“Songs of a Lost World” is The Cure at Their Soul Crushing Best

Ava Lazazzera ‘26

4:13 Dream by The Cure Album Cover

On Nov. 1,  English rock band The Cure released their first studio album since 2008’s 4:13 Dream. During the 16 years between the release of their previous album and this new one, titled “Songs of a Lost World”, it seemed as though the band had accepted their status as a legacy act, content to play the hits and release live albums, deluxe editions of past releases and even an ‘acoustic hits’ album in 2017. But with the release of Songs of a Lost World, it is obvious that The Cure still has plenty to say as it approaches its 50th year as a project.

Clocking in at 49 minutes but consisting of just eight tracks, it becomes immediately obvious that The Cure are doing what they do best, delicately crafting an ethereal atmosphere on each song that allows the heavy lyrics space to breathe. “Songs of a Lost World” begins with the track “Alone”. Released as the album’s first single on Sept. 26, the instrumentation harkens back to what is arguably The Cure’s finest work, 1989’s Disintegration. After the three-and-a-half-minute instrumental introduction, frontman Robert Smith welcomes the listener to the project by way of dreary, hopeless lyrics about endings that seem a bit ironic for an opening number. The very first words the listener hears are, “This is the end of every song that we sing.”

The dark odyssey continues with “And Nothing is Forever”, where the resignation of “Alone” is replaced by desperate pleas: “Promise you'll be with me in the end / Say we’ll be together and that you won't forget,” croons Smith. 

In case the first two songs weren’t bleak enough for your goth heart,  The Cure dives deeper into the dark themes of the album with the following two tracks, “A Fragile Thing” and “Warsong”. “A Fragile Thing” explores a failed relationship, returning to the idea of an inevitable tragic end presented in “Alone”: “‘And there's nothing you can do to change it back,’ she said / Nothing you can do but sing, ‘This love is a fragile thing.’”

A standout in the tracklist is “Warsong”. It has elements reminiscent of their fourth album, Pornography, known as one of the darkest in the band’s discography. In this song, the guitars plaintively wail while a steady drum beat marches the song forward. The shortest song of the album, though still managing to clock in at four minutes and 17 seconds, it features lyrics steeped in glorious anguish: “Oh, it's misery the way we fight / For bitter ends we tear the night in two / I want your death, you want my life.”

“Drone:Nodrone” is perhaps the song with the most dated sounding production, but makes up for it by being the most energetic track on the album. It reminds the listener that The Cure can write a super catchy chorus. This is, after all, the same band that brought us “Friday I’m in Love”.  

“I Can Never Say Goodbye” offers the listener space to breathe after the relentless instrumental force of the previous three tracks, but doesn’t forgo the mournful lyrics. Here, the band creates a gorgeous instrumental atmosphere while Robert Smith sings about grief following the death of his brother: “Something wicked this way comes / To steal away my brother's lifе / Something wicked this way comes / I can nеver say goodbye.”

The penultimate track, “All I Ever Am” is reflective and regretful, featuring the absolutely devastating lyrics, “The way love turned out every time/Was never quite enough.”It is followed by the ten-minute-long finale “Endsong”, which features a six-and-a-half-minute instrumental intro before launching into lyrics that call back to the opening track and bookend the entire experience: “Left alone with nothing at the end of every song.”

“Songs of a Lost World” is a triumphant return for The Cure.  It nods to the band’s past records while avoiding being a carbon copy of any of them. The reflective, longing lyrics and the rich atmosphere of the album is perfect for the upcoming melancholy days of November. If you find yourself walking home in the cold dark, with flickering street lights guiding the way, put this album on.