The Cure - 4:13 Dream - Music & Performance - CD

4:13 Dream may open with the doomed romanticism of "Underneath the Stars," but that slow-crawling mini-epic is a feint, momentarily disguising how this is the Cure's poppiest album since 1992's Wish. But despite the preponderance of sprightly tempos and singsong hooks, nothing about 4:13 Dream feels especially light, perhaps because Robert Smith chooses to pair these songs with a heavy dose of angst. On "The Reasons Why," the catchiest tune here, Smith sings about suicide with no trace of irony. The pristine production emphasizes Smith's stylized mannerisms. Buried toward the back of 4:13 Dream are two songs with hooks that nevertheless dig underneath the skin: "The Perfect Boy" and "This. Here and Now. With You." ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi