The Cure to play ‘Disintegration’ in Australia this year — and perhaps elsewhere, too

The Cure announced today that it will return to the Sydney Opera House, where the band premiered 2011’s Reflections concerts, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Disintegration with four full-album performances in May — perhaps the first of more to come.

The concerts, part of Vivid Live, are set for May 24, 25, 27 and 28. They initially were advertised as “world exclusive” — suggesting there would not be any other performances — but the promoter later began referring to the shows as “an exclusive world-first performance” and “global premiere, only Australian shows.” No plans for other Disintegration shows have been announced.

According to the promoters, the May concerts will feature a full performance of Disintegration to be followed by “a selection of rarely performed B-sides plus specially curated deep catalog cuts.” The Cure still plays a good portion of Disintegration in concert, and played the full album, though not in order, during 1989’s Prayer Tour. It has not played the record front-to-back, however, since 2002’s Trilogy concerts in Berlin.

News of the Disintegration concerts comes as The Cure has a busy 2019 planned, with its induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, its first-ever concerts in South Africa and a full slate of European and Japanese festival appearances over the summer. Keyboardist Roger O’Donnell has suggested there could also be “possibly American shows in the fall.”

Check out The Cure’s current tour itinerary below.

The Cure tour dates

SOUTH AFRICA
March 16: Rock on the Lawns, Johannesburg, South Africa
March 21: Rock on the Lawns, Cape Town, South Africa

AUSTRALIA
May 24: Sydney Opera House, Sydney, Australia (Disintegration 30th anniversary show)
May 25: Sydney Opera House, Sydney, Australia (Disintegration 30th anniversary show)
May 27: Sydney Opera House, Sydney, Australia (Disintegration 30th anniversary show)
May 28: Sydney Opera House, Sydney, Australia (Disintegration 30th anniversary show)

EUROPE 
June 8: Malahide Castle, Dublin, Ireland
June 14: Nova Rock, Nickelsdorf, Austria
June 16: Firenze Rocks, Florence, Italy
June 21: Southside Festival, Neuhausen Ob Eck, Germany
June 23: Hurricane Festival, Scheessel, Germany
June 24-26: INMusic Festival, Zagreb, Croatia
June 28: Rock Werchter, Werchter, Belgium
July 4: Exit Festival, Novi Sad, Serbia
July 6: Roskilde Festival, Roskilde, Denmark
July 11: NOS Alive, Lisbon, Portugal
July 13: Mad Cool Festival, Madrid, Spain
July 17: Ejekt Festival, Athens, Greece
July 18-20: Colours of Ostrava, Ostrava, Czech Republic
July 22: Rock the City, Bucharest, Romania

JAPAN
July 26-28: Fuji Rock Festival, Naeba Ski Resort, Japan

EUROPE
Aug. 3: Afisha Picnic, Moscow, Russia
Aug. 7: Oya Festival, Oslo, Norway
Aug. 8-10: Way Out Festival, Gothenburg, Sweden
Aug. 11: Flow Festival, Helsinki, Finland
Aug. 16: Summer Sessions, Glasgow, Scotland
Aug. 23: Rock en Seine, Parc de Saint-Cloud, France

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