Review

Robert Smith's latest venture into the remix realm arrives with both charitable intent and artistic ambition, though the results prove rather more uneven than one might hope. Conceived and compiled by Robert Smith himself, this collection transforms last year's triumphant return 'Songs of a Lost World' into something altogether more diffuse and, dare one say, occasionally bewildering. The collaborative roster reads like a Who's Who of electronic music's current moment—Four Tet, Orbital, Paul Oakenfold, and Mogwai among them—yet the results suggest that not all of Smith's melancholic gothic grandeur translates seamlessly into the hands of laptop wizards. Where some remixers, particularly Four Tet's characteristically delicate touch, manage to preserve the emotional heft whilst adding contemporary flourishes, others seem determined to sand away the very edges that made the original songs so compelling. As The Quietus noted, "the most successful moments are those which somewhat stifle Robert Smith's sadness"—a curious assessment that perhaps misses the point entirely. The Cure's enduring appeal has always rested upon Smith's ability to transmute personal anguish into something universally resonant, and when that alchemy is disrupted, what remains often feels rather hollow. That said, there's something undeniably generous about this project. All recording royalties benefit War Child UK, transforming what could have been a cynical cash grab into something approaching public service. In these times, when the world seems perpetually ablaze, there's something fitting about The Cure's gloomy romanticism being repurposed for humanitarian ends. The deluxe edition, sprawling across three discs, feels excessive—a case of too much of a sometimes good thing. Still, for completists and those seeking fresh perspectives on familiar material, 'Mixes of a Lost World' offers enough moments of genuine revelation to justify its existence, even if it never quite escapes the shadow of its magnificent predecessor. *Available now via Polydor Records*

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