Robert Smith is looking ahead to another year of Cure concerts, with new material expected to feature prominently in the setlists. His latest update follows a busy 2026 of European shows, two Grammy wins, a new live band member, and a growing list of charitable projects, while the follow-up to Songs Of A Lost World awaits release.
Smith shared the news in a voice message for Nick Grimshaw’s BBC Radio 6 Music programme on November 3, acknowledging The Cure’s inclusion among the station’s Artists of the Year for 2026. He looked back on highlights including curating the Teenage Cancer Trust concerts at the Royal Albert Hall, the band’s summer festival run, and his appearance alongside Olivia Rodrigo at Primavera Sound.
Turning to 2027, Smith said he was looking forward to more Cure concerts, adding:
“Of course, I’m not allowed to say where or when yet, but I’m confident they will be bursting with new songs.”
The comments point towards another substantial helping of new material onstage. As of November 5, 2026, specific dates, cities, venues, and ticket-sale details remain unannounced. The band’s official shows page currently lists no forthcoming concerts.
Listen to Smith’s BBC Radio 6 Music message below:
The next album has been taking shape for some time. The Cure’s official biography confirms that the band returned to Rockfield Studios in Wales in March 2025, recording 13 additional songs for the follow-up to their 2024 album.
In a BBC Radio 6 Music New Music Fix interview from Primavera Sound, broadcast on June 8, Smith explained that the band had recorded enough material for three albums. He said the second was complete and about to be delivered to Universal, while describing a third record with a substantially brighter disposition.
The immediate follow-up, however, would take the band into difficult emotional territory. Smith described it as “more dismal” and “quite dark emotionally,” before explaining its relationship to Songs Of A Lost World:
“It’s related to Songs Of A Lost World, but it’s a different perspective on things.”
As we reported in June, the more upbeat music belongs to the later project. Smith situated that record within what he called “my idea of Cure Pop,” explaining that it remained considerably slower than Rodrigo’s music despite its more buoyant character. His collaboration with her provided an amusing point of comparison during the conversation, rather than a claim that the next Cure album would follow her musical direction.
Neither forthcoming album has an officially announced title, tracklist, or release date. Hear the June interview below:
Smith has previously spoken about the difficulty of finding lyrics he feels compelled to perform. In his 2024 BBC Radio 6 Music conversation with Huw Stephens, around the release of Songs Of A Lost World, he admitted:
“I can write words but I don’t really feel like singing them.”
He also described performing the songs as a way of working through grief, with the audience providing a connection that could alter his experience of the material: “You just suddenly feel something. You feel connection.” That exchange offers some context for the care behind the records, and for the importance he continues to place on playing them live.
The Cure’s 2026 summer run comprised 31 concerts across Europe, ending at Rock en Seine on August 30. Eden Gallup, son of bassist Simon Gallup, joined the live band on guitar and keyboards following the death of Perry Bamonte in December 2025.
The sets also reached well beyond the familiar singles. At Primavera Sound in Barcelona, the band revived Mint Car for the first time since 2016, alt.end for the first time since 2018, and 2 Late and Wrong Number for the first time since 2019. At North Festival in Porto, Treasure returned after an absence dating to 2013, while In Your House opened an encore devoted to Seventeen Seconds, followed by M, Play For Today, and A Forest.
Smith’s Primavera visit also included the live debut of What’s Wrong With Me alongside Olivia Rodrigo, extending their association after his guest appearance during her Glastonbury set in 2025. Meanwhile, Songs Of A Lost World earned The Cure two Grammy awards in 2026: Best Alternative Music Album and Best Alternative Music Performance for Alone.
Beyond his own band, Smith curated the Teenage Cancer Trust concert series at the Royal Albert Hall from March 23–29. The bill included My Bloody Valentine, Mogwai, Manic Street Preachers, Garbage, Wolf Alice, and Elbow, alongside a comedy evening and special guests including CHVRCHES and Placebo.
The charitable work has continued into the autumn. September brought a raffle for the guitar Smith played at Rock en Seine in support of Médecins Sans Frontières, followed by a Boys Don’t Cry music box, with artwork by Andy Vella and proceeds benefiting the same organisation. On November 2, the band announced Smith’s contribution to Heart Research UK’s anonymous art auction, which runs until November 8.
For more on The Cure, pick up The Cure’s Disintegration, the new book by our Senior Editor Andi Harriman. Part of Bloomsbury’s 33⅓ series, it explores the personal and creative upheaval behind the band’s 1989 album through the lens of Charles Baudelaire’s poem Spleen. Order your copy here.
Follow The Cure:
