Disintegration

Robert Smith was convinced that rock musicians did their best work before turning 30, and his 30th birthday was approaching fast. That fear drove him into a state of near-total creative isolation during the making of Disintegration, deliberately separating himself from his bandmates, retreating into the use of hallucinogenic drugs, and refusing to compromise on a single detail of the record. He had come off the unexpected mainstream success of Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me, which had made The Cure one of the biggest bands in the world, and he hated it. He wanted to make something dark, immersive, and completely uncompromising. He wanted to make something that would last.

The sessions at Hookend Recording Studios in Oxfordshire were described as paradoxical. The band was at the commercial peak of its career and at the internal low point of its existence. Founding member Lol Tolhurst's alcohol addiction had deteriorated to the point where he showed up to mixing sessions unable to function. A confrontation on the studio floor during the recording of the title track ended with Tolhurst being fired from the band. On the first night of recording, an electrical fault in Smith's room started a fire and the entire studio had to be evacuated. "Pictures of You" was written after that fire, when Smith sifted through the wreckage and found a half-burned wallet containing old photographs of his wife. "Lovesong" was written as a wedding present for her.

What came out of all of it was the most beloved album in The Cure's catalog and one of the defining records of gothic rock. "Lovesong" became a top five hit in the United States. The whole album is a masterclass in atmosphere, in texture, in how to make music that sounds like a feeling you can't name. Start with "Plainsong," sit in it, and understand why this record still resonates with anyone who has ever felt completely and beautifully lost.