One of the things I’m grateful for growing up in 90’s is the opportunity to relate at least one of The Cure’s songs to my melancholy teenage years. It was like only them could understand your loneliness and looney-ness with their lyrics that encapsulated the frustrations of fervid teenage mind.
I believe that kind of feeling is also related to more than 3 million Cureheads in Indonesia, as you could see On August 1, 2007, wherever you turned your head all over Soekarno Hatta Airport you found your friends, your friends’ friends and anyone you may know with dress so fancy and face so happy.
We've been dying to see our so-called post-punk saviors in Singapore after more than 10 years of waits in despair.
The Cure is an English rock band formed in Crawley, West Sussex in 1976. The band has experienced several lineup changes, with front man, vocalist, guitarist and principal songwriter Robert Smith being the only constant member. They have been a hugely influential cult band and Smith is the father of gothic with his smudge lipstick and gravity-defying hair. Their unforgettable post-punk melodies and lyrics have plagued the world in euphoria. Since their first breakout, The Cure has released 12 studio albums, several compilations, various EPs and singles, remixes and rarities.
For this tour, Smith stripped their line-up down to a guitar-driven configuration, featuring long-time transient members Simon Gallup (bass), Porl Thompson (guitars) and Jason Cooper (drums). Keyboards were replaced by minimal sequencing and guitar arrangements, masterfully executed by Smith and Thompson.
The fact that they were having tours without new album was never a matter as promised by Smith:
“It's the first tour we're doing without a new record... We'll be playing songs from every album, covering every style we've done over the years... (The concert) will look and sound like nothing you've ever seen before, I guarantee you that!”
This was probably the best thing going to happen to Singapore in 2007. And it was.
Kallang Indoor Stadium was the tacit witness. Around 5 pm, Kallang MRT Station had packed with some people either listening to The Cure tunes or laughing in glee with The Cure attribute on their bodies. Around 6 pm, the Stadium’s park was so full, all the merchandises were almost sold out and lots of people dressed in black and t-shirts with famous album or Robert Smith’s bedraggled hair silhouette. All were standing juxtaposed with some locals in their white collar’s attire.
By 7.30 pm the gate was opened. People were rushing, but to my surprise, the freestanding area was quite spacious and people were still standing, talking and looked so normal, I mean, “aren’t we in The Cure’s gig? Where is the verve?” That moment, I just realized…Singapore was oh so strained for a “sombre” like The Cure. But well, there was always a silver lining over any dark clouds, and it was the freedom to get into the frontest line without any significant jostles. Yes, the frontline was packed with us, Indonesians.
The show started right on time in the bewitching light of blue and green light and Open was such an aptly opening. The band took the stadium stage in full regalia, black apparel, clumpy boots and shiny silver. Robert Smith, 48 years old, disturbingly gripping with his ragged hair, smearing lipstick, pale white face and dark eyes, he was totally a haunting scene. There were times he jumped like an enthusiastic teenager and times when he stood still, staring raptly at his admirers, then throw a shy and reserved smile that you would never forget.
The show was started by the monodies like I can’t take it anymore/ This it I’ve become/ This is it like I get/ When my life’s going numb.
The band then launched into a raw version of Fascination Street. This was followed by Strange Day, which trawled the depths of despair: Give me your eyes/ That I might see/ The blind man kissing my hands, before they broke the surface, shook off water to the flamenco pulse of The Blood, plunged the stadium deep into A Night Like This and rode the crest to The End of the World.
The whole performance was just perfect, despite the despairing local audiences [they hardly danced or moved their head at least, oh no…] It seemed like Cooper, Thompson and Gallup successfully carried through Smith’s promise. The guitar works and riffs from Smith and Thompson were unsurpassable with the steady rhythmic from Cooper and Gallop. The stark stage might look too simple, but the perfect light, sound system and off course the mesmeric performance were more than enough to overwhelm every audience.
More than 7000 people in Kallang Indoor Stadium will never forget Smith’s wavering vocals howled in that night.
The mind blowing One Hundred Years was another proof that their darkly years have never really gone out from the heart of every reserved souls whom tonight were released in joys singing Love Song, Just Like Heaven and off course, the prominent Friday I’m in Love [which in my opinion is also the favorite of Singapore MTV genres, they finally danced and sang!].
The gig ended the main set and started again with End and another traits of dominant, melodic bass lines, whiny, strangulated vocals and a lyric obsession with existential, almost literary despair like Where Every Wish Has Come True and Is Everything I do. After a short break, they returned for their first encore, Smith shed the guitar to Delirium and Faerie. To our surprise, Thompson performed an unexpected solo of Close to Me.
And finally the last encore, they played their post-punk debut: Three Imaginary Boys and climaxed it with Killing an Arab.
38 songs were never like an enough as Smith also felt loathed to leave his fans with their thundering ovations. He kept on smiling and thanking the audiences before he finally went out and left darkness on the stage.
3 hours 10 minutes, our feet were aching, sweat drenched our bodies but gleaming eyes and big smiles were everywhere. We'd been cured!
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