Review Summary: With nothing left but faith...
The Cure
Faith
Faith is the second album in the Gothic trilogy released by The Cure. It is a transition album from the more post-punk roots of Seventeen Seconds. This is noted as the first album in which a six string bass is played. The cover of the album was designed by Porl Thompson, a former member of The Cure who would later on join The Cure again during the recording of The Top.
Faith differs from its predecessor by the usage of less post-punk songs on this album. However, it is still present on this album, this being the most evident on the tracks “Primary” and “The Drowning Man”. What is also present on this album is the lack of traditional choruses on every song except for “Primary”. This is a recurring songwriting style the Gothic trilogy would almost exclusively use in every song. This album also lacks the haunting ambient noise on this album that was more present on “Seventeen Seconds”. Unlike its predecessor “Seventeen Seconds”, there are no instrumentals on the original LP and CD release (Carnage Visions can only be found on cassette and is an instrumental). “Other Voices” is similar to the track “M” off of “Seventeen Seconds”. More songs on this album are mid-tempo compared to the more subdued nature of “Seventeen Seconds” and the next album “Pornography”. However, there are subdued songs on this album and these downbeat songs are melancholy and moody unlike the more haunting nature of “Seventeen Seconds”.
The overall mood of the album is more concrete than “Seventeen Seconds”. It is a more gloomy and darker album overall than “Seventeen Seconds”. This is not completely exposed on side one as all of the songs on this side are more mid-tempo and upbeat. The second side sans “Doubt” is all downbeat tracks and conveys darker lyrics than side one. This foreshadows the darker sound and the nihilistic lyrics Robert Smith would explore and write during “Pornography”, the successor to “Faith” and the conclusion of the Gothic trilogy.
To describe the mood of the songs better, “The Holy Hour” is gloomy but it is reminiscent of “Seventeen Seconds” and “Primary” is more reminiscent of “Play for Today”, the upbeat song on “Seventeen Seconds” except for it is played at a slightly slower tempo. “The Holy Hour” also conveys a message of longing, a theme found in most songs on “Seventeen Seconds”. The other upbeat song on this album is “Doubt” but it contains darker lyrics as examined in the final lines.
Knowing I'll murder you again
Knowing I'll murder you again
Knowing I'll murder you again
Knowing I'll murder you again
Tonight
This is a definite foreshadow to the morbid lyrics Robert Smith would write during the recording of “Pornography”.
The final track on this album is named “Faith”; this is a recurring theme present in “Seventeen Seconds” up to “The Top”. “Faith” is the most downbeat song on this album. It also conveys the strongest melancholy mood on this album due to the nihilistic and morbid lyrics of the song.
The final tracks from “Seventeen Seconds” to “The Top” are named after the album title. The final tracks on these albums will offer the overall message of the album, the message being typically the last two to three last lines of the song (“Seventeen Seconds” and “The Top” being 2. “Faith” and “Pornography” overall message is conveyed in the last 3 lines.). However, the overall message in “Faith” is the most stressed out of all of the messages in the Gothic Trilogy. It is also the most nihilistic and concrete message out of the Gothic trilogy.
“I went away alone
With nothing left
But faith”
The coda of “With nothing left but faith” shows this is the message of the album. The lines are repeated in a total of 17 times throughout the end of the song (2 with “I went away alone”.). To compare this to the other Gothic trilogy title tracks, “Seventeen Seconds” repeated line is “Seventeen seconds”, this is repeated 2 times. “Pornography” says “I must fight this sickness” 2 times and “The Top” says “Please come back” 3 times (with “All of you” 1 time; this being a message to Simon Gallup it seems.).
“Faith” is the darkest song out of all of the title tracks and the most concrete message throughout the Gothic trilogy.
I recommend this album to any Cure fan, any fan of gothic rock or depressing music fan in general. This is the abandoned middle child of the Gothic trilogy and it needs a listen.
5/5
