The Cure made a triumphant return in 2024 with Songs of a Lost World, their first album in 16 years. Now, in a recent interview on John Kennedy’s Radio X show, frontman Robert Smith has revealed that the follow-up album is nearly complete and could arrive “hopefully before next summer.”
Smith shared that the forthcoming album will include a mix of tracks that didn’t make it onto Songs of a Lost World and entirely new material. “In 2019, we recorded 24 songs for what was going to be a double album, and those eight have come out,” Smith explained, referring to the tracks on Songs of a Lost World. He noted that the new album will likely feature around 10 songs.
The new record is described as both a companion to Songs of a Lost World and a departure in tone. “It’s not as dark in some ways, although it actually has probably the saddest song of all of them on it,” Smith said. “It has a couple of songs that we were playing live that didn’t make it onto Songs of a Lost World, and it has some completely new stuff that no one’s ever heard. But it’s probably more varied, I think.”
Smith specifically mentioned two songs likely to appear on the album. One is It Can Never Be the Same, which the band debuted live in 2016. Smith called it “a song of grief… a very, very old song which we’ve been playing for a long, long time.” Another is A Boy I Never Knew, a track originally written for their 2004 self-titled album. Smith described it as “a sad song, but in a completely different way. That’s me singing about a boy that died a million years ago. About the death of humanity before it started, I think… or something.”
Excitingly, Smith also hinted at a third new album in the works. “Having finished this one [Songs of a Lost World], the second one is virtually finished as well,” he said. “The third one is a bit more difficult because, well, if we get that far… Talking about the third album, you see what I mean? I just can’t help myself.” He previously described this third record as being completely distinct from the first two. “It’s really kind of random stuff, like late-night studio stuff,” he shared. “But some of it is really good actually, it’s just very, very different.”
This creative resurgence marks an exciting period for The Cure, a band that continues to innovate late into their legendary career. With Smith aiming for a summer release of the second album, fans may not have to wait long to hear what’s next. Until then, Songs of a Lost World remains a standout, earning a spot among the 50 best albums of 2024.
