The Cure – Mixes of a Lost World (Polydor/Fiction)
To compliment their chart topping studio album release last November, The Cure loaned out their tracks to a host of collaborative artists to provide remixes of those 8 tracks, ranging across contributions from Paul Oakenfold to Orbital and Mogwai. Whilst there are up to 24 remixes on the expanded edition of this release seemingly placing quality over quantity, there are some specific highlights inside this beautiful sleeved release coloured in titanium quartz.
Whilst Oakenfold’s remix of ‘I Can Never Say Goodbye’ is a little dramatic sounding (aptly entitled ‘Cinematic’) – perhaps the most emotionally poignant song on the original release – with its thundering drums and synth heights, it does compliment the strength of feeling behind Robert Smith’s lyrics. The Orbital remix of ‘Endsong’ is a little disappointing too, it infuses with too subtle a flavour for this great band, also for the longest and most dramatic ending song to the original release.
However, the Daniel Avery remix revives the tracklist with its dirty petroleum thick, loose basslines and a later synthphonic ambience contrast. The ‘best of the rest’ interpretations on this tracklist include ‘And Nothing is Forever (Daniel Briottett and Rico Conning Remix)’, Daybreakers’ galloping techno remix of ‘Warsong’ – the best version of this track on the album – and ‘I Can Never Say Goodbye (Craven Faults rework)’; the latter standing out from anything else on this release as it’s performed solely on organs and only as an instrumental.
Whilst there are some good re-imaginings on this release, some of the tracks have cut up the original recordings too much that the essence of their meaning has been somewhat lost at the behest of creating a synthetic dance track, which is at odds with the delicacy of Smith’s organic vocals. However, the harshness of tribal drumbeats works better on ‘All I Ever Am (65daysofstatic) Remix’ towards the end of the album ahead of Mogwai’s 10-minute finale of ‘Endsong’.
‘Mixes of a Lost World’ is available now on vinyl, CD, cassette and digitally.
© Ayisha Khan.