#64. "Fascination Street" - The Cure (1989)

The Cure are one of the most misunderstood bands of all time. 

First of all, they are not "goth". I'd argue they are unclassifiable (is that even a word?). And man, I like to make me some categories...

Kings of versatility, The Cure can play any style they dang well please.

Pick up any album since 1982 and you'll discover a diverse range of moods and sounds (rock, pop, bitter and the sweet, the three minute orchestral openings, the painfully sad and slow dirges to the insanely happy, loonie-tunes and everything in between).

"Fascination Street" is a masterpiece of texture. 

Epic may be an overused adjective these days but the word defines this track perfectly. The sweeping layered intro lasts 1:20 before Robert Smith's first vocal kicks in. 

Everyone brings it on this intense groove: from Simon Gallup's throbbing even menacing bass line, the hypnotic rhythm guitar, and just enough (but not too much) synth. 

The song is apparently a tribute to the band's escapades on New Orlean's Bourbon Street. Or it could be about a disintegrating relationship? That's the beauty musical lyrics, the multiple interpretations.