Review: Cure's marathon set satisfies sold-out crowd

The Cure gave its diehard and casual fans everything they could ask for and more during a marathon, three-hour-plus set in front of a sold-out audience at UTEP's Don Haskins Center on Tuesday.

The veteran alternative-rock band showed no worse for wear as it performed 35 songs, including some of its biggest pop hits, such as “Just Like Heaven” and “Love Song.” The British band had some treats up its sleeve for hardcore fans, as well.

The house exploded with adoration as soon as the lights went down and leader Robert Smith and his mates walked onto the stage, which was complemented by a backdrop made up of five LED screens.

Its first two songs came from the 2000 album, “Bloodflowers.” The opener “Out of This World,” a mid-tempo ballad, isn’t the typical choice most bands would have taken to warm up a crowd, but The Cure isn’t your typical band.

It’s second song, “Watching Me Fall,” was the first of a handful of songs The Cure hadn’t performed live in a while.

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“It’s been 16 years since we played that one,” quipped Smith, who is usually a man of few words on stage, a fact he pointed out later in the show, adding that when he speaks it “takes him out of the moment.”

From there, The Cure went into a set that included many of its hits, including songs off its biggest album, 1989’s “Disintegration” and its followup, “Wish.” The band also managed to work in a few more fan favorites, such as the album cut “Closedown.” It also performed two more songs it hadn’t played live in more than 10 years, “39” and “The Snakepit.”

The Cure, and particularly Smith, sounded in top form, which means a lot when sitting through such a lengthy concert. A lesser band wouldn’t be able to pull it off and retain the majority of the audience through an hour-and-a-half set, much less, keep them there for five encores afterward.

One of the great things about seeing The Cure live is that the songs sound remarkably close to the way they sound on the albums, with a few twists and turns along the way, of course. And Smith’s British wails sound just the same as they did when the band released the classic single and show closer, “Boys Don’t Cry,” in 1979.

While the band isn’t known for stage theatrics and big sets, the LED screens did provide for some cool moments, especially a drummer’s view of the packed arena.

This was my third time seeing The Cure in concert. I first saw the group in 1996 in Albuquerque during the tour for its “Wild Mood Swings” album. That show, too, was a marathon, and I remember thinking at the time, “Well, I never have to see The Cure live again.”

And Tuesday night, many of the casual fans, perhaps many who saw The Cure again, as I did, in El Paso two years ago, could only stick it out for about two encores. I myself left before the concert ended the last time around. But last night, I powered through, along with about two-thirds of the audience, who were there from the first note – that’s a pretty good chunk of hardcore fans.

Those of us who stuck around were treated to more songs, such as “The Perfect Girl” and “I Don’t Know What’s Going On,” that hadn’t been performed live in quite a while, as well as the fun dance tracks “Hot Hot Hot!!!,” “Why Can’t I Be You?” and “Close to Me,” which had the crowd up and dancing well into the night.

So, while a three-hour-plus concert might not be everyone’s bag, especially for those of us that are part of The Cure’s aging fan base, the band gets the pacing right – loading the front end of its show with hits for the casual fans, while mixing in some obscurities to keep the rest interested; then, unloading some real gems in the second half.

The Cure closed with “A Forest” and “Boys Don’t Cry,” and despite the fact that it once again threw in everything but the kitchen sink, I’m ready for a fourth go-round.

Dave Acosta may be reached at 546-6138; dacosta@elpasotimes.com; @AcostaDavidA on Twitter.