I know I'll get panned for this majorly, but does anyone else feel like this is one of their worst albums? I've listened to some songs off this album on Pandora radio, and I have to say that I found them lame by Cure standards.
I understand they were trying to distance themselves from the moody gothic feel of their previous work, but COME ON! The songs are just too...silly, and too happy for me to consider them *TRUE* Cure songs. They lost all that made them "The Cure" (except the band members)
Oh boy, I feel horrible for what I've said, but it's my honest opinion on the album. :(
I admit it's not their greatest work, but, imo, it's not the worst.
I think a lot of people (including myself) hated Wild Mood Swings when it came out. But as I've probably said too many times already, I've come to like/accept it, for the most part.
It's probably the worst production technical-wise, and it still sounds funny to my ears â€" but I've grown to like the music itself.
I adore Wild Mood Swings. Bare is one of my favourite all-time Cure tracks, which, as everyone here knows, is saying something.
(I really want to see Bare played live again; I just don't know how they'll get around not having a pianist.)
Quote from: lostflower4 on July 27, 2007, 01:49:01
I think a lot of people (including myself) hated Wild Mood Swings when it came out. But as I've probably said too many times already, I've come to like/accept it, for the most part.
It's probably the worst production technical-wise, and it still sounds funny to my ears â€" but I've grown to like the music itself.
it also took some time before i could begin to accept it a bit more
parts of it i like, but im still not really fussed on it
especially 'club america'... for whatever reason that song does
not agree with me.
WMS: i disliked it at first, then grew to like moer than i ever imagined i would (probably because i just tried listening to it anyway), and then grow totally tired with it. that's the state i'm still.
i never listen to that album these days although i do enjoy some of the songs in live versions, though.
Quote from: themurderchair on July 27, 2007, 12:03:04
especially 'club america'... for whatever reason that song does not agree with me.
i've had the same problem. i've always especially disliked this track, both studio version and all live versions.
i think the reason is because it's maybe the most extreme example (the only one too?) among the cure songs where robert pretends to be someone else than himself - and somehow i don't buy it. in my world, he's supposed to be himself..! and somehow this pretence is also extended outside the lyrics and the way he sings it, into the music itself.
so as a result, for me it's almost like it wasn't a cure song at all... it's something distorted, somehow.
To me, I love it when Robert goes all out and expresses his feelings, acts rebellious, whatever. But WILD MOOD SWINGS sounds like he's trying to change the band's image...and I never wanted a change. I miss my Pornography-era CURE!
On the "GREATEST HITS" CD I always skip the last few songs on the disk, although I can actually tolerate "Wrong Number" because of its edgy rock sound.
This is one of my favorite albums and i've liked it from the beginning. People complains its such a happy album. I would consider only 6 of the 14 songs as happy.
and i don't understand how it can be labelled as the "worst production technical-wise". I think the instrumentation and vocals were mixed much better than some of their older albums. As a result though, most of the live versions such the 13th sound horrible in comparison
Quote from: japanesebaby on July 27, 2007, 12:42:46
Quote from: themurderchair on July 27, 2007, 12:03:04
especially 'club america'... for whatever reason that song does not agree with me.
i've had the same problem. i've always especially disliked this track, both studio version and all live versions.
i think the reason is because it's maybe the most extreme example (the only one too?) among the cure songs where robert pretends to be someone else than himself - and somehow i don't buy it. in my world, he's supposed to be himself..! and somehow this pretence is also extended outside the lyrics and the way he sings it, into the music itself.
so as a result, for me it's almost like it wasn't a cure song at all... it's something distorted, somehow.
agreed.
doesnt feel like him at all
lyrically, 'tigger happy intercourse' etc, and vocally... he puts on this low almost sleezy sounding slur... yeah, doesnt do it for me
The Cure replaced WMS as my least favourite album. WMS at least has 4 or 5 songs I like on the album. I find the pop songs the least convincing, and somewhat silly.
I very much agree with bloodflower & carycameron's sentiments on the LP--I liked WMS just as much as any of the previous LPs and still like it today! Actually, I'd say it was the last full LP where Robt wasn't trying to please anyone except himself.
Vocals on Club America--same as on Harold & Joe--no one likes this song much either? No one has mentioned Jupiter Crash, lyrically and musically this is a fantastic song.
Quote from: Nicholas on July 28, 2007, 18:47:55
No one has mentioned Jupiter Crash, lyrically and musically this is a fantastic song.
actually i agree with you on this one
i do quite like jupiter crash
of course the album isnt without its high points
Well I guess I feel bad now :cry:...I had no idea so many of you liked it! :-D
I think CLUB AMERICA is an okay song, because I know the story behind it and why Robert was singing like that...he was imitating the "popular american sound" of the time because he heard this American rock music and said it was awful; this is his interpretation of it!
I LOVE IT
I BECAME A CURE FAN BECAUSE OF IT
SO...
:rocker
That song....The 13th...is that from this album? Because I do not like that song at all. The only redeeming quality about it is Smith's vocals. Which I am always happy to hear.
Quote from: Nicholas on July 28, 2007, 18:47:55
Vocals on Club America--same as on Harold & Joe--no one likes this song much either?
i've realized that there must be a weak link in my theory of why i don't like 'club america': because whereas i do dislike 'club america' for the abovementioned reason (= it's too full of pretence) but i've always hugely enjoyed 'harold and joe' though...
so there must be something else too... :smth017
i don't think many fans would say this, but the 13th is one of my favorites. Its a fun song and with lyrics like "if you want i can take you for another kind of ride" its probably the most perverted song they've done.
The 13th is very good, I think, in a novel sort of way. It's not in regular rotation on my playlists, but it's a very nice song and a very fun one. I honestly don't understand the WMS hate.
They're never going to be a Gothic band again, folks. Don't hate everything they throw at you because it's not Gothic.
I don't consder this album, to be their worst or their best. But, there are some good songs on it. Bare, Treasure ,Want and This Is A Lie.
This has one of my favorite songs on it, Mint Car. Simon always writes my favorite songs. XD
I also like Th 13th, Strange Attraction, Jupiter Crash, Treasure, and This Is A Lie
Its not my favorite, but it's not my least faborite.
Yeh I agree with Lorsquidy13 :smth023 on this one, Re: WMS~
but I love songs Robert writes aswell
Well, okay. I had a listen and came up with the conclusion that "Want" just might be the only song I tolerate from that album, because it has that kind of dark feel like Pornography and Disentigration.
I think "Wild Mood Swings" is the first Cure album where they sound like they totally "lost it"...
I mean, "Wish" was a deception because for the first time they weren´t able to come with something new and also because some of the songs were rather weak by Cure standards (by Cure 80's standards, at least), but at the same time about 50% of its songs were good-to-great and when you listen to its singles B-sides you get the impression that they could easily have come with a winner album. The problem, it seems, is that they were trying hard not to make "Disintegration Part 2", but too many of the songs that they wrote for "Wish" DID sound like Desintegration out-takes... So they relegated some of those songs to the B-sides and tried to "disguise" others ("Wendy Time" got the funky treatment and "Away" became "Cut" and in the process changed from moody soft midtempo to raucous fast aggressive rock).
But with "Wild Mood Swings" not only the slight attempts at change seemed too shy and pointless but also the songwriting quality in general took a real dive... Even if you take the B-sides into consideration, the best you could probably do with those sessions would be a good 5-to-6-song moody mini-album, which would compile the best slow moody songs with strings (if my memory serves me well, I think Robert's initial plan was to record a whole album in this style, inspired by Nick Drake's albums, but then eventually he changed his mind). In this case, however, for consistency's sake "The 13th" (a good pop song, IMO) would have to jump out and be released as a separate single, and though it hurts to say this, "Want" would probably have to be ditched altogether, since its epicness would have been out of place in such a mini-album...
on this album is many great songs, but song which is favourite for me is definite Numb, has fantastic lyrics and music ;) and Jupiter Crash yet...
A review (as the album was released 20 years ago in May!):
http://diffuser.fm/cure-wild-mood-swings-album-released/
Quote
Things didn't go well from the start. When the Cure began recording Wild Mood Swings in 1995, longtime members Porl Thompson and Boris Williams were both gone, and Smith's occasional right-hand-man, bassist Simon Gallup, took a break to deal with health issues. By the time the band emerged with the 14 new songs that make up Wild Mood Swings, almost everyone involved with the record was wondering if the four-year break was long enough.
Read More: 20 Years Ago: The Cure Get Weird With 'Wild Mood Swings' | http://diffuser.fm/cure-wild-mood-swings-album-released/?trackback=tsmclip
I was so high on the cure during that time, that I initially loved it. Disintegration and wish are still my all time favorite albums, period. But, there were too many curveballs on it. It didn't stick with me. Head on the door, kiss me, disintegration, wish...to me it just kept getting better and better, and it took me years to realize that WMS was a disappointment. Especially cuz I loved the title. It was like the cure finally naming their syndrome. Ha. But, want, treasure, Jupiter crash, this is a lie, bare...those songs are incredible. Want was incredible. Like the cure's version of nin's Mr. Self destruct. Delving deeper than us cowards ever wanted to go! Loved it. But, what I didn't notice was all the bland songs. And songs like the 13th that were almost amazing, but then ruined by a mismatched chorus. Disintegration had no bland songs. Wish had only Wendy time. WMS had a lot. Disappointed nowadays, but honestly, very few of my other favorite bands have ever made an album that good. Just goes to show how high the bar is for a cure production.
Quote from: Felizcelestial on June 05, 2016, 09:46:38
I was so high on the cure during that time, that I initially loved it.
... it took me years to realize that WMS was a disappointment. Especially cuz I loved the title. It was like the cure finally naming their syndrome. Ha. But, want, treasure, Jupiter crash, this is a lie, bare...those songs are incredible.
Yeah, I have similar feelings/thoughts on it. After "Wish" I'd been waiting four long years (at least we got "Burn", "Purple Haze" and live stuff in between), so yes I did love it when it was released.
Looking back now, of course, one can see/hear the flaws. So many different people mixing it. Some of the b-sides of that period were better than some album tracks. I think they could've compiled a great album out of the recorded songs. But then again, taking more time to choose songs and do the final mix was not an option after the time which had passed...(As a fan waiting, I might've been shocked if it had taken even longer...) :roll:
The songs you mention are still among my favourites of The Cure, so it's not a bad album after all (in my humble opinion).
When it came out I listened to it quite a lot.
I also bought the singles, but it hadn't the same
impact on me like Wish or Paris. It contains a number
of first-class songs, however. If the band plays Trap or
even Club America in Cologne or Frankfurt, I'll completely
freak out. :lol:
Yeah, it came out when I was 20. In college. One of the better years of my life all-around, and these songs were tied to it. I'm sure whatever they play from WMS in concert, when they come here, will bring back great memories. 'Treasure' is the one I'm really hoping for. I had the concert shirt with the lyrics on the back. It was my fave concert shirt. Also liked my DM world violation shirt. Ha. Black with a red rose. Saw them with nitzer ebb. Am I allowed to say 'epic' nowadays? ha.
I'm not a big fan of this album. It's pretty uneven, but it has definite highlights. "Jupiter Crash" is great of course.
It's just weird that all the Wish b-sides and "Burn" are so good, but they sorta lost some of that magic here. I also don't love the production. It sounds fairly thin compared to the rich sound of Wish and Disintegration.
"Wild Mood Swings" turns 25 next year! Thus, it is listed here:
https://ultimateclassicrock.com/1996-rock-albums/
QuoteWe've rounded up the hits, the misses, the glorious comebacks and even a few projects you've probably forgotten for our list of notable rock releases turning 25 years old in 2021.
The Cure, 'Wild Mood Swings'
'Wild Mood Swings' arrived after a four year break for the Cure and is largely remembered for all the wrong reasons. The two releases which immediately preceded it - 1989's 'Disintegration' and 1992's 'Wish' - helped cement the band as one of the most influential, and commercially successful, groups of its era. Expectations for 'Wild Mood Swings' were high, but the LP proved disappointing. Maybe it was the absence of Porl Thompson and Boris Williams - two classic era contributors who departed prior to the recording of 'Wild Mood Swings.' Or perhaps it was the health issues faced by bassist Simon Gallup, who had to take a break from the band while recovering. Whatever the reason, the Cure appeared rudderless and unengaged on the LP, with only a few bright spots - such as "Mint Car" and "Strange Attraction" - providing any moments of energy.
Note: I don't really agree with this review, there are many more good songs than those mentioned.
I don't agree with that review at all,
@Ulrich. I don't agree that the album appears "rudderless and unengaged" - sometimes reviewers seem to lack the capacity to engage meaningfully with a lot of the material presented to them - especially if they don't appreciate things they can't wiggle to. :P
Seems to me they were going for a mixture of vastly different styles, like with KMKMKM. It worked there. I have to admit I prefer KMKMKM (because there are less songs on it which grate on me musically or philosophically, and more that really work for me), but
Jupiter Crash is one of my all-time favourite Cure songs (really well-written lyrics, plus a soundscape which plucks you out of wherever you are, and drops you straight into a night-time seashore that you can see, hear, smell, touch and taste :smth023), and there's plenty more strong songs on it (
Treasure and
Want I particularly like), and contemplative stuff towards the end of the album (which also has its uses).
Also - not every album has to be a "theme" album - it's fine to have "mixed anthologies" etc. Sadly, there's this tendency towards homogenisation nowadays - just look into supermarkets, or paddocks - when diversity is a wonderful thing.
I've got some lawn to mow (spring flush still going here), and today I might put on WMS instead of my traditional lawnmowing album,
Paris. ;)
Quote from: Ulrich on December 13, 2020, 10:40:52Whatever the reason, the Cure appeared rudderless and unengaged on the LP, with only a few bright spots - such as "Mint Car" and "Strange Attraction" - providing any moments of energy.
LOL. They don't even mention the highlight of that album which is, by far,
Want
Quote from: SueC on December 14, 2020, 07:38:06Seems to me they were going for a mixture of vastly different styles
Also - not every album has to be a "theme" album
Well, I always thought this one had a "theme": Wild mood swings! (And yes, there
are mood swings on it.) ;)
Quote from: dsanchez on December 14, 2020, 12:16:19LOL. They don't even mention the highlight of that album which is, by far, Want
Yes, "Want" is great and the band kept playing it live often.
But I also like "Jupiter Crash", "Bare", "Trap", "This is a lie" and many more!!
I always felt the addition of real strings (instead of keyboards "imitating" them) gave some songs a "depth" which otherwise would not be there.
However, there's a few points they are right to criticize. The band seemed "unfocussed" a bit and it sounds like a collection of singles rather than a coherent album.
Which points to the fact that there were different drummers (probably recorded before Jason Cooper was "established"): Louis Pavlou, Mark Price, Ronald Austin.
Plus there was bit of a rush when it came to mixing it. (The band went to South America for shows before it was released.)
Lots of names mentioned who were involved in the mixing...
QuoteSteve Lyon – production, engineering, mixing
Paul Corkett – mixing
Spike Drake – mixing
Paul Q. Kolderie – mixing
Tom Lord-Alge – mixing
Alan Moulder – mixing
Tim Palmer – mixing
Mark Saunders – mixing
Adrian Maxwell Sherwood – mixing
Sean Slade – mixing
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wild_Mood_Swings#Personnel
@Ulrich, you are turning into an encyclopaedia! :cool
And yes, haha, if wild mood swings is a theme... then this is a theme album... 🤪 (Alternative titles anyone?
Me & My Multiple Personalities? Brett suggested
Bubble & Squeak - for those who aren't living in English-speaking countries, that's a hotchpotch fry-up with whatever you find in the fridge when you're hungry...)
I'm not saying the album is above critical discussion (nothing is, not even the speed of light), just that someone who likes only a couple of songs off it (and songs to wiggle to, at that) probably hasn't got that much to contribute to that discussion.
For my part, I don't like
This Is A Lie lyrically and I reckon Mary should have put her spouse in the doghouse for it. You don't make remarks like that
after you've married someone of your own free will, and they're still nice to you. :P Also, the main arguments of that song aren't logical. I've written about that at length elsewhere (http://curefans.com/index.php?topic=9201.msg771200#msg771200) and included in that a refresher course on Buridan's Ass. :angel
My lawnmowing session with
WMS this afternoon was interesting.
Paris is much more suited for that task - it's more even. I forgot that there are two enormous dummy-spits on that album! :lol: And I got reminded of how much I really don't like
The 13th - it's not improving on acquaintance for me. I find it pretty unrelatable personally, and the music sounds off to me.
Numb is a pretty good one, and very applicable. (I'm going to have to look at this album eventually on the Exploring thread but it was in our house before I joined CF and I'm currently prioritising "new" stuff as it comes into our mailbox.) But yeah, my three favourites off this are definitely
Jupiter Crash,
Treasure and
Want.
Quote from: SueC on December 14, 2020, 15:53:25you are turning into an encyclopaedia!
Yeah, well, I remember some stuff I read back then (or later) and what I don't remember I try and look up on the net...
Quote from: SueC on December 14, 2020, 15:53:25For my part, I don't like This Is A Lie lyrically and I reckon Mary should have put her spouse in the doghouse for it.
As far as I recall, Robert said she knows him long and well enough to forgive him
one stupid song. ;)
I like the music of the song (beautiful strings) first and foremost. The lyrics ain't all that bad, at least it gives some fodder for discussion (which is a good thing)!
"How each of us believes
I've never really known
In heaven unseen and hell unknown
How each of us dreams to understand anything at all
However unsure
However unwise
Day after day play out our lives
However confused
Pretending to know to the end"
(Which reminds me of some religious people, who think they're "in the know" about anything and everything...)
Quote from: SueC on December 14, 2020, 15:53:25Numb is a pretty good one, and very applicable.
Apparently it's about Kurt Cobain and other suicides...
Still, it never really "clicked" with me. It's not a bad song, but somehow something seems to be missing (for me).
Quote from: SueC on December 14, 2020, 15:53:25I reckon Mary should have put her spouse in the doghouse for it.
Especially if you take into account this bit: (http://www.musicfanclubs.org/cure/press/I49.html)
It's the first thing I've written that Mary came and asked what I meant by it. She's always given me a huge amount of leeway, creatively speaking. . but because it was so anti-monogamy, she came up and said: 'Is this what you really think?' It was much worse before. The original Iyric to 'This Is A Lie' actually had as its final line: 'Travel a long road in chains ."
Charming.
"Exactly," he laughs. "That was her word, charming (...)"
Thank you,
@Matti! :) (How are you doing? Love the new avatar, BTW!) I'd seen the excerpt you quoted before, but not that interview, and it's a great read and adds more context, and more nuance actually, so I'm happy to have the link. :cool
It was this snippet I found at the time that I particularly felt was very much open to debate:
Quote from: undefinedIn "This Is a Lie", one of the most sombre songs on "Wild Mood Swings", you describe life as a lie. You sing that every love relationship is a lie, since by choosing one person, you deny everyone else in the world, without being able to know if you have made the right choice or not. That you only pretend, all the way until the end. Is this something that you feel very strongly or is this only a thought?
It is something that I feel strongly since I don't think it can be any other way. It is like that. No one can be sure. But you can't walk around thinking about it either, you would become insane...
...and that's why I went on to debate it on the other thread. But as
@Ulrich says, it's a good thing when texts get a bit of debate going, and as
@word_on_a_wing often says, sometimes people deliberately write something they want you to argue with.
Quote from: Ulrich on December 14, 2020, 18:34:49"How each of us believes
I've never really known
In heaven unseen and hell unknown
How each of us dreams to understand anything at all
However unsure
However unwise
Day after day play out our lives
However confused
Pretending to know to the end"
(Which reminds me of some religious people, who think they're "in the know" about anything and everything...)
Yeah, I know people like that. :1f635: And sadly, you don't have to be religious to be like this (and some people who are religious actually aren't, either - as you've already implied there, but it does surprise some individuals, mostly the ones who don't have much to do with religious people of various ilks). I've seen people adopt certain subsets of philosophy as some people adopt a religion - just stick their mind into it like a jelly into a mould, unwilling after that to explore any alternatives to that particular subset so that there is no real difference anymore, unwilling to see the shades of grey and the truths of alternative positions, or to keep questioning everything, including their own world view, and the world views of people they love. People can turn lots of things into a religion - including their soccer affiliations and political views - and often to the point of violence.
Even atheism can be turned into a religion, and Dawkins is pretty good at that, and I say that as a biologist and science educator who's got no quibbles with Darwin and who is as annoyed as Dawkins about the way teaching evolutionary biology is attacked and stymied particularly in the US, essentially by a flat earth society that's ignorant and wants to remain so in order to be able to carry on with their entrenched young-earth-God-with-a-magic-wand world view regardless of the evidence against it. But it's unhelpful when Dawkins becomes nearly as extreme as the people he's criticising, and starts to make personal attacks, and to tar everyone with the same brush, and to get nearly as black-and-white as the people he's debating. I think Alain de Botton (also an atheist, and wrote
Religion for Atheists and lots of other interesting stuff that's not trench warfare) has a far more balanced take on religion, and is in a far better position to discuss that area productively with people because of that.
And I think
Step Into The Light is an excellent song about this particular subject; and I'm very much looking forward to the next album! :)
PS:
(https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fc8.alamy.com%2Fcomp%2FD1804F%2Fman-in-the-doghouse-D1804F.jpg&f=1&nofb=1)
:winking_tongue
Quote from: Matti on December 14, 2020, 20:06:59...actually had as its final line: 'Travel a long road in chains ."
Charming.
"Exactly," he laughs. "That was her word, charming (...)"
Seems like Mary was able to take it with humour... :)
(Btw, I remember reading this interview back in the day!)
I love it! When the 13th was released as the lead single I thought it was mad to release THAT song which would obviously alienate some people and it didn't sound like anything else coming out at that time (including on the album), but I LOVED it. It was so great and represented what I like about the Cure - they are always trying new things. Let's Go To Bed was viewed as a terrible decision at the time (right up until it was released and became a hit)...
Welcome to the forum & merry Xmas! :cool
I remember when "The 13th" was released, I told a mate that it sounded kinda "Mexican" with the trumpets, he didn't seem to believe me, but a while later (when he'd heard it) he said "it really does sound Mexican"... :)
I agree it is an odd choice for the first single off WMS, "Mint Car" might have been more "logical" (it sounding a bit like the little brother of "Friday...")!
Quote from: Ulrich on December 25, 2023, 11:05:24Welcome to the forum & merry Xmas! :cool
Thanks! Merry Christmas!