Of the many bands who turned in noteworthy sets at this year's Lollapalooza, the band that stole the show was The Cure. Sure, since they were Sunday night's headline attraction, they didn't actually steal the show from anyone, but their performance surpassed even the highest expectations of the most ardent fan and proved yet again that Robert Smith is a national treasure (yes, I know he's British!).
From the ethereal opening moments of "Plainsong" to the closing refrain of "Boys Don't Cry", Smith had the sold-out Lollapalooza crowd in the palm of his hands for the duration of his band's career-spanning 26-song set. While The Cure have been criticized in the past for set lists that either leaned too heavily on the hits, or didn't lean heavily enough, Sunday's masterfully slow-building performance struck a perfect balance.
SET LIST:
1. “Plainsong”
2. “Pictures of You”
3. “Lullaby”
4. “High”
5. “The End of the World”
6. “Lovesong”
7. “In Between Days”
8. “Just Like Heaven”
9. “From the Edge of the Deep Green Sea”
10. “The Walk”
11. “Mint Car”
12. “Friday I’m in Love”
13. “Doing the Unstuck”
14. “Trust”
15. “Want”
16. “Fascination Street”
17. “The Hungry Ghost”
18. “Wrong Number”
19. “One Hundred Years”
20. “Disintegration”
21. “The Lovecats”
22. “The Caterpillar”
23. “Close to Me”
24, “Let’s Go to Bed”
25. “Why Can’t I Be You?”
26. “Boys Don’t Cry”