Setlist: The Cure: Reflections at the Pantages Theatre, Nov. 22, 2011
Three Imaginary Boys: 10:15 Saturday Night / Accuracy / Grinding Halt / Another Day / Object / Subway Song / Foxy Lady (Jimi Hendrix cover) / Meathook / So What / Fire in Cairo / It’s Not You / Three Imaginary Boys / Untitled (aka The Weedy Burton)
Seventeen Seconds: A Reflection / Play for Today / Secrets / In Your House / Three / The Final Sound / A Forest / M / At Night / Seventeen Seconds
Faith: The Holy Hour / Primary / Other Voices / All Cats Are Grey / The Funeral Party / Doubt / The Drowning Man / Faith
First encore: World War / I’m Cold / Plastic Passion / Boys Don’t Cry / Killing an Arab / Jumping Someone Else’s Train > Another Journey by Train
Second encore: Descent / Splintered in the Head / Charlotte Sometimes / The Hanging Garden
Third encore: Let’s Go to Bed / The Walk / The Lovecats
While nothing will ever compare to my first time seeing the Cure in the 1989 at the Palace of Auburn Hills in Michigan and having seen them 20+ times since then, this past Tuesdays performance will forever be one that I will treasure as a long time fan. While I have to admit that I haven’t listened to these early records in a little while, it was very refreshing to pull them back out. As a result, I found myself having a new found appreciation for them then to see them played live really made me appreciate them even more.
The show at the Pantages Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard is normally where off-broadway shows are done so I wasn’t sure how the sound would turn out but I was actually very impressed. I literally felt like the Cure were playing in my garage with a raw sound (using Roland amps, Fender guitars) that was well adjusted for this intimate venue and with a decent light show and fog machines to match – but it was all about the music this night! My seat was in the first row of the mezzanine, which was perfect so I could look over the balcony and straight down into the band without having people stand in front of me. This allowed me to get lots of photos and videos; treasures for any long-time Cure fan.
The first set started with songs from Three Imaginary Boys starting with 10:15 Saturday night, a classic Cure song with just Robert, Jason and Simon. Robert said he wanted to do something different than the prior night, so he didn’t shave, which was quite funny; gotta love Roberts sense of humor. The songs from this set felt a little rushed for some reason but understandable when having to play an entire album. I really enjoy these songs because of the upbeat, post-punk feel that they contain which is obvious very reminiscent of the time period when they were written. On The Weedy Burton, Robert joked about how he hopes he’ll be able to not fuck this song up again. It’s a relatively basic blues progression and indeed, Robert pulled it off nicely. A highlight from this set was seeing Robert play harmonica on the subway song, even though it was only 3 or 4 notes. I don’t know why, but it was just a cool sound and feel.
The 2nd set was songs from Seventeen Seconds and are some of my favorites. Simon’s bass tone and style are just incredible on this record. Roger O’Donnell joined them on stage on keyboards. The energy of the crowd finally came alive around the time A forest was played. I’ve seen this song played in the past with extended versions for a good 1/2 hour. A-C-F-D are the 4 main chords of this song but the aura of this song always lures me in every time I hear it. At the end of the set, Robert say’s, “see you next year…or 5 minutes.”
The 3rd set found Lol Tolhurst joining in for some keys and percussion. I found it really great to see Lol up there, considering he was an original member of the Cure/Easy Cure. The faith record is definitely a mellower record than all of these but it was by far the best set. For me, the coolest part of the Cure is that they are musicians who have played together for so long that they are like a well oiled machine that runs smoothly. The Cure clearly have an intuitive sense of how melodies work together while leaving a ton of open space yet sound like a full orchestra of sounds and colorful notes at the right times within a song. Anyhow, this set had me really moved and delighted by what I was seeing in front of me; “other voices” was my favorite. And who can go wrong with “primary” with its pounding E-A-E-D bass line.
After the first 3 sets, I was super excited to see what oldies Robert and the boys would pull out. Highlight of the 1st encore was “killing an arab” and “jumping someone elses train”. The third set was a great way to end the night with a ton more energy and just seeing Robert having fun being silly and dancing in his goofy way with his old-lady body. It’s so great to see people still loving what they are doing after 30 years of doing it! After the show I picked up some limited edition posters and shirts and walked away with a feeling of being complete again. Something about the Cure has always lifted my spirits and this show made me feel like I was a kid again. Enjoy the videos and photos! Please leave comments and share!!
To see many photos and videos – go to www.facebook.com/koboldt
IMG_0016
IMG_0004
IMG_2691
IMG_2666
IMG_2654
IMG_2653
IMG_2652
IMG_2651
IMG_2642
IMG_2644
IMG_2643
IMG_2681
IMG_2645
IMG_2641
IMG_2675
IMG_2667
Robert Smith
