The Cure - Pornography

Of the 12 studio albums The Cure have produced over the years, Pornography is the first of what I consider their four masterpieces. The Head On The Door, Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me, and Disintegration being the other three.

One of the gloomiest albums they've ever made, Pornography is not something you listen to in order to elevate your mood. The album opener A Hundred Years is a dark brooding masterpiece that kicks you in the stomach the moment Robert sings "It doesn't matter if we all die". Simon Gallup's bass work on A Short Term Effect is nothing short of masterful and I defy anyone to not nod their head at least a little bit when this song is playing. I remember singing "everything is gone forever" at the top of my lungs whenever A Strange Day graced my record player and in fact I think I still have my very worn vinyl copy somewhere.

Later this album would come to be known as the first album in a trilogy of Cure albums that would also include Disintegration and Bloodflowers. The live Pornography set they played as part of the Trilogy concert DVD is nothing short of amazing. I would imagine if the audio of that DVD were somehow converted into a format that could be played on an iPod then you might find yourself listening to that more than the original album. Ahem, I would imagine.

Standout tracks:

A Hundred Years
Short Term Effect
A Strange Day
Pornography