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The Cure Album: “Seventeen Seconds”
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Release Date:2005-05-06
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Type:Album
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Genre:Adult Alternative, New Wave, Brit Rock
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Label:Fiction
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Explicit Lyrics:No
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UPC:00602498218310
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Review - :
Approximately five months after {@Rhino} released the two-disc reissue of {^Three Imaginary Boys}, the label gave {$Cure} albums two through four -- 1980's {^Seventeen Seconds}, 1981's {^Faith}, 1982's {^Pornography} -- similar treatment, with scads of photos, biographical liner notes, and archive ransackings all part of the design. The initial bare-bones CD issues of these albums had been sounding increasingly thin and quiet across a decade (when compared to other artists' upgraded catalogs), so the improved sound is reason enough to be pleased. Since all the B-sides were put together for the {^Join the Dots} box, the second disc for each reissue is reserved for other rarities, outtakes, demos, and live material. This gives voracious fans a convenient if costly feast, free of overlap, assuming they have enthusiasm for everything {$the Cure} recorded throughout two and a half decades. Many fans who lean toward a particular phase of the group -- boiling it down to whether they prefer their gloom to be delivered in shadowy streaks or thick torrents (plus the occasional oddball {\pop} song, of course) -- would've preferred to have the B-sides bound to the respective albums. {^Seventeen Seconds}, part of the phase involving shadowy streaks of gloom, is joined here by nearly an hour's worth of extras -- most of which are throwaways. The two bouncy, humorous songs off the single from the {$Cult Hero} side project are contained, along with rowdier live versions. {&"M"} (from a 1980 Arnhem gig), along with five more songs off the album (from a French appearance a month later), also come in live form; unless you're a crazed admirer in some sense, they're inconsequential after the first pass. The same goes for a pair of demos, and an alternate mix of {&"Three"} is of some interest (but not much). {^Seventeen Seconds} itself has held up tremendously well and is, naturally, the best reason to get hold of the set. ~ Andy Kellman, All Music Guide
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