lambchops's Full Review: Faith (Deluxe Edition) [Digipak] by The Cure
The Cure was still a relatively fledgling band in the early 1980s. With two albums under their belt, they’d yet to really make a real impact stateside and had only earned a two hit club/dance singles the form of Boys Don’t Cry and A Forest. Of course in retrospect, the band’s earliest albums were outstanding even if they were, in the end, not particularly representative of their career as a whole.
Faith (1981) was The Cure’s fourth release and earned the third club play hit, Primary. It would take until the 1984 singles collection Japanese Whispers that the band would break through. It marked the start of the band’s semi-mainstream popularity and a string of hit singles. Three Imaginary Boys (1979) and the reworked American version Boys Don’t Cry (1980) presented a new wave pop band with a hit sensibility occasionally laced with a dark sense of melancholy. Their second album, Seventeen Seconds, was the first time that this darkness was at the center of the album however it was Faith that presented the band in their darkest, saddest moment to date. The album focuses on somber and reflective questions of faith and spirituality.
Robert Smith (vocals, guitar, keys), Laurence Tolhurst (drums), and Simon Gallup (bass guitar) were becoming The Cure people would grow to love in the mid-1980s. The newly released Deluxe Edition of Faith collects the original eight tracks of the album on the first disc with the addition of a ninth track, Carnage Visors. A second disc of rarities (1980-1981) is also collected and includes demos, out-takes, live songs, and a non-album single. Just prior to the recording of Faith, Smith had experienced something of an epiphany at the hand of death. He’s witnessed family and friends die and was forced to face mortality. He returned to church and in doing so realized that he did not believe in the same “eternity” as the worshippers around him. That realization in addition to the band’s reliance on what Smith terms “selfish drugs” and The Cure running out of money led to much reflection.
In the end, Faith was not received well by most press outlets. Most writers thought it lacked direction and honesty while a sparse few thought the message in the end was (ironically) hope. Looking back on the time in music, it is easy to see both sides of that coin however fortunately for The Cure Faith has aged well. It is an emotionally reflective album that can be appreciated on a variety of levels. Also, with the inclusion of the disc of rarities the album is put in a different and likely more accurate perspective.
Without even putting Faith into the stereo, it immediately evokes an emotional response. The cover is milky grey and simple. There’s nothing happy about it. Even the black and white pictures that dot the packaging reek of foreboding and despair. It begs of the listener to open the cover and find out what it is that so profoundly saddens Smith and company. I already answered that question a few paragraphs above, but that doesn’t preclude you from listening to this album. If you are a fan of The Cure I suspect you’re already excited about this release—how else are you going to get a remastered deluxe version plus rarities disc of a classic album?
Faith begins with dour The Holy Hour. Soft, even, haunting, and beautiful it is one of the best moments of the album. Paired with selections All Cats are Grey and Faith it is clear why this album is regarded as a dark period in The Cure discography. Fortunately, the album never is without hope. Second track, Primary is a fast and manic song when compared to the dark, slow elements of so many of the other track. It’s obvious why this track earned the band a modest hit—it easily ranks as my favorite moment of Faith. The keyboards, stark percussion, and bass guitar are outstanding. When paired with Smith’s lilting vocals the resulting product is seamless.
Even though Faith lasts just eight (plus one bonus track) songs, it is varied. Other Voice is an evocative yet very low-key track. It’s not nearly as atmospheric as melancholic All Cats are Grey, but the simple arrangement makes it immediately satisfying. Even more gorgeous than either of those songs though is the rich, majestic The Funeral Party. Doubt picks up the pace and rescues the album from despair. Smith was in a dark place in his life, but he seems to readily admit that emotions can run the gamut between depressed and hyperactive. The changes in pace and mood make Faith an interesting listen.
The Drowning Man is another atmospheric offering, though it’s not my favorite track on this album. In fact, I much prefer the epic original album ender Faith. What makes this version of the release different then the 1981 version is the addition of Carnage Visors. It’s on the same wavelength as the slow, depressed, meandering offerings scattered throughout the album. The track is an interesting addition to an otherwise rather abbreviated (36 minute and 54 second) album.
While Faith is not my favorite album from The Cure, I will say that I enjoy it very much. In fact, I also appreciate many of the fifteen tracks included on the bonus rarities CD. They give perspective to the original album and the songs. Some are great, others are unremarkable, still others suffer from annoyance of crowds (a common problem on live tracks). My favorite offerings are the four home demos (the gripping Faith, the gorgeous and unfortunately mono Doubt, the previously unreleased heavy-guitar track Drowning, and the bass-guitar driven The Holy Hour). I must also mention the studio outtakes which include three previously unreleased songs. I’m not entirely amused by the unreleased tracks, but it goes to show that The Cure at least knew how to assemble a decent album without polluting it by including kicky up-tempo new wave schlock like Going Home Time.
The second half of the rarities disc is dominated by live versions some of which are previously unreleased and some of which were previously only available on the 1984 cassette Curiosity. I’m not a fan of many live songs, and I’m not at all impressed by these which are painfully dominated by bad synthesizers. The final track of the disc is single Charlotte Sometimes which was previously only available as a single. It’s nice to see it pop up on this deluxe edition.
Faith is a good, bordering on great release and certainly belongs in any fan of The Cure’s collection. If you’ve been waiting for a time to buy this album then there’s not been a better time to buy it than now. Unfortunately the Deluxe Edition is about $10 more expensive than the original but for the rarities, out-takes, demos, and previously unreleased songs that shouldn’t matter much for fans of the band.
Rating: 4/5 stars
Disc One: The Original Album
01. The Holy Hour
02. Primary
03. Other Voice
04. All Cats are Grey
05. The Funeral Party
06. Doubt
07. The Drowning Man
08. Faith
09. Carnage Visors: The Soundtrack
Disc Two: Rarities 1980-1981
01. Faith (RS home demo)
02. Doubt (RS home demo)
03. Drowning (group home demo)
04. The Holy Hour (group home demo)
05. Primary (studio out-take)
06. Going Home Time (studio out-take)
07. The Violin Song (studio out-take)
08. A Normal Story (studio out-take)
09. All Cats are Grey (live)
10. The Funeral Party (live)
11. Other Voices (live)
12. The Drowning Man (live)
13. Faith (live)
14. Forever (live)
15. Charlotte Sometimes (single)
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