Telehit, Mexico, September 2004 (edited)


-About the creating process of the album, what is the biggest difference between this album and the other ones of the Cure ?

Robert : Hummmm. The most obvious difference is the fact that we played this live in the studio. It sounds strange but I actually sang as we were playing which normally I don't. Normally, we record in layers and we develop the songs and we change them and I chop them up. It sounds weird, but while we are all in the studio, going with kind of an idea of what we want to do and we work it out as we record. But with this one as we had Ross Robinson producing, he took care of all that before we went into the studio. We spend a month playing and playing and playing. So when we were in the studio we actually just spent each day we'd set up and we recorded. It's essentially a live album.


- What could be one of the best memories you have from recording in the studio ?

Robert : I actually had more fun making this record than any other record I've made. Because it was so intense all the time. Ross works as hard as I do. And he's as intense as I can be. He was enthousiastic and totally involved in the process. So it was really nice for me to have someone who was really there all the time. Because normally the band isn't there all the time. They kind of do their bit and they kind of disappear. Most of the time I feel kind of lonely when I am in the studio making albums. Which is a good thing I suppose, when I am singing, it kind of helps me to...


- And sometimes you need that loneliness to create.

Robert : Yeah, there were thousands of times in the studio when I thought this is so good. Really, every time that you finish a song, it's a really great feeling. Every time we finish a mix of a song it's like 'you've made something from nothing'. That's the reason why I still do it, that feeling.


- What's your favorite book ?

Robert : My favorite book of all time ? Hummm... It's very hard. I suppose because a book still holds a place in my heart is the Gormenghast trilogy by Mervyn Peake. Which is a kind of fantasy story. But only because it reminds me of a certain time of my childhood. I've read far better books. Honestly, I couldn't tell you my favorite book. There's no such thing, I like too many different books.


- Did you like comics at that time ?

Robert : Yeah and I still do. In fact I've spent all day yesterday reading comics.


- What is your favorite one ?

Robert : Hummm. Deathlock, the Demolisher.


- You've been involved in music for like 3 decades, what is like the biggest mistake that you think the record industry is doing right now ?

Robert : So many. I think the stupidiest thing that they do is actually... the amount they're forcing people to pay for downloads. It's too much. They all got together and forced Apple to increase the price of downloads on iTunes. In fact they should be reducing it. It should be probably 5 cents a song. And all the money should go to the artist. (laugh). There's been this ongoing struggle for the last 5 years because the needs of distribution as an industry is the key. And the major have been struggling to contain how music is distributed on the internet. And they've come up with such half baked ideas. None of them has really worked. If you buy, at the moment, our album on iTunes, track by track, you actually end up paying as much as if you went out and bought the cd. It doesn't make any sense at all. So just one really big mistake they're making. And as an artist it hurts because they force people to download music illegally still. 'Cause noone's gonna pay 50 cents for a song. Why should you ? It exists as a digital information, it doesn't cost anyone anything.

So anyway. The other mistake which hurts a lot of young bands is the amount of money they spend on things like "Pop Idol" and that sort of shit. All the money that they generate from other bands goes into those ridiculous competitions to find one band that sells like a million albums for like one month and then noone hears about it. Everything has to be speeded up, everything has to sell now... And it's almost like a disregard for cultivating artists who would like to make music in the future...


- What is your own definition of love ?

Robert : Hummm. I suppose for me it's the unability to comprehend a life without the person that I love. I couldn't imagine it. I think, in that sense, you would honestly feel like you would die if that person wasn't there.


- Some people listen to Cure songs when they're sad because they feel somebody understands them. What do you do when you're sad and try to forget about your problems ?

Robert : Through the years there have been various artists... There's always an artist I always refer back to, even when I am making a record, it is Nick Drake. I've always really loved what he does. It's very very emotional, very heart-felt. There's lots of artists down the years I can connect with. Mainly vocalists you can feel are singing from the heart and you just want to lose yourself in that music. There's also, strangely enough... my favorite music for the last few years to listen to when I am feeling a bit down is Mogwai. And they don't really have any vocals. I think it's because it's the most beautiful music I've ever heard. And there's no words. So I just sing to myself when I'm listening to it. They're the best band on the planet.


- Reading the lyrics of one of your songs, Us Or Them, the first thing I thought was "this song is dedicated to Tony Blair".

Robert : It's not exclusively Tony Blair. It's really aimed at Western media and their "everything is black or white". The simplification, the dumbing down of culture. I just feel that for the last few years, it's almost like the tapes are running backwards. I feel like I'm 5 years old : 'these are the bad guys and these are the good guys'. And the world isn't like that. It's very unusual for the Cure to do any kind of political song. Because I like our music to be timeless, I don't really like to put it in the now. But I got so angry and have been angry as the months go by. Take Tony Blair as an exemple 'cause he happens to run the country I live in. One of the very few leaders from the Western world who had actually the trust of a big percentage of the population and completely abused that trust by following North America's lead. Not just the fact that he makes that decision but lies to everyone about why he's making the decision. And then expects everyone to forget that he's abused that trust and it's like 'but trust me now'. You can't do that. It' s like with integrity, once you lose it, you can't decide that you want to get it back.

And it's the same with trust. Someone trusts you and you abuse that trust, that's it. It's a shame because, even I, felt four years ago that we might have a leader would actually socially do some good in our country. He had some good ideas but it's like you're constantly let down by people. Unfortunaltely it seems it's human nature.


- What's your biggest challenge being the lead singer of the Cure ?

Robert : Staying sane ! Because when I do this... The gap of us doing this is quite long and I forget sometimes how disturbed it makes me feel, the constant attention, doing things like this, press conference. I don't feel really confortable doing it I suppose. I like singing but the rest of it I can do without most of the time.


- You play bass, guitar, keyboards, is there any other instrument that you would like to learn how to play ?

Robert : I've had a cello in my house for more than 10 years. With a book on it that says 'learn how to play cello'. And I still haven't got past page 3.


- If you weren't a musician what other thing would you like to be ?

Robert : I would... nothing really. What ever I was, a writer etc, if I had the ability to do something and enjoy it, I would still pick up a guitar and play. So I would end up being a musician. The thing I enjoy the most is making music so... I'd like to be an astronaut actually. I'd like to have a huge telescope at my disposal. I've had a telescope for like 15 years now. It's like a hobby. But you know if I was an astronaut, I'd probably wish I was a guitarist.


- If you could go back in time and see yourself at the time of Three Imaginary Boys, what advice would you give to yourself ?

Robert : There's nothing major I would do differently. I've always followed my instincts, every decision that I've made regardless of the band and what I do with the band has been how I feel, what I feel should be right. So I've never really taken anyone's advice about anything. So, the mistakes that I've made have been my mistakes. I would probably make them again, even if I went back and say 'look, don't do this', I'd say 'what do you know ?'... I'd get rid of Fiction Records 5 years earlier. That's the only thing I'd do differently. The rest of it has been good.


- Did you watch the Nightmare Before Christmas movie ?

Robert : Yeah. It was a very excellent film.


- I really think if Jack was a person, he would be a Cure fan.

Robert : Do you think ? He reminds me of Billy Corgan actually. (laugh). But Billy is a big Cure fan so...


- So you liked the movie.

Robert : Yes, I would like to make a video like that. That kind of style. Very dark animated stuff. But it's very time consuming and very unlikely that we do it. I'd love to write music for a film like that. That would be one ambition, to write the entire score for a film that's good as that.


- Do you have a favorite director ?

Robert : I don't know 'cause I like people for different reasons. Up until recently I liked the Cohen brothers, I've always liked Tim Burton, David Lynch is kind of an interesting director, Pedro Almodovar is a really good director. There's seriously good directors around. I would like at some point to collaborate with someone. Not of that status but someone probably on their first film. And just make a film soundtrack. It's one of the few ambitions I have left...