Now that we've had almost a week to chew on the Cure's announcement and/or pre-announcement for their 2016 tour, some questions come to mind about what to expect from the Cure (live and on record) in 2016. While there are no answers to the questions, it's fun to consider the possibilities while we wait for the full announcement in January.
Will the Cure play marathon shows and what about any potential Reflections/trilogy dates?
For the last several years, other than festival appearances, the Cure have been playing very LONG sets (35 - 40+ songs) with most shows lasting well over three hours and some as long as four. It seems a bit unlikely the Cure, or any band for that matter, would have the physical strength/stamina to keep up that pace for a 25 date tour. As for Reflections/trilogy shows, Robert Smith said in previous interviews that he's (eventually) planning to do another Reflections tour and perform The Top, The Head On The Door, and (Bob's favorite Cure album) Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me in full.
Tour predictions for 2016:
I'd guess the shows will be on average 2 to 3 hours long, packed with hits, fan favorites, and a few rarities. I'd expect that the "25 date North American tour" won't include many (if any) Reflections shows. I could see The Cure doing a trilogy show in a city with multiple dates (either New York or Los Angeles), but I'd bet against a full 25 date Reflections tour.
Will the Cure release a new album in 2016? What about the series of DVDs and those other limited edition collections Bob promised us last year?!?
It's hard to imagine that there won't be a new record in 2016 -- Smith stated he's interested in "moving forward" with the current lineup of the Cure and wants to record new material. Smith also has mentioned putting out a series of live DVDs, but it doesn't make a whole lot of sense to release a live DVD series before heading out on the road to perform live.
The collections Smith announced in 2014 are a bit complicated -- last year Smith said he'd release an album titled 4:13 Scream, and two limited edition collections 4:26 Dream and 4:14 Scream (all three of these releases piggybacking off the 33 song project Smith began in 2007, read more about that here.) When Smith discussed the project last year, he seemed a bit conflicted about revisiting the project.
Release predictions for 2016:
I'd predict a brand new Cure album is released by late spring 2016 with the official announcement coming in January. I don't see the DVD series coming out in 2016, although they could release something in the fall in time for Christmas. I'd also bet the Scream/Dream releases continue to get scrapped/delayed for a while longer, likely not out in 2016.
Stay tuned, because the above are just my silly predictions -- anything could happen and you never know when more info will be announced and/or leaked!
The Cure -- North American tour (dates announced so far)
05/22 -- Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl
05/23 -- Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl
05/24 -- Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl
06/10 -- Chicago, IL @ UIC Pavillion
06/18 -- New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden
06/19 -- New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden