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The Cure
Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me
[Deluxe Edition]
(Fiction/Elektra/Rhino)
The Music Box's #7 reissue of 2006
First Appeared in The Music Box, September 2006, Volume 13, #9
Written by John Metzger
Having finally achieved commercial success with The Head on the Door,
it would have been easy for The Cure simply to craft another effort that
followed the same, basic formula as its predecessor. Instead, mastermind Robert
Smith opted to take a more democratic approach to recording, and the resulting
outing Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me blossomed into an expansive, 18-track,
two-LP package that presented the full range of The Cure’s capabilities. For a
group that sometimes seemed schizophrenic as it swerved back and forth between
heady pop and darkly experimental textures, the endeavor proved to be a
surprisingly cohesive masterpiece. Because it was so dense with ideas, however,
the 74-minute triumph always has fared better on vinyl than on CD, and its
latest incarnation — which resurrects the driving rock of Hey You! from
extinction — does little to change that notion.
The concept behind Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me was reasonably
straightforward, and in effect, its music and lyrics were meant to tug the
filaments of the heart in opposing directions. Over the course of the endeavor,
Smith perfectly captured the narcissistic adolescent experience where an
initial, all-consuming obsession with a new object of desire quickly can give
way to pure hatred, and where the idea of being in love frequently turns out to
be better than the relationship itself. "I’m smitten!/I’m bitten!/I’m hooked!,"
Smith sings on the worshipful Why Can’t I Be You?, a song that counters
the suffocating horror of The Kiss on which he declares, "Your tongue is
like poison" and "I never wanted any of this/I wish you were dead."
Musically diverse, Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me begins with the dark,
mechanical beat of its pseudo title track, and as the sounds of an icy cold
synthesizer glide across its surface, the coiled notes from an electric guitar
writhe in increasing agony. For more than three minutes, the tension builds
until Smith’s voice cuts through the clatter, releasing his pent-up frustration
in an anguished wail of disgust and loathing. The mood changes dramatically on
the subsequent Catch, as The Cure enhances the song’s confused, misplaced
affection by embedding it within an swirl of dreamy happiness. Taken together,
these tunes make for a convincing opening statement that establishes the
divergent tones that creep through the remainder of the endeavor. Shifting from
brilliantly crafted, ebullient pop (Just Like Heaven) to dance
club-friendly, rhythmic funk (Hot Hot Hot!!!) and sprinkled with
nightmarish visions that are both beautifully sensual (If Only Tonight We
Could Sleep) and ominously haunted (The Snake Pit), Kiss Me Kiss
Me Kiss Me is, from start to finish, remarkably consistent, and it, along
with 1989’s Disintegration, served as the pinnacle of The Cure’s career.
As was the case with its predecessors in Rhino’s campaign to reissue the
entirety of The Cure’s catalogue, Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me boasts a second
disc of bonus material that was composed from a hodgepodge of inessential home
and studio demos, alternate mixes, and bootleg concert recordings. Half of the
extras are instrumental-only tracks, and consequently, they are likely to be as
insightful to diehard fans as they are annoyingly obtuse to the casual listener.
The live material, however, fares far better, especially since the five cuts are
all presented in nearly pristine fashion, which leaves no chance that aural
defects will undermine their potency. The Snakepit, in particular, is a
deliriously dense concoction that is as suffocating as anything from the
Pornography sessions.
Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me [Deluxe Edition] — 
Bonus Tracks —
Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me [Original Album] —
½
Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me [Deluxe Edition] is available from Amazon.com.
To order, Click Here!
For Canadian orders, please
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Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me [Original Album] is available from Amazon.com.
To order, Click Here!
For Canadian orders, please
Click Here!
For UK orders, please
Click Here!
Ratings
1 Star: Pitiful
2 Stars: Listenable
3 Stars: Respectable
4 Stars: Excellent
5 Stars: Can't Live Without It!!
Copyright © 2006 The Music Box
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