NME posts Cure Covers

NME's Daily Download has an article about Cure Covers, along with videos and mp3s. (Thanks Darrell)

4:13 Dream is out in Japan

"At last, 4:13 Dream was released in Japan today. In Tower Records Shinjyuku in Tokyo, many CDs were displayed along the wall with a big luminous cover artwork above. The Japanese on the display says "Everlasting Adolescence Syndrome". The album was in the listening booth, too.

Tower Records' free magazine "bounce" November issue has a 4-page retrospective article on The Cure. It features the band's history, short comments on the present & former members, and a discography including soundtracks, covers by other bands, and albums & songs Robert and other members have been involved with. (Pix 3 & 4)

I also went to HMV Shinjyuku but they didn't have any displays. It seems Tower Records Japan is the only CD shop promoting 4:13 Dream on a large scale.

I found some album reviews of 4:13 Dream in Japanese music magazines: "snoozer" December issue has one review, and "rockin' on" December issue has two. All of them are very positive. The reviewer of "snoozer" says it could have been a masterpiece if it didn't lack coherence in the musical styles, but it's still brilliant." (Thanks Junko)

O2 pre-sale tickets available

More pre-sale tickets are available from Ticketmaster.
(Thanks Simon and Rob)

4:13 chart update

Spain - enters at #13 on the Spanish Top 100 Albums chart.

US - enters the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart at #16, with first week sales of 24,000.
In comparison, here's how previous albums fared:

'The Cure' debuted at #7 (90,705 copies)

'Greatest Hits' debuted at #58 (32,452 copies)

'Bloodflowers' debuted at #16 (70,953 copies)

'Galore' debuted at #32 (36,413 copies)

'WMS' debuted at #12 (74,000 copies)

'Wish' debuted at #2 (135,348 copies)

'Mixed Up' debuted at #14

'Disintegration' debuted at #45 (before slowly climbing to #12 and staying in the chart for 55 weeks!)

US - enters the Hits Daily Double Top 50 Albums chart at #20 with first week sales of 21,625. It was #4 on the Newbury Comics Top 10 chart.

Norway - enters at #17 on the official Top 40 Albums chart.

Big Gig tickets on sale now

Tickets on sale now from NME Tickets. The lineup so far is The Cure, Justice, Foals, Crystal Castles, and more to be announced. Tickets are £30.00 + £4 booking fee.

Update: Advance tickets are sold out at NME. Ticketmaster has pre-sale tickets available. Regular tickets go on sale Nov. 10th.

More 4:13 reviews

US - People (4/4), USA Today (2.5/4), Daily Beacon (3/5), The Flat Hat (mixed), Daily Sundial (3/5).
Canada - Journal Montreal (positive), Calgary Herald (3.5/5).
Italy - SaltinAria (7.3/10).
(Thanks Kate, fmjews, Kim, Kevin, and Berndt)

: )

"It's a perfect day for dreams come true
For thinking big and doing anything you want to do
Let's get happy!"

The Cure plays O2 Arena on Feb. 26th

NME confirms that The Cure are headlining The Big Gig at London's O2 Arena on Feb. 26th. (Thanks Kate)

The latest TMU screw-up

Robert gives it to TMU once again. Seriously, do they get anything right? But where is the booklet not available? US? UK? Everywhere? It was on iTunes US when I bought it on the 27th. So if this problem is with the US, TMU are flat out lying. It was there, then they removed it.

4:13 Dream in Brazil update

"4:13 Dream" is now listed for pre-order on at least two websites:

Livraria Cultura - R$27,90

Livraria Saraiva - R$29,90

Both indicate November 7, Friday, as the release date."

(Thanks Marcos)

Rome re-broadcast on MTV Italy

"The Rome show will be re-broadcast on Sunday 9 November at 9.00 pm (cet) on MTV Italy." (Thanks Andrea)

More 4:13 reviews

US - Treble (positive), Boston Globe (positive), NY Times (positive?), Cleveland Plain Dealer (B+), Blog Critics (positive), Arizona Republic (4/5), Aversion (3/5)
Australia - Independent Weekly (negative), Daily Telegraph (4/5)
Germany - In Your Face (8/10), CD Starts (7/10), Laut (3/5), Plattentests (7/10).
Fans - Winosaur, Scott V., Todd.
(Thanks Kate, thistle, Ryan, syrex, Scott, and Todd)

4:13 Charts News

Italy Top 100 - enters at #8.
UK Top 75 - enters at #33 (sales of 7,360).
The Netherlands Top 100 - enters at #38.
Ireland Top 100 - enters at #46.
Poland Top 50 - enters at #27.
Belgium / Wallonie - enters at #26.
Belgium / Flanders - enters at #45.
Australia Top 50 - enters at #30 (and enters at #31 in the Physical Albums Chart, which I assume is a component of the main chart).

(Thanks Pietro, David, Reminder, Fab G, Steven, boc)

Reminder: Cure Top 20 tonight

Full chart has been posted.

Why 4:13 isn't a double album

The Guardian has an article about the state of the double album these days, and has this very interesting bit about 4:13 Dream:

"I mean, you'd expect the Cure - a band with past double opus form, thanks to 1987's Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me - to be able to release a double album, right? Er, sadly not. Their new album 4:13 Dream is the "light" first half of a double collection, with the second "dark" half to be released separately in 2009.

Robert Smith recently told me the rather shocking factors behind the release strategy. Basically, Geffen were only prepared to pay them royalties equivalent to a single album, even if the album was priced as a double. In effect the label were penalising the band for wanting to give their fans more music for less. Smith insisted he didn't care about making any more money but the principle was paramount; he was furious at the idea of a major label conning him out of making the record he wanted. So he held back the second half of the album for six months and one day later, the earliest moment that his contract permitted. The concept would be intact, it would just be up to the fan to Sellotape the two "episodes" together."

And Idolator has an article reacting to the Guardian article.

(Thanks Fabrice and Kate)

Jigsaw has Robert and Porl!

That evil Jigsaw has put Robert and Porl into his evil traps! (Thanks vjesci)

More 4:13 reviews

UK - Indie London (4/5).
US - Boston Herald (B), Penn State Collegian (C), Pitchfork (6.7/10), Time Out NY (3/6), URB (4/5), Pop Matters (4/10).
Italy - Horror Magazine (3/5).
And check out Metacritic for an average of all scores.
(Thanks Beau, Swifty, Sofia and fmjews)

EMA Cure nomination video

MTV has put together a video package for each of the nominees for the Headliner award. Here's the video for The Cure.
(Thanks Aaron)

Official site update

Geffen has updated the official site with the story about the Godlike Genius award and the NME cover. (Thanks V)

Italian radio specials

"We are the editorial staff of www.ilcibicida.com. We want to inform that, on the occasion of the publication of "4:13 Dream", our webzine will dedicate to The Cure a double radio date in collaboration with Radio Zammù (Catania University's radio, Sicilia). Two transmissions: the first one on the air Friday 31st October (from Three Imaginary Boys to Kiss me Kiss me Kiss me). The second one: Friday 7th November (from Disintegration to today). So we invite you and all the users of Chain of Flowers to click on www.radiozammu.it (6:00 pm, Italian time) and listen to us." (Thanks Riccardo)