The Cure returned to Mexico last night for the second time this year, and while the band’s set didn’t quite match the epic length — 50 songs over the course of 4 hours and 16 minutes — of its show on Robert Smith’s birthday in April, it did feature more surprises, including a heavy dose of The Top and the live debut of Head on the Door-era B-side “Stop Dead.”
And that’s not to say last night’s show in Monterrey, Mexico, wasn’t long: The band did perform 43 songs in a concert that ran well more than 3 hours. As the ever-dependable Chain of Flowers notes, after live dates this spring and summer that found The Cure sticking to a relatively static, hits-heavy setlist, last night’s return to Mexico featured a number of surprises bound to please diehard fans:
- First-ever performance of “Stop Dead” (see video below), which appeared as a B-side on certain versions of the “Inbetween Days” and “Close to Me” singles
- First performance of “Birdmad Girl,” off The Top, in 29 years
- First performance of “Give Me It,” also off The Top, in 26 years
- First performance of Wild Mood Swings track “Treasure” in 15 years
- First performance of Head on the Door closer “Sinking” in nine years
- First performance of Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me single “Catch” in five years
The inclusion of so much material off The Top — the band played 7 of the album’s 10 songs, bookending the main set with cuts off the album — as well as the resurrection and debut of material from the Head on the Door and Kiss Me eras no doubt lends credence to rumors The Cure is preparing to stage concerts in the “Trilogy” (Pornography/Disintegration/Bloodflowers) and “Reflections” (Three Imaginary Boys/Seventeen Seconds/Faith) veins that will find the band performing The Top, The Head on the Door and Kiss Me.
The Cure plays an arena show in El Paso, Texas, on Thursday, a second headlining set at the Austin City Limits Music Festival on Saturday and then another festival set at the Voodoo Experience in New Orleans on Nov. 3. Smith has hinted, on the band’s website, that there may be “one more ‘special appearance’ show on the East Coast” this year as well.
Below, check out the full setlist — plus video as it surfaces (via Chain of Flowers).
Setlist: The Cure, Monterrey Arena, Monterrey, Mexico, 10/8/13
1. “Shake Dog Shake”
2. “Fascination Street”
3. “A Night Like This”
4. “The End of the World”
5. “Lovesong”
6. “Push”
7. “Inbetween Days”
8. “Just Like Heaven”
9. “From the Edge of the Deep Green Sea”
10. “Sinking”
11. “Pictures of You”
12. “Lullaby”
13. “High”
14. “Birdmad Girl”
15. “The Walk”
16. “Stop Dead”
17. “Sleep When I’m Dead”
18. “Mint Car”
19. “Friday I’m in Love”
20. “Doing the Unstuck”
21. “Bananafishbones”
22. “Want”
23. “The Hungry Ghost”
24. “Wrong Number”
25. “One Hundred Years”
26. “Give Me It”
27. “The Top”
28. “Treasure”
29. “Other Voices”
30. “Charlotte Sometimes”
31. “Play For Today”
32. “A Forest”
33. “Dressing Up”
34. “The Lovecats”
35. “Catch”
36. “The Caterpillar”
37. “Close To Me”
38. “Hot Hot Hot”
39. “Let’s Go To Bed”
40. “Why Can’t I Be You?”
41. “Boys Don’t Cry”
42. “10:15 Saturday Night”
43. “Killing An Arab”
The Cure, “Stop Dead” — Monterrey, Mexico, 10/8/13
The Cure, “Birdmad Girl” — Monterrey, Mexico, 10/8/13
The Cure, “Sinking” — Monterrey, Mexico, 10/8/13
The Cure, “Treasure” — Monterrey, Mexico, 10/8/13
The Cure, “A Night Like This” — Monterrey, Mexico, 10/8/13
The Cure, “Dressing Up” — Monterrey, Mexico, 10/8/13
PREVIOUSLY ON SLICING UP EYEBALLS
- The Cure joins Pearl Jam, Nine Inch Nails as Voodoo Music Experience headliner
- Video: The Cure at Lollapalooza 2013 — watch full webcast of band’s 2-hour headlining set
- The Cure to play first-ever concert in Hawaii next month ahead of Lollapalooza
- Depeche Mode joins The Cure as Austin City Limits Music Festival headliners
- The Cure’s Robert Smith celebrates birthday with 4-hour, 50-song concert in Mexico City
Craig from ‘Chain of Flowers’ was complaining the other day about The Cure setlists getting stale.
He is eating his words today. I think Robert read that site and decided to mess with him, lol.
Any Cure fan knows the reason why many of these 84 – 87 songs are popping up in the setlists is the band is shaking the dust off them before they play a Top/Head on the Door/KMKMKM Trilogy show next year.
If a third trilogy concert is performed, I hope the second will finally be released so I can see it.
Well, to Craig’s credit, and I agree, the setlists were getting stale and predictable. We all love the Wish and Disintegration songs that they routinely play, but all of the early material has been ignored. This is disappointing, considering the fact that they had rehearsed and performed all of Three Imaginary Boys, Seventeen Seconds and Faith in recent years. Also, they were playing “Fight,” “Just One Kiss,” and “The Top” sparsely for at least one tour and these tracks disappeared until bringing some rarities back last night.
Long live The Top. It is one of their very best records and is sorely underrated.
I want an Imaginary Boys heavy set list or aq Pornography heavy set list. The Top is good but played so much. Early music is so much fresher as it has never been overplayed with maybe the exception of ‘The Forest’
Sorry but for years and years they have played One Hundred Years, and I’ve seen them play A Figurehead and A Strange Day so many, many times. Both albums you mention had a trilogy show as well, and I can’t fathom you can think The Top songs are over-played. The only one that got any play up until the past couple of years was Piggy in the Mirror and that’s been rare since the 80s as well. They only just started playing the caterpillar live the past few years. I agree however I’d love to get the 11 minutes they spend on A Forest at every show back so they can play three songs instead of that one.
oops forgot about Shake Dog Shake, but who doesn’t want to hear that!?
Are you kidding me? ‘The Top’ songs have not been played live in over 25 years for the most part. The only ones The Cure have played since 1986 have been ‘Shake Dog Shake’, ‘Dressing Up’ and ‘Piggy the in Mirror’ and those 2 not since 1996.
Robert already played TIB in full several times in 2011, and Pornography get a heavy dose in 2000 and 2002, as well on several recent tours.
It’s time for the rare 1984 – 1987 material to shine.
craig was right, the set lists were getting very stale, predictable and boring.
even though i adore plainsong and open, i was sick of seeing those songs as intros.
they really need to shake the set going forward.
Maybe someday we’ll get a live version of “Burn”
I’m just gonna’ get this out of the way: Robert, it’s time to cut your hair. That aside, the above set list is near perfect for me. The Top has always been my favorite release by them so this is a dream set. Would love to see a Top performed in its entirety show someday.
Oh boy! “Stop Dead” was always one of my faves from Side B of the “Standing on the Beach” cassette. :)
Oh boy! “Stop Dead” was always one of my faves from Side B of the “Standing on a Beach” cassette. :)
Hope the Top/HOTD & KMKMKM trilogy tour reaches Australia!
So what does El Paso get tonight? Another dose of ‘The Top’ or back to a more ‘standard’ set list?
Robert sounds great but he looks terrible. Wish he would just give up the ghost and cut his thinning hair already. Simon and the rest of the band have moved on a while ago.
The Top is one of my favourite Cure records. I’ve always wondered why they rarely play material from it.