The Cure: The Show of a Lost World by Nick Wickham (2025)
When they released Songs of a Lost World last year, The Cure marked the occasion by playing a three-hour-long set at London’s Troxy theater and streaming it on YouTube. I watched the concert when it was on their YouTube channel for a short time afterwards, and it was an even bigger treat to see it in a theater this week. Over the course of three hours, Robert Smith et al. actually deliver four mini-concerts. The first is Songs of a Lost World performed in its entirety (and I daresay I much prefer the live versions to the album) followed a collection of Cure classics (e.g., “Pictures of You,” “Fascination Street,” “Just Like Heaven”). Then comes a selection of songs from Seventeen Seconds, which turned 45 this year, and then another collection of Cure classics that includes “Friday I’m in Love” (which Smith hilariously flubs) and “Boys Don’t Cry.” It’s all excellent, must-see material for Cure fans, and ample proof that The Cure truly excel as a live band. Sure, Robert Smith gets a bit winded at times and he can’t quite hit some of those higher notes, but he still sounds great for a goth icon in his 60s, and the rest of the band create one evocative soundscape after another. As was the case when I saw them live in 2023, I was particularly struck by Reeves Gabrels’ fiery playing, which adds a muscular intensity to The Cure’s iconic gloom.
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