The Cure Plays the Hits, Robert Smith Tears Up at Øya Fest: Review

For the first five minutes of the Cure‘s headlining set at Øyafestivalen in Oslo, Norway, Robert Smith stared out at the packed crowd and smiled.

As the band played the long, atmospheric introduction to “Alone” — the opening track of their great 2024 album “Songs of a Lost World” — Smith stood there positively beaming, hands clasped awkwardly in front of his usual all-black outfit. It’s a marked change in disposition from the last time I saw the Cure perform at the Hollywood Bowl in 2023, as part of their first North American tour in seven years. That set, though transcendent, had an air of nervousness to it as the band debuted the songs that would become their 14th album. Smith also seemed to be grappling with his own mortality, delivering several monologues throughout the night about growing older and time slipping by. Now, the frontman seems to have embraced it — and having previously said the Cure would retire in 2029 timed to the band’s 50th anniversary, he’s making the most of the time they have left.

On Wednesday night in Oslo, that meant delivering a hit-filled, two-and-a-half hour set in which Smith’s own whimsical spirit was on full display. After “Alone,” the show got off to a strong start with the 1989 classic “Pictures of You” — the perfect example of the Cure’s happy music/sad lyrics modus operandi — followed by a zany rendition of “High” (during which Smith delightfully mimed the “bite my fingers through” line) and the soul-touching “Lovesong,” which got the crowd singing along.

It’s the same four-strong stretch the Cure has been employing for most of their prolific festival run this summer, but afterwards the band found ways to switch it up, adding the pleasant surprise of “Alt.End” and “The Last Day of Summer” from the early aughts. How Smith’s voice still sounds the same it did in 1979 — velvety smooth and without a single crack, unless he wills it to happen — should really be studied. And the band — including bassist Simon Gallup, keyboardist Roger O’Donnell, drummer Jason Cooper and guitarist Reeves Gabrels — is as tight as ever, as if they could play these songs in their sleep (at this point, they probably could).

Though Smith seemed in high spirits, the set hit an emotional peak after “In Between Days” and “Just Like Heaven” were played back to back. As the final notes of “Just Like Heaven” rang out, Smith took a moment to wipe tears from his eyes. “It’s strange, that song,” he said to the crowd, his voice wobbling. “Every now and then, that last bit…” Smith trailed off, but again smiled. Perhaps they were happy tears.

Cutting through the emotion, “Seventeen Seconds” tracks “Play for Today” and “A Forest” provided a spotlight for the band to jam out, with Smith and Gallup standing back-to-back for a slowed-down intro to the latter that built to a satisfying groove. That momentum stayed through “Wish” epic “From the Edge of the Deep Green Sea,” with Smith waving his hands around to accompany his devastating lyrics, ever the master storyteller. The set closed with “Endsong,” the final track of “Songs of a Lost World,” and the only other song from their new album the band would play. Hearing it mixed in with so many hits from over the years, it became clear just how cohesive the new record is with the rest of their discography — not an easy feat for a band that’s been around for nearly half a century.

Though they then briefly went off stage, the set was far from over. The Cure proceeded to deliver a stacked 10-track encore, during which Smith really let loose. In “Lullaby,” he performed as if the spider from the song was actually climbing up his body, ending the tune by pretending to eat it. During “The Lovecats,” he pawed around and hissed, and “Close to Me” prompted him to leave his guitar behind and walk from one side of the stage to the other, hopping and dancing around like a goth fairy.

Introducing the final track, Smith injected some humor: “This is a new song, it’s called ‘Boys Don’t Cry.’” His earlier display of emotion made the song’s meaning hit even harder — and as the crowd erupted into jumps and shouts of glee, Smith stood there, a grin growing on his lipsticked mouth.

See the full setlist below.

“Alone”

“Pictures of You”

“High”

“Lovesong”

“Burn”

“Fascination Street”

“Never Enough”

“Alt.end”

“Push”

“In Between Days”

“Just Like Heaven”

“The Last Day of Summer”

“A Night Like This”

“Secrets”

“Play for Today”

“A Forest”

“From the Edge of the Deep Green Sea”

“Endsong”

ENCORE

“Lullaby”

“Wrong Number”

“The Walk”

“Mint Car”

“The Lovecats”

“Let’s Go to Bed”

“Friday I’m in Love”

“Close to Me”

“Why Can’t I Be You?”

“Boys Don’t Cry”