Rob Sheffield’s answer is yes: in his October 28, 2024, Rolling Stone review, he called The Cure’s Songs of a Lost World the “triumphant power-doom epic it needed to be” and judged it the band’s best album since Disintegration. “Power-doom” is Sheffield’s critical description, not an official genre label.
Which album is Sheffield reviewing?
The review concerns Songs of a Lost World, The Cure album released November 1, 2024, on Capitol. Metacritic’s album page identifies the record and reproduces an excerpt from Sheffield’s review.
| # | Preview | Product | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
|
Songs Of A Lost World | $13.38 | Buy on Amazon |
| 2 |
![Songs Of A Lost World[Deluxe Edition 2 CD/Blu-ray Audio]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/411FrfpNrlL._SL160_.jpg)
|
Songs Of A Lost World[Deluxe Edition 2 CD/Blu-ray Audio] | $32.99 | Buy on Amazon |
| 3 |
|
The Cure - Songs Of A Lost World | $21.94 | Buy on Amazon |
| 4 |
|
Mixes Of A Lost World - Deluxe Edition | $22.04 | Buy on Amazon |
The original review’s title, author and publication date are confirmed by Rolling Stone Canada’s adapted French republication. Sheffield’s central claim is a ranking: he hears the album as The Cure’s strongest since 1989’s Disintegration. That is his critical judgment, not an objective consensus about the band’s catalogue.
What does “power-doom” mean here?
Sheffield uses “power-doom” to capture the combination of scale, heaviness and bleak emotional subject matter he hears in the album. His excerpt describes Robert Smith reaching into “the depths of his cobwebbed heart” and going deep into adult loss and grief. The phrase is evocative shorthand for Sheffield’s reading of the record, not a formal classification shared by the cited sources.
#1 Best Overall
- After 16 years, THE CURE is back with their 14th studio album, SONGS OF A LOST WORLD
That framing helps explain why his verdict is about more than a return after a long wait: he presents the album as a late-career work that takes grief seriously and gives it an expansive, forceful form. The available review excerpts support that characterization, but do not establish a definitive comparison of the album’s sound with every earlier Cure release.
How did critics receive the album?
Metacritic’s displayed review-cycle snapshot records a 93 Metascore from 25 critic reviews, with all 25 categorized as positive and none as mixed or negative. This is the aggregator’s dated reception snapshot, not a permanent measure of opinion or a substitute for reading individual reviews.
Rank #2
- After 16 years, THE CURE is back with their 14th studio album, SONGS OF A LOST WORLD
The excerpts collected on the page show why the positive response need not mean every critic made the same argument:
- Force and directness: The Guardian excerpt emphasizes the album’s directness and the strength of its rhythm section.
- Harder-hitting moments: Consequence singles out “Drone:Nodrone” as a tougher point on the record.
- A more qualified comparison: Pitchfork’s excerpt questions whether the album represents a major quality leap over highlights from The Cure’s earlier post-Wish work, while also noting the concentration of the material.
Those are brief publication excerpts rather than full reviews. Taken together, they suggest a useful way to weigh the album: consider its emotional subject matter and intensity, then decide how much you value continuity with the band’s later catalogue versus a dramatic change in direction.
Rank #3
- The Cure
- Songs Of A Lost World
Is it worth the wait?
For Sheffield, the answer is emphatically yes: he calls Songs of a Lost World a triumph and places it above The Cure’s work since Disintegration. The critical snapshot is strongly positive, while Pitchfork’s excerpt supplies a meaningful qualification about how large the album’s improvement is over earlier post-Wish highlights. Readers looking for a sweeping, grief-focused Cure record have a clear case for giving it a try; listeners who want a decisive break from the band’s later work may find the cited evidence less conclusive.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Where can you find the album?
The album’s Metacritic page presents a “Buy Now” option. It does not establish the current stock, price or specific physical edition, so check the live listing before purchasing.
Quick Recap
Rank #4
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
