“This is the end of every song that we sing…”
The Cure began the inaugural gig of their 2022 European tour in Riga, Latvia, on Thursday, October 6th, treating fans to two new compositions during their twenty-five-song setlist. Not only that but fans were also surprised to see The Cure as a six-piece at the beginning of the concert, as guitarist and keyboardist Perry Bamonte took the stage, returning to the band after nearly two decades.
Bamonte had previously joined The Cure in 1990, replacing initially replacing Roger O’Donnell. He would then go on to play both guitar and keyboards on the band’s 1992 album Wish, even receiving writing credits on the album’s heartbreaking track ‘Trust.”
Following the departure of Porl Thompson in 1993, Bamonte would take on lead guitar duties, appearing on the albums Wild Mood Swings, Bloodflowers, and the 2004 self-titled album, The Cure, before being let go from the band in 2005.
Bamonte shared the stage with The Cure for the first time since his departure during the band’s 2019 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inauguration ceremony, and the October 6th, 2022 gig marks his first time performing as a member of the band in 18 years.
The two new songs, “Alone” and “Endsong,” performed at the gig in Lativa, are presumably from the band’s forthcoming fourteenth studio album, Songs Of A Lost World, and have a Disintegration and Wish era style and mood to them.
The first song, the seven-minute long “Alone,” opened the set, feeling like an instrumental track off of Lost Wishes for the first half of its duration, with frontman Robert Smith walking on stage without his guitar, eventually singing the lyrics “This is the end of every song that we sing,” with a projection of the earth looming behind him.
“Endsong” marked the end of the main part of the set before both encores, serving as a 10-minute dirge where Robert Smith made good on his promise of relentless “doom and gloom.” Traces of “All Cats Are Grey” can be heard in the percussion, which works in perfect cinematic tandem with guitars, synths, and bass, that echo the deepest cuts from The Cure circa 1989 to 1992. It takes over six minutes for the vocals to kick, chanting out the lyrics, “I’m outside in the dark, staring at the blood-red moon,” while a projection of a lunar eclipse bathes the stage in scarlet hues.
The Cure continues their 44-date European tour in Helsinki, Finland, on October 8th.
See the full setlist from the gig in Latvia below:
Setlist:
Alone (World Debut)
Pictures of You
Closedown
A Night Like This
Lovesong
Trust (First time since 2016)
Burn
Fascination Street
Push
In Between Days
Play for Today
A Forest
Want
Shake Dog Shake
39
From the Edge of the Deep Green Sea
Endsong (World Debut)
Encore:
Plainsong
Disintegration
Encore 2:
Lullaby
Close to Me
The Walk
Friday I’m in Love
Just Like Heaven
Boys Don’t Cry
The Cure 2022 European Tourdates:
OCTOBER
06 – RIGA Arena
08 – HELSINKI Hartwall Arena
10 – STOCKHOLM Avicii Arena
12 – OSLO Spektrum
13 – GOTHENBURG Scandinavium
14 – COPENHAGEN Royal Arena
16 – HAMBURG Barclaycard Arena
17 – LEIPZIG Quarterback Immobilien Arena
18 – BERLIN Mercedes Benz Arena
20 – KRAKOW Tauron Arena
21 – LODZ Atlas Arena
23 – VIENNA Marx Halle
24 – PRAGUE O2 Arena
26 – BUDAPEST Arena
27 – ZAGREB Arena
29 – MUNICH Olympiahalle
31 – BOLOGNA Unipol Arena
NOVEMBER
01 – FIRENZE Mandela Forum
03 – PADOVA Kioene Arena
04 – MILAN Forum
06 – GENEVA Arena
07 – LYON Halle Tony Garnier
08 – MONTPELLIER Sud De France Arena
10 – BARCELONA Palau Sant Jordi
11 – MADRID WiZink Centre
13 – TOULOUSE Zenith
14 – BORDEAUX Arkea Arena
15 – NANTES Zenith
17 – FRANKFURT Festhalle
18 – STRASBOURG Zenith
19 – BASEL St Jakobshalle
21 – STUTTGART Hans-Martin-Schleyer-Halle
22 – KOLN Lanxess Arena
23 – ANTWERP Sportpaleis
25 – AMSTERDAM Ziggo Dome
27 – LIEVIN Stade
28 – PARIS Accor Arena
DECEMBER
01 – DUBLIN 3Arena
02 – BELFAST SSE Arena
04 – GLASGOW OVO Hydro
06 – LEEDS First Direct Arena
07 – BIRMINGHAM Utilita Arena
08 – CARDIFF Motorpoint Arena
11 – WEMBLEY SSE Arena
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