Happy Sad
Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me by The Cure Played on the Sound Burger
Solidly pop in structure yet pushing against the walls of pop sensibilities to take the commercial formula into dark and sad and foreboding directions. Solid musicianship, although they don’t get the just credit, especially the understated but masterful guitar work. The Cure joined a subgenre of New Wave that was gloomier, and like Siouxsie and the Banshees, accented those sullen lyrics and melodies with Goth fashion and a subculture was born (Read my Vinyl Notes edition about Siouxsie here).
The Cure formed in 1978. If you know that time or have been following Vinyl Notes, you know the late seventies was when the door was kicked open for new sounds and redefining the term song. Punk Rock, Hip Hop, Heavy Metal, New Wave, it all rushed the opening and spilled into the 80s and beyond.
Their early albums leaned more experimental. By 1987, with the release of Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me, the band’s creative force Robert Smith had figured out how to write universally appealing music that was still dark, emotional, intelligent and interesting. His heart wrenching lyrics and anguished vocals expressed vulnerability, at times gushing with unadulterated love, and other times a truly tortured soul.
For this edition of Vinyl Notes, I played Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me on my new Audio-Technica Sound Burger played through a JBL Boom Box speaker. Originally released in 1983, this device was the first portable turntable meant to be listened to with head phones. It quickly lost steam and was phased out because of the mighty cassette and the embrace of the first generation Walkman. 60 years later, the Sound Burger is back with added Bluetooth capabilities and the sound is amazing, honestly. I don’t do product reviews as a rule, this is an exception. I have a great regular turntable that I love and use often. The Sound Burger allows me to be more flexible with how and where I listen to my vinyl. An original release Cure album played on a re-release Sound Burger.