Robert Smith has explained his drive and inspiration for writing what will be the first new album from The Cure in a decade.
Earlier this year, Smith revealed that The Cure would soon be recording new material and touring again next year – teasing that they could ‘maybe’ headline Glastonbury 2019. Now, the frontman has revealed that while he has “hardly written any words” since their last album ‘4:13 Dream’ in 2008, but was inspired by the discoveries he made in curating this year’s Meltdown Festival.
“I have tried to write songs about something other than how I felt but they’re dry, they’re intellectual, and that’s not me,” he told The Guardian.
Asked if he would be disappointed if the band were to never make another album, Smith replied: “I would now, yeah. Because I’ve committed myself to going into the studio and creating songs for the band, which I haven’t done for 10 years.
“Meltdown has inspired me to do something new because I’m listening to new bands. I’m enthused by their enthusiasm. So if it doesn’t work, I’ll be pretty upset, because it will mean that the songs aren’t good enough.”
Elsewhere, while saying that he “never really understood” his longstanding feud with Morrissey, Smith explained how Duran Duran came to stand for everything he despised about music in the ’80s.
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“It was generally Duran Duran, which is really sad because they loved us and they used to come to our shows,” he continued. “But they represented everything we hated: the whole glamorous 80s, consumer bullshit; this horrorshow that we were up against.”
Morrissey once referred to Smith as a “fat clown with make-up weeping over a guitar” in the NME. In turn, Smith famously said: “If Morrissey says not to eat meat, then I’ll eat meat. That’s how much I hate Morrissey.”
Meltdown this year features an array of band hand-picked by Smith, including Mogwai, Placebo, Manic Street Preachers, Nine Inch Nail, The Twilight Sad and many more. For tickets and more information on Meltdown, visit here.
Smith is also set to play a huge show with The Cure in Hyde Park this summer, marking 40 years since the release of their first single. They’ll be performing alongside Interpol, Editors and many more. Visit here for tickets and more information.
Renowned for their marathon, hit-packed, sprawling shows, this will mark the band’s first UK gig since their residency at London’s SSE Arena Wembley last winter.