Roger's Requiem

Requiem by Roger O'Donnell & Adam Donen
April 2nd, 2012 at 8PM
St. Leonard's Church, Shoreditch, London
Tickets / Buy the limited edition signed poster
Listen to a preview of 'Prelude'

Cure at Bestival 2011 on Sky Arts 1

The Cure at Bestival 2011
Sat. March 3rd at 10pm & Sun. March 4th at 1:55am on Sky Arts 1 & Sky Arts 1 HD.
New. The Cure perform hit after hit at the Isle of Wight's 2011 Bestival in the Robin Hill Country Park, including Just Like Heaven and Boys Don't Cry. Also in HD. Length 2 hours. First broadcast. (Thanks Mark)

'Entreat Plus' US vinyl release on April 21st?

Well, we went through this at the same time last year, and nothing came of it, but Music Direct & Elusive Disc have a new US listing for a 180g 2LP release of 'Entreat Plus' on April 21st, 2012. Also, @recordstoreday confirms the release date but says it's "not a Record Store Day piece". I still wouldn't get your hopes too high until/unless there's some word of it on the official site.
(Thanks @jimbull and jimhb)

Update on the UltraCure changes

This is the answer Rob got from Schecter president Michael Ciravolo about the UltraCure changes: "Since I mainly deal with Robert on his guitars… I thought I could shed some clarity on your new UltraCure.
First,,, with the intro of the UltraCure-VI this year…. Robert wanted the neck to be ‘clear like his old fender-6’ … meaning natural gloss maple. A little difficult since the guitar was a set-neck… so we had the joint taped off and only clear coated… giving the ‘bolt-on’ appearance . He liked this … so in late 2011 we started to transition the standard UltraCure to this also, at his insistence. This seems to be the version you have received from Drum City. Early 2011 models and older had the back of the neck painted to match.
The CURE logo on the back has gone thru a few changes … again, Robert changes his mind a lot J …. In addition to the Disintegration style (on the original versions) … there was small runs with both ‘upper C and lower C’ logos from the band’s early logo. Finally, with the 20 years of WISH coming up … he decided on this logo (for now) …
Other than that, the guitar has remained unchanged …. Except for a run of 6 guitars with a MAPLE fingerboard, as for a fleeting moment, he contemplated this change." (Thanks Rob)

Cure music helps trapped Russian girl

Russian girl trapped for 9 years in her mother's apartment says The Cure “music in my player made my dark days a bit brighter”, wants a poster of the band. (Thanks Vera)

Update (2-28-12): "I know a lot of us Cure fans were hoping to do something like send a Cure care package to the girl. Well, I’ve finally gotten in touch with the journalist that wrote the article and she would love to do something so I’m not sure if it would be easier to just send a few small things, since it is going to Russia, or how we should do it. Anna, the journalist, said she has had a hard time locating a poster and I know we can certainly come up with that. My email address they could reach me at is sjd8826(at)yahoo(dot)com" (Thanks Summer)

Personally, I would hope that the right people read this, and could maybe arrange for her to attend the show in Russia this Summer, and maybe get to meet the band and get a poster/cd/etc signed in person?

Photo of Robert in London 1985

Photographer Richard Bellia posted this photo of Robert in London (Oct. 1985) on his Tumblr today.

Photos from Super Rock Festival 1995

"Blitz, A Portuguese music magazine, has put online today some photos of The Cure at Super Rock Festival (Lisbon) backstage in 1995.

Rita Carmo, the photographer, says that she spend some time photographing the band and after that she took some Robert Smith photos even if Robert, at first, was not happy with the idea. He stood in front of camera for 5 minutes without moving most of the time." (Thanks Hugo)

Robert to judge Unsigned Only

Robert to be a judge for the Unsigned Only music competition. Deadline for entries is March 5th. (Thanks Joe)

Cure Special at The Albany in London

"I will be guest djing this 'Cure special' night at The Albany in London on March 10th. It is by no means a Cure only night and I imagine I'll be playing more 'Birdmad Girl', 'Upstairs Room' kind of pop stuff, but...." (Thanks Colm)

UltraCure help?

Update: Photos added.

Can anyone help Rob with this? Thanks!
"Do you know the history and the different versions of the Ultracure Guitar? (Black, standard model version and not the new VI). I just received a new Ultracure, but the back of the neck is maple colored and not black (fret board is still rosewood) and the "Cure" logo has changed to "Wish" era from the "Disintegration" era. The transition of the back of the neck to the base is the same maple to black coloring transition as the new VI...
How many versions have there been? Is the model I received brand new (I could not find any photos of it online- I got it from Guitar Center before Christmas and they were backordered until now - and the back does not match the picture online)? I wonder if the new standard version also has the new reinforced neck as the VI does?"

30 Day Song Challenge: 'Burn'

Dan over at Audio Justice picked 'Burn' for Day 11 of his 30 Day Song Challenge.

Cure to play European Summer festivals!

Update (2-16): Now confirmed at the official site, The Cure plays Maxidrom in Russia on June 11th!

May 26th: Pinkpop in Netherlands (Tickets March 3rd 10am)
June 1st: Primavera Sound in Spain (Tickets)
June 11th: Maxidrom in Russia (Tickets Feb. 21st)
June 14th - 16th: Hultsfred Festival in Sweden (Tickets)
June 22nd - 24th: Southside Festival in Germany (Tickets)
June 23rd - 24th: Hurricane Festival in Germany (Tickets)
June 28th: Rock Werchter in Belgium (Tickets)
June 30th: Les Eurockeennes in France (Tickets)
July 5th - 8th: Roskilde Festival in Denmark (Tickets)
July 7th: Heineken Jammin' in Italy (Tickets)
July 9th: Rock in Roma in Italy (Tickets)
July 12th: Bilbao BBK Live in Spain (Tickets)
July 14th: Optimus Alive in Portugal (Tickets)
July 20th: Festival Vielles Charrues in France (Tickets)
Aug. 18th: Frequency Festival in Austria (Tickets)
Robert: "3 OR MAYBE 4 MORE TO CONFIRM..."

Should we make anything of that image Robert posted with the news? Any clues there? What is it, and what, if anything, does it mean?
Answer from @CHROMEDICK: "It's a map of Europe and the green spots are probably selected regions where they'll be performing. That's my guess. Also, there's one in the far upper right corner...Russia?!"

Cure on new McCartney tribute album

Update (Feb. 16th, 2012): According to Star Pulse, the album will be out this June, and they have more details about the artists participating. (Thanks TheCure-Collector)

Update (Feb. 11th, 2012): Still no word on a release date for this, but a new article about it at Ace Showbiz. (Thanks Aaron)

Original story (April 10th, 2011): The Sun reports that Paul McCartney's son, James, is working with The Cure on a McCartney/Wings track for Paul's new covers album. (Thanks Heron)
Update: NME, ContactMusic, and a bunch of other sites are also running the story.

Update: Back in 2009, James McCartney (English translation) said his new album was inspired by The Cure and others.
(Thanks David)

Design artwork for The Cure

Update (02-14): @Secret7s - "News from @talenthouse - all winners have now been notified. Once again thank you ALL for taking the time to submit a design! Do check your junk mail boxes. Some high security has been hiding the good news from some of you!"

Update (02-07): Secret 7" now has a website. Also, the 45 winners will be contacted over the next week. Good luck to everyone! You are being asked to keep it a secret if you're a winner, so please go along with the spirit of the competition and exhibit.

Update: Artwork submitted by Aaron, Kelly, Loren, Marsworld, Pipperoo, Daria, Chris, Erin, Yannick -G, Paul, Lucy, John, Lauren, Joanna, Natalie, Joshua, Sahar, Steph, Heron, Suzanne, Ryan, Vicky, Martin, Leslie, Tim, Marina, Katie, Patrick, Fernando, Darrell, Jordan, Michelle, Natalie, Sian, Chris, Marion, Hannah, Brad, Jerome, Docteur Zaius, Qiong, Oscar, Estefany, Eric, Tom, Veronica, Suzie, Maria, Jodi, Vicky, Jess, Filthypit, Julien, Sol, Bela, Peter, Ville, James, Edgar, Danielle, Lara, Morena, Mark, Hannah, Vicky, Julie, Guillaume, An, Zack, Lucia, Sarah, Alan, Mirva, Eleonora, Christine, Pierre, Justine, Brenda, Yatou, Fabien, Nicole, Matthew, Rob, Danielle, Melissa, Peter, Stephanie, Bryce.

View all artwork submitted here. (Thanks @CureyKelBel)

From Talenthouse: Secret 7" is an exciting project combining music and art in aid of Teenage Cancer Trust. Seven bands and recording artists are inviting creatives to design the artwork for a seven inch vinyl sleeve inspired by one of their songs. The project will culminate in 700 unique vinyl sleeves displayed in Idea Generation Gallery in London in the week leading up to Record Store Day 2012. On that day, each of the vinyls at the gallery will be available to purchase with all of the profits going to Teenage Cancer Trust.

In this challenge, The Cure have selected the track 'Friday I’m In Love’ and are inviting creatives to interpret the song, however they please, via an original piece of seven inch artwork. This is an incredible opportunity for aspiring artists and designers to collaborate with one of the world's most loved bands, to have their artwork seen by millions, be exhibited alongside established artists and in the process, raise valuable funds for Teenage Cancer Trust.

Submit by: January 19, 2012
Vote: January 20, 2012 - January 26, 2012
Winner(s) Announced: February 7, 2012
Follow @Secret7s on Twitter for more info.
(Thanks Aaron)

'Pictures of You' on 'The Vow' soundtrack

The soundtrack for 'The Vow' includes 'Pictures of You'. The song is also used for a scene in the film. (Thanks Andythecurefan)

Classic Cure on BBC 6 Music

On iplayer now (2:20:50 in): The Cure at NEC Birmingham 1987 - 'The Kiss', 'Faith', 'Fight'.

Feb. 20th at 4am on the Live Music Hour: The Cure BBC Session. (Thanks artwwweb and Perfect.Murder)

Robert on How The Brits Rocked America

Episode 1: 'How the West Was Won' aired Jan. 27th.
Episode 2: 'Stairway to Heaven' aired Feb. 3rd.
Episode 3: 'We're the Kids in America' (with Robert's interview) debuts Feb. 10th at 9pm, and repeats on Feb. 11th at 1am & Feb. 12th at 11:55pm, on BBC4.

Update: It's now on YouTube - Part 1 - 2 - 3 - 4

Photos from @john_malloy: Simon with debbie harry / playing boys don't cry at hurrahs / talking about first NYC gig at hurrahs / rs tonight on how the Brits rocked America.

Reports from @AaronLaw92: "Robert spoke about the popularity of the singles and then their comparison with Depeche Mode." / "Robert just spoke about Debbie Harry and then they showed a bit of a live video of BDC."

The Cure track on Big In America was Inbetween Days from Top of the Pops. (Thanks @honeyinmyveins)

Update (Feb. 10th): A preview from tonight's episode, Robert Smith talks about his hatred of Duran Duran (41:30 in). Stay tuned after this show for Big in America: British Hits in the USA at 10pm which will include The Cure. And after that, be sure to catch the classic Depeche Mode 101 documentary at 11pm. Great night of programs on BBC4! (Thanks Fatpie1664 & AndrewV127)

Update (Feb. 2nd): "An advert has just been on BBC4 and featured Robert - a combination of the love cats video and some recent Robert footage talking - mentions being seduced by America." (Thanks John)

How The Brits Rocked America: Go West is a three-part music documentary series celebrating the 50-year narrative of British music in America.

This series tells the story of the inter-continental exchange of musical ideas, of how the two nations have, and continue to, influence each other's unique sound. It features choice archive footage from The Beatles’ iconic arrival in the US, through Cream, The Who and Led Zeppelin live on the road, and to the Sex Pistols’ last US gig in San Francisco and Elvis Costello and the Attractions’ career-boosting appearance on Saturday Night Live.

It also includes first-hand testimonies from artists across the decades talking about their experiences, from the pilgrim fathers of British rock, including Sir Paul McCartney, Jimmy Page and Jack Bruce, to the latter-day contenders to their throne, the likes of John Lydon, Robert Smith, Simon Le Bon and Adam Ant, who recall how they coped with the challenge of cracking the behemoth that is the US. (Thanks David)

Roger plays Bogota, Colombia

Update from Roger (Feb. 10th): "The Quieter Trees concert in Bogota, Colombia that we were planning for this Spring has now been moved to the Autumn. I can't confirm a date yet as I am waiting to hear about other schedules... But it will happen!!"

From Roger - "I will be performing Quieter Trees in Bogota, Colombia during the last week of March, we are all very excited about his opportunity and more details to follow. It will be a very special evening with a performance of the electronic version of the suite and then the full chamber orchestra performance of QT with members of the Bogota Philharmonic!!!"

Help Roger

From Roger on Facebook & Twitter: "A week or so ago either here (on Facebook) or on Twitter somebody mentioned that I had sent them a sample disc for a Prophet 2000 of the string sound I used on Disintegration. I would really like to get a copy of that disc! Ive lost mine... It was by Dr Sounds a company from New York in the 80s.. Thanks!"

Robert article in Panorama magazine

The Feb. 8th issue of Italian magazine Panorama has an article about Robert Smith and the Sean Penn film 'This Must Be The Place'. (Thanks Federico)