2008 studio album by the Cure

4:13 Dream is the thirteenth studio album by English rock band the Cure, released on 27 October 2008 by Suretone and Geffen Records. The album was preceded by four singles.

Production

The thirteenth studio album by the Cure was originally intended to be a double album; however, frontman Robert Smith confirmed in interviews that this idea was scrapped, despite the fact that 33 songs had been recorded.[1][2] Therefore, at least 20 additional songs were recorded for the album that did not make the final cut, with four being used for B-sides.

Smith has said, "Compiling a single CD album required a different approach (for one thing there was no longer the time to `spread out` and connect the different moods as I had originally intended) and as a consequence a number of (my favorite!) slower songs and instrumental pieces were left unfinished and unreleased."[3] Smith attested that the album would mostly comprise the upbeat songs the band recorded, while the darker songs may be released on another album.[citation needed]

Some songs featured on the album were recycled demos from earlier album sessions. One from the 1990s and two from the 1980s, including "Sleep When I`m Dead", which was originally written for the 1985 album The Head on the Door.[4][5]

Smith co-produced the album with the assistance of Keith Uddin. Apart from the four band members and Uddin, no one was allowed in the recording sessions, in order to limit distractions. Smith said the band no longer screamed at each other over disagreements and that "The feeling in the studio [was] electric ...".[5]

Promotion

On 6 October 2007, the Cure played the first song from the upcoming album, "The Only One" (then titled "Please Project") at the Download Festival in Mountain View, California as part of their 4Tour.[6] Following this, the band slowly introduced other songs from the album.[citation needed] In order to finish recording 4:13 Dream by early 2008, they delayed their North American tour by eight months. Later in the tour, the band performed the songs "Underneath the Stars", "The Perfect Boy", "Sleep When I`m Dead", "Freakshow" (then titled "Don`t Say Anything"), "The Only One" (then titled "Please Project") and "It`s Over" (then titled "Baby Rag Dog Book") at various shows. Although rumored to appear on the album from early reports,[citation needed] another song, "A Boy I Never Knew", was omitted from the final track listing.

On 1 May 2008, the Cure posted a bulletin on their MySpace page saying that the thirteenth day of each month leading up to the release of the album (May, June, July and August) would see the release of a single, including a B-side from the album recording session that would not make the final cut.[citation needed] The four outtakes used were: "NY Trip", "All Kinds of Stuff", "Down Under" and "Without You".

The first single, "The Only One", was released on 13 May, followed by "Freakshow" on 13 June, "Sleep When I`m Dead" on 13 July and "The Perfect Boy" on 13 August.

On 21 August the title of the album was announced online as 4.13 Dream,[citation needed] corrected three days later to 4:13 Dream.[citation needed] The official track listing was first revealed on the band`s official website on 15 September.[citation needed]

Smith also mentioned the "dark album" companion piece, and jokingly stated that he would like to have it released by his next birthday (21 April 2009).[citation needed]

On 11 October, the Cure performed 4:13 Dream in its entirety at a free performance in the Piazza San Giovanni in Rome that was recorded for the MTV Live concert series. The album`s release date was delayed yet again, and was ultimately released on 27 October.

Release

On 1 May 2008, the Cure posted a bulletin on their MySpace page in which they confirmed that the album would be released on 13 September.[citation needed]

On 16 July, Robert Smith announced that the album`s release date would be pushed back to 13 October,[citation needed] and in September`s place, an EP was released, entitled Hypnagogic States, containing remixes of the four singles from 4:13 Dream.

4:13 Dream was released on 28 October 2008.[7] It debuted at No. 16 on the Billboard 200, selling about 24,000 copies in its first week of release.[8]

Critical reception

4:13 Dream earned a score of 69 out of 100 on Metacritic, based on "generally favorable reviews".[10] NME – which had awarded the band the `godlike genius` title earlier that year – praised it as a quintessential Cure record,[16] but other journalists criticised the album`s production[22][23] and its overly comfortable[17] and lightweight[11] songwriting.

Evening Standard gave the album an 8.0 score and stated: "This is a big guitar record: the six-string blizzard of It’s Over and the wah-wah squalls of Switch are particularly notable."[24]

Barry Walters of Spin praised "this 30-year-old band’s densest and most detailed effort ever. At times, it sounds as though a dozen or more simultaneous guitars are tangling with Smith’s iconic teased-hair tendrils, each one snarling and strumming and buzzing away at him as equally psychedelic vocal effects twist his familiar squeal into uncommon swirls." Walters added, "4:13 Dream is the rare Cure effort that takes a middle path neither dominated by dirges nor flooded in syrup," and said "no single cut announces itself as a Cure classic. (The hypnotizing, Disintegration-echoing opener “Underneath the Stars” comes close.)" He concluded, "Dream immediately feels greater than its individual parts, and gradually insinuates itself. Even if he never wins back the Interpol/Bright Eyes bystanders he lost with 2004’s overly heavy, underachieving self-titled punt, Smith finally rewards long-time fans with a proper Cure album."[25]

"4:13 Dream is one of the best Cure albums in years…" declared Classic Rock. "What`s really impressive about The Cure in 2008 is how alive they sound. 4:13 is a schizophrenic beast, unconcerned with current trends or former glories, and hellbent on making mischief of expectations."[26]

Post release

In April 2014, Smith announced that the band would release an album called 4:14 Scream later that year, which would contain 14 of the outtakes from the 2007 recording sessions. Additionally, a limited-edition double album titled 4:26 Dream was also mooted, which would contain 26 non-album songs and/or remixes.[27] To date, these albums of outtakes remain unreleased.

An official remix of "It`s Over" by Smith, the "Whisper Mix", appears on the 2018 release of Torn Down.

Track listing

All tracks are written by The Cure

Personnel

The Cure

• Robert Smith – vocals, guitar, six-string bass, keyboards, producer, mixing, engineering
• Porl Thompson – guitar
• Simon Gallup – bass
• Jason Cooper – drums, percussion, loops

Additional musicians

• Smud – extra percussion
• Catsfield Sub Rhythm Trio – handclaps

Production

• Keith Uddin – producer, mixing, engineering
• Matt Hendry – assistant engineer
• Simon Wakeling – assistant engineer
• Daren Butler – studio assistant
• Brian Gardner – mastering

Charts

Chart performance for 4:13 Dream

Certifications and sales

Certifications and sales for 4:13 Dream