The 500 - #326 - Disintegration - The Cure

I was inspired by a podcast called The 500 hosted by Los Angeles-based comedian Josh Adam Meyers. His goal, and mine, is to explore Rolling Stone Magazine's 2012 edition of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. 

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Album: # 326

Album Title: Disintegration

Artist: The Cure

Genre: Gothic Rock, Art-Rock

Recorded: Hookend Studios, Oxfordshire, U.K.

Released: May, 1989

My age at release: 23

How familiar was I with it before this week: A little

Is it on the 2020 list? Yes, at #116 -- moving up 210 places

Song I am putting on my Spotify Playlist: Lovesong

Two years ago this month I penned a post on The Cure's 1980 record, Boys Don't Cry. The album was their first North American release and consisted mostly of material previously released in the U.K. as singles or on their debut release, Three Imaginary Boys. In my 2020 post, I covered my slowly evolving relationship with the post-punk, goth band from West Sussex, England.

The Cure in 1989, (l-r) Boris Williams, Porl Thompson, Robert
Smith, Simon Gallup and Roger O'Donnell

Disintegration was released nearly a decade later when lead singer and principal song-writer Robert Smith was turning 30. He, like many of us who hit a birthday milestone, was doing plenty of self-reflecting. It has been well-reported that Smith wanted to return the group to the moody, introspective goth sounds that had established them at the start of the 80s. Between 1983 and 1989, the band had enjoyed tremendous commercial success with a number of pop-oriented hits, especially Just Like Heaven, a catchy, danceable number which became their first U.S. Top 40 hit.

Despite global success and massive record sales, Smith was unhappy with the group's critical and commercial popularity. He was in a funk and "being gloomy" was not an unnatural  state for him to be in – 30 or not. As some would say, dark, dreary, navel-gazing is Smith's brand.

Smith in 1989 (aged 30)

But still, the milestone age might have aggravated his mood. It is not unusual. In fact, I struggled with it and so did many of my friends and acquaintances as they left behind their youth.

Perhaps it is the math we reflect on. We are halfway to 60 and a third of our life is likely behind us. Maybe it is the weight of societal conventions. Most of us had parents who were married, had children and were deeply engaged in meaningful careers at the three-decade mark. I was unmarried, childless and still bartending.

Me, behind the bar in 1994, age 29

Back to Smith. He wasn't anything like me. He was married to Mary Theresa Poole, his long-term partner (they met in school at age 14). He was enjoying an incredibly successful career –adored by legions of fans and wealthy beyond imagination. So, what is it about 30? Let’s say it is a personal thing.

Poole and Smith in the mid-90s

Regardless, Smith returned to experimenting with hallucinogenic drugs and this influenced the writing and production of Disintegration. Smith has said the impending arrival of his 30th birthday had made him feel dismal and despondent over not having already completed "his masterpiece".

For many fans, Disintegration is that masterpiece. It was a return to the sound that had made The Cure popular a decade earlier and for fans who love lush, dark orchestrations punctuated by self-absorbed gloomy lyrics, a perfect record.

Sure, I would love to be 30 again and the heck with being gloomy. In fact, roll on 60. In the meantime, I wonder if Smith feels the same way or is still feeling the march of age, especially since he is now 62.