Today The Cure released their first album in sixteen years, Songs Of A Lost World. Two songs from the album were released before today, Alone and A Fragile Thing. I liked both songs, so I decided to preorder their white vinyl version of the album from the band's website, the deluxe CD (as it contains a Blu-ray with the album in surround), and a t-shirt. I thought shipping was a bit too pricey and I could get the items on release day if I waited. So I just closed the window without ordering. Several days later I received an email saying I could get free shipping on my cart. So I decided to go for it but the free shipping was only if you spent over $75. My cart total did exceed that but when I went to buy it, the deluxe CD was sold out. So I ended up not buying from their site but not wanting to miss out on the Deluxe CD, I preordered the Deluxe CD and the indie Marble vinyl copy of the album from one of my favorite record stores, Fingerprints Music in Long Beach.
I saw on The Cure's social media that Fingerprints was going to be one of several indie stores with posters and pin badges (free while supplies last). So I made sure to get to the store today around the time of opening. Usually, you receive a confirmation email that your order is ready for pickup and I had not received one but figured I'd go anyway. It was album release day I figured. I decided to play the new album on Pandora on my drive. I arrived and unfortunately, my order was not there. The marble vinyl and Deluxe CD were supposedly underproduced by the label. I did get a free poster but the record store is not near me. As of closing Friday night, they still haven't received the items. Not necessarily blaming either the record store or the label but it is disappointing that these days it is so much easier to just stream the album than to get a physical copy. Picking up an album on release day has been such a treat over the years. I still remember my Dad driving me to Music Plus to buy Black Celebration by Depeche Mode on the day of its release. I wasn't old enough to drive myself at the time.
I ended up finishing listening to the album on my drive home. Later I commented on a couple of social media posts on Facebook in which people weren't thrilled with the album. I stated that this is The Cure that I love! This album sounds like a continuation of Disintegration to me. I'm a fan of The Cure's darker music and not a fan of their pop songs like "Friday I'm In Love" or "Why Can't I Be You". There are only 8 tracks but all great. On my first listen, the standout tracks I hadn't heard yet were "Warsong" and "Endsong". I've now listened to it twice and I can't wait to listen on vinyl and in surround sound. I listened both times streaming the album via Pandora.
Simon Sanders in the UK sent me a cover version of On The Brink that he performed. He suggested I do a reaction video, so I thought I would share it with everyone. There is an interesting bit with an excerpt of my original demo of On The Brink at the end of the video. It's worth a watch when you have time. Cheers, Rob
If you find the "Mojito Bus" in Favignana, an island off the west coast of Sicily, you never know what you will hear them play! Check out the video to see "On The Brink" playing on their sound system. Thanks to Simon Sanders for sending me this video!
Yes, you read that correctly. To market my new single, On The Brink, I am going to give away a poster autographed by Dave Gahan and Martin Gore of Depeche Mode. Here's how the contest will work:
- Subscribe to youtube.com/robrohm and take a screenshot
- Follow @robrohmmusic on Facebook and take a screenshot
- Follow @robrohm on your favorite music streaming platform such as Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Tidal, or any other popular streaming service, and listen to On The Brink. Take a screenshot.
- Send your screenshots with your name and location to rob@robrohm.com
The Fine Print: Once On The Brink receives 5000 streams on any platform, but this is important, it has to be organic, it cannot be bots. They will know if bots are used and the contest will be over without a prize giveaway.
I will give the autographed poster to a random entry that has followed the instructions above. Entries are accepted from anywhere in the world where it is legal to participate in a contest such as this that is based in the United States. I will ship the poster to the winner wherever they are located. This contest will only run through September. If On The Brink has not reached 5,000 plays on any platform by the end of the month, the contest prize will not be awarded.
Please note that the frame is not included. I have several of these posters that I obtained from the Premium Hospitality VIP package on the Memento Mori tour. The poster artwork is the same as shown but the poster itself may vary slightly from the image shown. It will be mailed in a premium poster tube.
This morning it was my pleasure to speak with Jon Justice on his show, Depeche Mode - The Podcast. We discussed my new single, On The Brink, and it made its debut on the show. We also had a great time discussing Depeche Mode, their future, responded to listener emails, and more. You can play it from whichever service you use to listen to podcasts or listen at the YouTube link below by clicking on the image:
The song is an original composition with guitar, bass guitar, percussion, and keyboards all performed by Rohm. The track was produced by legendary producer and engineer, John Fryer.
John’s production resume is a who’s who of dark wave, industrial, and gothic artists. John has produced Nine Inch Nails, Love & Rockets, The Cocteau Twins, Peter Murphy, Clan Of Xymox, Stabbing Westward, Fad Gadget, Die Krupps, Gravity Kills, and This Mortal Coil amongst others and was an engineer on the first two Depeche Mode albums.
John also produced the previous two singles by Rob Rohm, ‘Fade To Nothing’ and ‘Forever Changed’. Both are available on all major streaming and digital download services. A video for ‘Fade To Nothing’ was directed by Johnny Lee. Johnny is a former MTV VMA award winner for a video he directed for Taboo of the Black Eyed Peas.