Mr. Smith: "We are the future of rock"

Calm as any english, The Cure members, Robert Smith ahead, confronted yesterday a difficult day. From Buenos Aires to the Salgado Filho airport, after one competed press conference that lasted more than one hour. But today and tomorrow, to the 21:00h pm, in Gigantinho, is that the best and more famous rock band coming in Brazil will truly show what knows to do. It is the premiere of its brazilian tour, that later will go to Belo Horizonte, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo.
More than a hundred thousand people should attend the eight presentations that will do at the country. The twenty-six thousand concert tickets placed for sale for it shows in Gigantinho are practically sould out since yesterday.
"Each one of us should have an different image from Brazil. For me it is football, heat and beach. I intend to attend a football play and I know that I am not going to the beach because I don't want to burn".
They were those Robert Smith first impressions, The Cure leader, last night in the prees conference of more than one hour given by him and attended by the other band members, in the São Rafael hotel. Several reporters and photographers of the Porto Alegre, Rio and São Paulo press crowded round in a small room to hear the five english musicians' declarations. They heard in fact what wanted: Robert Smith speaking, always gentile but seeming a little bored. He practically didn't permit the other members open their mouth. And they, exception of Lol Tolhurst, didn't insist on that.
The questions as always, were the most varied possible, composing an a little chaotic scene that Bob answered in the way he could. He was sometimes prolonged, sometimes being cordial.
Do you like the brazilian beer? "No doubt it is better than the argentinian". Speak about the mentions as 'dark' or 'cold wave' that are attributed to the group music and posture. "I don't understand that history very well about 'dark'. When I see someone I will pay attention". And your pessimism aspects? "Before there was a certain lack of concern, a certain unexpectation, that now we are trying to control". How about to be a pop-star? "We are just considered as pop-stars in situations like this, but we cannot continues seriously with that. In London, for example, we are seen as common people. The success is not a very big concern in the band. If you start wanting to be a pop-star, you will last very a little. But if you make a work without that pretense type, you stay". What is the future of rock? "We are the future of rock..."
While the enormous and severe bodyguard impeded the approach of any person that didn't have journalist's identification, Bob continued answering to the questions while the other members drank mineral water, wine and beers, always very serious. The white tshirt of Bob contrasted with Simon Gallup, Boris Willians and Lol Tolhurst's black clothes and with Porl Thompson's blue jacket.
There are two years ago they already thought of playing in Brazil, but they decided to wait until Cure consolidated a position here. Bob thinks in Brazil all the people like samba, in the strong rhythm of the music. But if lived here, he declared that would make a music without any rhythm. And what he thinks about the black rhythms, that do obtain success in the whole globe?"That is an idiom invented by the show bussiness. The black music always existed, its influence is very old". What music type does drawn Cures? "Who drawn us are people out of the pop universe. In the pop, we like Echo And The Bunnymen, for example". The new Cure disc will be a double album with 18 songs. Bob guarantees that doesn't resemble anything than they ever did up to the moment.
Concerning to the public that they are finding in this trip, he thinkied them too excited. What difference does have among playing for that public and New York's public? "Here the people are really excited, they really want to see us. Better than in New York, no doubt, where the public is very critical, always hoping the group that plays today is better than the group that played yesterday". Bob Smith knows how to be political. In a question about the Malvinas, he said that was a government war and the people don't have to do anything with it. "In Argentina, the people went to see Cure to play, and not a 'english group'. Stupid people just confused us with that history. The intelligent and illustrious people don't make that".
Now, about the show in Gigantinho, Robert and his friends are calm: "As we are not promoting a disc, we felt as if we were on hollydays. We will play what we want, music of all the discs and perhaps an or other unpublished one".
Poladian, company promoter of The Cure coming to Brazil, maintained in secret the band arrival schedule to Porto Alegre, to avoid gatherings. Nevertheless, about a hundred fans stayed during yesterday's day in the hope of seeing Robert Smith and The Cure more closely. Expectation frustrated by the strong safety scheme. The group disembarked at 17:50h pm from Cruzeiro airplane that brought them of Buenos Aires. The people that waited for them in front of the Plaza São Rafael hotel had more luck. Smith was the last to go down of the bus, that had the whole itinerary escorted by a police's vehicle.
In the hotel, The Cure members were in five normal apartments. They took a shower, had dinner and gave a press conference, that began at 20:45:00 pm. Elizabeth Reichman, Poladian employee, said that none of the members made some special recommendation with relationship to the lodging.
During the two days that The Cure stay in Porto Alegre, the bodyguards won't rest. They are many to maintain the whole hysteria at the distance, including the press, that today and tomorrow will just have ten minutes to photograph the band in Gigantinho.
(Juarez Fonseca and Carmem Gonçalvez - March/87)