There was something poetic about Robert Smith’s appearance last night on the Primavera’s Estrella Damm stage, the same one that succumbed on Thursday to the climatic gale, leaving musicians and fans stranded. The recorded sound of rain and thunder preceded the appearance of the veteran vocalist with painted lips and tangled hair, a Shakespearean neighbor of Caliban and Sycorax, freshly arrived from the island of The Tempest to appease the bad spirits of the previous day with the music of Songs of the lost worlds.
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The Cure had not been on stage for two years, as if the release of their first album in 16 years had left them exhausted, in need of rest. Smith had conceived one of his most celebrated albums, a return to the essences of Disintegration with long progressions, nebulous textures, stories about life, death, and loss. Songs that, like the opening Alone, also the start of the new work, or Endsong, with which they concluded the first part of the concert, fit perfectly into The Cure’s long concerts. Last night, they reserved two hours and 20 minutes to unfold their long career amidst the joy of ardent fans, eager for even more, and the despair of those who don’t connect with the band’s darker side but impatiently await the sound of Boys don’t cry or Friday I’m in love.
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Both songs played at the end after a Scottish shower of diffuse keyboards anchored by Simon Gallup’s bass, who, along with Jason Cooper on drums, Roger O’Donnell on keyboards, and Reeves Gabriels on guitar, accompanied Smith, with the absence of the late Perry Bamonte, who passed away last December after rejoining the band after a 15-year hiatus. His place was taken by a sixth member in charge of guitar and bass interchangeably, and noticeably younger than the rest of his bandmates, all over sixty.
With more than 40 years of career behind them, there is little in The Cure’s repertoire that can surprise the audience, happy to hear Pictures of you or the playful Lovesong right from the start. The band maintains a loyal and expanded following that made its appearance on the main stage starting with Ethel Cain’s performance, recognizable by the band’s t-shirts and an age similar to that of the musicians.
Few songs from Songs of the lost world were played, but in return they offered rarities like ‘2 late’ or ‘alt.end’
But over time, The Cure has added unexpected names like Olivia Rodrigo among its loyal followers, who last year invited Robert Smith to the main stage at Glastonbury to perform Just like heaven – also present this Friday – and has named one of her latest songs The cure. The dark and introverted music emanating from the post-punk pioneers finds its thread in much younger artists present yesterday in Barcelona, such as Ethel Cain, as well as in intermediate generations, like Slowdive.
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All these strata of music and their respective followers gathered to attend a performance that featured its own t-shirt, commemorating Robert Smith’s return to the road. At 67, he maintains his charisma intact, with his gray hair transforming him into a contemporary Bacchus, the god who doesn’t take himself too seriously and yet continues to reign supreme.
This Friday, they recovered unusual songs from their extensive repertoire, such as 2 late, the B-side of the single Lullaby, the rocker alt.end, from 2004, or Trust, from the album Wish. Smith could also be seen playing a wooden flute to the booming drums of Burn, and Simon Gallup, with his unmistakable image of a bad-boy comic book bassist, carrying the line of Fascination street.
In a joyful start, many attendees located at the back of Mordor took the opportunity to dance to the melodies of The walk or In between days, and in the absence of new album tracks, which were scarce last night, they let themselves be carried away by the dark yet tempting melody of A forest, faster than usual as a counterpoint to the interwoven From the edge of the deep green sea.
The band maintained the sextet format despite the absence of Perry Bamonte, who passed away in December
The encore kicked off with Lullaby, another classic from their early period, to cap off the party with the joy of Hot, hot, hot and the less common Wrong number and The lovecats. All that remained was to please both sides with Friday I’m in love, the fairground keyboards of Why can’t I be you, or the immortal Boys don’t cry to complete the two-and-a-half-hour performance in which The Cure demonstrated the excellent form of the entire lineup, undoubtedly the best way to forget the disasters of the day before, of which not even the puddles that still remained in the early afternoon were left. Nothing like a god with magical powers to appease the ill turns of fate.
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