic sound and arguably making for their defining record, or at least the one that contains their definitive song. With its hypnotic guitar jangle, cold electronic drum beat and foreboding narrative, 'A Forest' is the pinnacle of eighties gothic rock, and still a staple of the band's live set that usually sees the song's length stretched out beyond all proportion. The main failing of this album is that every other song tends to sound like an inferior version of exactly the same thing, opting for a consistent tone ...  Read the complete review

Often overlooked in cult terms by its successors Faith and Pornography, Seventeen Seconds marks the point where the Cure went from being also rans to being in a league of their own. First album Three Imaginary Boys was a promising debut, the singles Killing an Arab and Boys Don't Cry making a good fist of combining classic pop writing within a post punk structure. Seventeen Seconds however is a bleak masterpiece, the band ditching anything remotely commercial in search of a darker soundscape. Singles A Forest and Play for Today are not obvious hits; they bite rather than seduce, and the hooks aren't immediately apparent. Opener A Reflection is a ...  Read the complete review