10 Amazing Rock Bands That Went Pop
3. The Cure
The idea of any goth band selling their souls to be a pop rock act just feels counterproductive on principle. After all, when your whole schtick is about being the dark outsider to the mainstream, how is that argument going to hold any water when you actually become the mainstream? It's not an easy tightrope to walk, and yet the Cure managed to toe the line almost flawlessly once the end of the '80s wrapped up.
During their new wave beginnings, you could see Robert Smith's vision for the Cure as something a bit left of center, with albums like Pornography having just as many weird moments as they did hooks. While these albums all found a respective audience, Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me saw them leaning even harder into the pop formula, even garnering them a hit with Just Like Heaven.
Though Smith always kept the dark edge in the group's sound, the radio friendly side of the band never really changed, as songs like Friday I'm In Love and Lovesong became as popular for their beautiful melodies as they did for Smith's lovelorn lyrical style. The Cure have since moved onto more industrial and even glitchy sounding music as of late, but you can still hear those little traces of beauty sprinkled in there with each passing record.