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The Cure is surely one of the best known bands to come out of the new wave movement - they were able to shift their gloomy, synthesized songs to more upbeat pop hits, but keeping the integrity of its music.
Frontman Robert Smith has been the one constant member of the band, which emerged on the British scene in Britain during the late 1970s with the album "Three Imaginary Boys." Then called The Easy Cure, the group won a talent competition with a German label and was rewarded with a recording contract. The first album was a disappointment to most critics and the band alike- Smith always said he wanted more substance from the album. They were clearly members of the punk rock revolution - the bands dark sound and gloomy lyrics were matched with Smiths pale complexion, wild hair and stage makeup.
The collective embraced a dark sound in the late early '80s, with a trio of albums, "Seventeen Seconds," "Boys Dont Cry" and "Faith." The albums included the singles "A Forrest" and "One Hundred Years." The groups signature sound became progressively miserable, and after "Faith" was released, and Smith was irked with the image that the band was intentionally being obscure - the truth was that standard rock and roll just didnt appeal to them. The melancholy sound, however, was enough to drive some members away from the band, and the lineup was altered.
Smith seemed open to changing images after "Faith", and he certainly did. Beginning with the 1982 single "Lets Go to Bed," it was clear that the band wanted to reach out to the mainstream, and that it did. The first single that put them on the map was "Just Like Heaven," released in 1987 on the platinum-certified album "Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me".
In 1989 the band returned to darker roots with "Disintegration," but the popular sound was clearly still there - the album featured "Lullaby," "Lovesong" and "Pictures of You." In 1992, "Wish" was released, and included the hit single "Friday Im in Love." After two lackluster albums following "Wish," the band released its most critically acclaimed album, "Bloodflowers," in 2000. The collection was nominated for a Grammy Award.
In 2004, The Cure released a four-disc box set from Geffen Records, "Join the Dots: B-Sides and Rarities, 1978-2001 (The Fiction Years)." That same year, the band was awarded the MTV Icon Award for 2004, where they were honored with a number of performances from up-and-coming bands.
The band that claims to not be placed in a category can certainly be ranked among the most successful of its era, which is probably the ultimate label. The group brought popularity to alternative rock before it was acceptable, and continues to push the envelope.
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