I should actually like The Cure. I have a soft spot for their dark post-punk/new wave sound. Their guitar sound is instantly recognisable, and the basslines really define their sound. Unfortunately, I just can’t get on with Robert Smith’s vocals. His affected mannerisms and whiny tone in particular really get on my nerves. I simply can’t take that sort of thing seriously. Then there’s the whole gothic aesthetic. It's rather silly and tends to appeal more to young girls with a soft spot for pale vampires. I could overlook it — goodness me, I listen to more than my fair share of bands with questionable outfits — if I enjoyed the vocals more. "Disintegration" is probably The Cure’s best album and certainly deserves full marks if you can stomach the vocals. As it is, however, I have to mark it down a bit because Smith's whining smothers the whole album. Nevertheless, it’s a milestone in the genre, especially given that it emerged at the end of the 1980s when there was a real vacuum in pop and rock music, which had become utterly saccharine. It has to be acknowledged that The Cure have consistently resisted the temptation to pander in their music, even though they certainly have a great talent for pop songs. Their best songs are always the ones that weren’t released as singles.