Songs For A Lost World

Friday is always about music. There’s always a playlist too. Today, music to heal. Been a tough week for all I think…

It’s been a tough week for many of us, I would assume. A strange week for me. Mixed emotions, on the one hand a brand new book is out in the world, a launch for it awaits tomorrow — and I’ve had to make a temporary return to Facebook to do some shameless self-promotion.

My working week has been intense, my worlds all swirling deep around each other with university assignments, work newsletters, this Substack caper, and so many other things all competing for time, and energy. I’m also a parent to a teenager now. So, yeah, that happened. We listen to something called Playboi Carti go “Phwayyy!” for whatever reason.

But, it hasn’t all been bad. Oscar also recommended I check out the new Tyler, The Creator this week. And I did. What’s more, I’m certainly very glad I did.

In 2011, Tyler, The Creator — then best known for his association with Odd Future — released an album called Goblin. It was HORRIBLE. Horrendous, homophobic nonsense was how I remember it. And something about him getting banned from performing in New Zealand. And the free speech peeps piped up to complain, because we had different free speech peeps all the way back then. Anyway, I thought Tyler was a stupid little kid then, and he probably was. But my little kid introduced me to Tyler’s albums Igor (2019) and Flower Boy (2017) and Call Me If You Get Lost (2021) and I liked all of them, but especially Igor. I really liked it. And it helped me to think about how people grow up and change, in music, as in life. I’m now pretty excited about the idea of seeing Tyler live next year. But anyway, his brand new album is amazing. I’ve only played it twice, but it’s the album I most want to get lost in right now. Well, one of.

And that’s what today’s newsletter is going to be about. All of this madness that went on this week — our own Prime Minister suggesting democracy to be overrated, refusing to condemn Donald Trump and continuing to defend one of the worst New Zealand ministers to ever, um, have a bit of a go at it… Then of course there was America’s news. Which is both devastating, and actually representative of what America is and clearly what it wants. And I’m thinking that what has helped me get through this week, same as every week, is music. You put it on. You get lost in it. It helps. It takes you away. It smoothes the corners. It soothes the soul. You are reminded of music and memories from the past. Or you hear something brand new and it correctly melts your mind (yet does not break your brain — these are different experiences after all).

At the start of the week I watched Midnight Oil: The Hardest Line — a 2024 documentary release charting this incredible group’s full chronology.

Holy shit, I just love this band! One of the very first cassette tapes I ever bought (Diesel & Dust) and one of the few bands it felt like my whole family could always agree on — we all just loved them. Finally got to see them sometime around 2017/18 — and they did not disappoint. Anyway, all week I thought about Midnight Oil. And played a couple of the albums — but the one I felt was the best, then and now, is the one called 10,9.8.7.6.5.4.3.2.1

I still think Power And The Passion is just an absolute all-timer. But so is most of this album, US Forces, Short Memory, Read About It — but yeah, a real side two lift (if you heard this first on tape, as I did, or vinyl). After US Forces and Power, it’s a song called Maralinga — I was always fascinated by this title because there’s a separate Paul Kelly song (also great) that shares this name. Anyway, this song just hits me with one of those beguiling Midnight Oil melodies and motifs. I also listened to Red Sails In The Sunset —

which I very much love as well. The songs that stand out on that for me are Sleep, Jimmy Sharman’s Boxer’s, Harrisburg, and the great opener, When The General’s Talk. What a wonderful band. What chest-beatingly great music.

I bumped into someone yesterday that knew me as a music reviewer, and he said “I’m missing your reviews — I don’t know what to listen to anymore”. Cue discussion around how no one cares for reviews anymore and not many need them (the music is right there, a dump of it every Friday, new releases all on the same day, spat down the streaming pipe). But then I remembered to point out that I do still write about music. Here. Every Friday. I do like to put together recommendations, it’s not all returning to obsessions like Fleetwood Mac and movie soundtracks.

The album I have listened to the most over the last two weeks is David Long’s new record, All Things Will Stay Silent.

David Long is a legend. Six Volts. Labcoats. All manner of improvising collectives — but you probably best known him for his time served as the guitarist in The Mutton Birds. Since then he’s worked with all sorts of people doing all sorts of things but has mostly created compositions for modern dance, and movie soundtracks. His score to the Ed Hilary documentary, Beyond The Edge is utterly sublime.

David Long: Beyond The Edge [OST]

He’s been making all sorts of interesting music lately, I feel a couple of records behind, but actually I have his last three albums, I’m still absorbing them though. There’s so much magic there. But All Things Will Stay Silent was already feeling like the right balm for this world last week. Now, even more so, it is the tonic. I start most days with a round of it before I do anything else. It’s becoming the musical meditation for the house. Amazing local players on this record. And a beautiful set of recordings. It’s on the Rattle label too — so I might formalise this “review” one day, as I do love to support them for putting the music first and foremost. But for now, take the recommendation. This is a stunning piece of music, six songs that feel like latter period Brian Eno, in terms of the way he is stretching the idea of a ‘song’ across minimalist and group compositional ideals. I don’t really have the words for it — a bonus that no one cares about reviews these days, hey — but I just love this album so much. It arrived, like so much of the very best music, at the very best time.

And finally, the album that somewhat gives us our title today. There is a new album by The Cure.

I have loved The Cure forever really. I feel like everyone loves (likes, at least) The Cure. They’re a band that always has something for you. Mopey or upbeat, depressing or joyous. Sometimes all of those things co-mingle on Cure albums. Sometimes Cure albums are devastating and difficult and all the better for it. There is a certain fatigue that can creep in if you only listen to The Cure. And many of us spent too long in our teens or 20s listening to The Cure and needed a break. I did. And then, a few years ago, I borrowed a bunch of Cure singles from a mate, listened to all these amazing B-sides, did a Cure DJ set for several hours, cherry-picking deep cuts and obvious hit singles. And I could not listen to The Cure really for a while.

But I have always loved them. You know what else? The Cure attracts some metal fans, obviously all manner of goth fans, and loads of pure pop fans. People that like any sort of music can find something in The Cure, there’s a bunch of interesting remixes too — so that allows for some of the groups formed around appreciation of hip-hop/dance/electronica to also explore this music if they weren’t already.

News of a new Cure album — finally — arrived a while back with some trepidation. Their first studio album since 2008, their first I’ve truly cared about since 2004, their first I might actually love since 2000 (geez, but I love Bloodflowers!) But also what if it was just another Wild Mood Swings or 4.13 Dream? You know, I don’t hate those albums. But I just don’t love them.

Anyway, I don’t know if anyone could have predicted that Songs of A Lost World could be this good. The 65yo Robert Smith (writer and producer of all of it) sounds incredible. His voice just fine wine. And I hear shades of career-best albums like Pornography and Disintegration, and for that matter, Bloodflowers — meaning Trilogy is now Quadrology? I love that it is just eight tracks and under 50 minutes. It could have been 73 minutes or something absurd. But no. It is the perfect amount of brand new Cure.

And how about that album title. This is where we are at. And they are helping us heal. And, for that matter, how about that band-name. They really do have the stuff for what ails us. Well, that’s my feeling in these early days of new Cure music.

Way back on Sunday night, when the world was different for a bunch of reasons, I watched the above love stream of The Cure performing the new album in its entirety, and returning for two hours of career-representative hits and highlights. Just wow. I had already started moving through the band’s catalogue from the beginning, in anticipation of the latest record. And I am just so filled with nostalgia and love and admiration for this music.

And that’s what music does. What it’s for. And why we have it. More importantly, why we need it.

Happy Friday. Good luck out there. Happy weekend ahead. Oh, one more thing, as always…

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I have a playlist. I made this one earlier in the week, but I feel its mostly upbeat vibe is a good thing for all of us this weekend. Give it a whirl maybe:

As always, thanks for reading — and listening. Look after yourselves. And each other.