| "Alone" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single bythe Cure | ||||
| from the albumSongs of a Lost World | ||||
| Released | 26 September 2024 (2024-09-26) | |||
| Genre | Gothic rock | |||
| Length | 6:48 | |||
| Label | Polydor | |||
| Songwriter | Robert Smith | |||
| Producers |
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| The Cure singles chronology | ||||
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| Lyric video | ||||
| "Alone" onYouTube | ||||
"Alone" is a song by the Englishrock bandthe Cure from their fourteenth studio album,Songs of a Lost World (2024). The song was written in 2019 afterRobert Smith rediscovered the poem "Dregs" byErnest Dowson and borrowed from its imagery. It is agothic rock song that prominently features drums, guitar,synthesisers, and piano. It begins with over three minutes of instrumentals, before Smith begins to sing; music critics observed that the lyrics focused on themes of mortality and environmentalism. The track was written by Smith and was produced by him andPaul Corkett.
The Cure debuted the song in live performances during the band's 2022–2023Shows of a Lost World tour. It was later released on 26 September 2024 as the lead single forSongs of a Lost World, being the first new material that the band released since their previous studio album4:13 Dream (2008). "Alone" received strong reviews from critics, with particular praise towards its atmosphere, its scope, and Smith's vocal performance. It peaked at number 6 on theUK Singles Sales Chart, and charted in Australia, New Zealand, and the United States. Various publications included "Alone" in their year-end lists of the best songs of 2024. It also wonBest Alternative Music Performance at the68th Annual Grammy Awards in 2026.
After the release of4:13 Dream in 2008, the Cure prioritised touring in the 2010s instead of recording and releasing new music.[1] The band initially announced in early 2014 that their next studio album, a follow-up to4:13 Dream titled4:14 Scream, would be released later that year. However, the album was never released.[1][2] Similarly, the band considered creating a new album to commemorate their 40th anniversary in 2018; however, it never materialised.[3] Later, in 2019, the band once again began recording new music, under the working titleLive From the Moon. The tracks created during these sessions eventually becameSongs of a Lost World.[3][4]
According to Smith, "Alone" was completed in 2019 when he looked through a journal where he collected and transcribed "interesting" rhymes and phrases. In it, he rediscovered "Dregs", a poem byErnest Dowson, and took inspiration from its imagery.[5][6] Smith later recalled that "Alone" was the track which established the record's themes, saying that he was merely searching for the "right opening line for the right opening song".[5]
"Alone" has a length of six minutes and forty-eight seconds.[7] According toUniversal Music Publishing Group's digital sheet music of the track, "Alone" is in the key ofA minor, is incommon time, and runs at the moderately fasttempo of 100 beats per minute.[8] The track begins with three minutes and twenty-one seconds of "charcoal-shaded" instrumentals before Smith begins to sing.[9] Instrumentally, the song prominently features "hollow" drums, distorted guitar, "symphonic"synthesisers,[9] and a "descendingtriplet" pattern played on piano and guitar.[4]The Telegraph'sNeil McCormick described "Alone" as "the mostGoth song ever made", citing itsWall of Sound approach,[10] whileMark Beaumont, writing forThe Independent, stylistically compared the track tonu-shoegaze.[11]
Andrew Trendell ofNME observed that "Alone" was more similar to the band's "cinematic and expansive" output, as opposed to their poppier fare.[12] Smith stated that the soundscapes ofSongs of a Lost World as a whole harkened back to the band's work onDisintegration (1989).[13] Music critics widely agreed with this comparison for "Alone",[a] withAlexis Petridis ofThe Guardian and Michael Bonner ofUncut specifically comparing it toDisintegration's opening track "Plainsong".[22][23] Some critics also added that the song also resembled tracks onPornography (1982)[17][18][22] andBloodflowers (2000).[18][21][23] Additionally, both McCormick andVariety's A.D. Amorosi compared "Alone" to works byDavid Bowie; the former described the song as aBerlin Trilogy track being "waterboarded with buckets of oil", while the latter likened the song's instrumental introduction to "Blackstar".[10][24]
Lyrically, "Alone" borrows imagery from the Ernest Dowson poem "Dregs", while also containing references to plummeting birds and dashed dreams.[22] Petridis interpreted the track as being about mortality, which he linked to the deaths of Smith's parents and older brother during the recording process ofSongs for a Lost World.[22] Sam Walker-Smart ofClash agreed with this point, suggesting that those deaths alongside Smith's curation of the 2018Meltdown festival allowed him to "tap into that deep well of emotion and creativity from which The Cure has built their legacy".[21] In addition, Alex Burrows ofClassic Rock saw themes of environmentalism in "Alone", writing that the song laments the inability for humans to prevent Earth's destruction.[25]Beats Per Minute's Todd Dedman agreed that the track thematically focuses on both death and the environment, while he also found themes of friendships and time.[26]
On 6 October 2022, "Alone" debuted live inRiga during the first performance ofShows of a Lost World, the band'sconcert tour in support ofSongs of a Lost World. It was the first song played during every show of that tour.[27][28] Later, an 18-second preview of the track was posted to the band's social media on 23 September 2024. It was fully released as a single three days later, being premiered at noon onBBC Radio 6 duringMary Anne Hobbs' show; it was the first new song released by the band since 2008.[29][30] Various remixes of "Alone", created byFour Tet,Shanti Celeste, andEx-Easter Island Head, were also released on 13 June 2025 as part ofMixes of a Lost World.[31] The Four Tet remix of "Alone" was previously released in the United Kingdom as an exclusivetwelve-inch single forRecord Store Day on 12 April.[32]
In the United Kingdom, "Alone" reachedNo. 6 on theSingles Sales chart and No. 26 on theSingles Downloads chart.[33][34] It also charted in the United States on theAlternative Digital Song Sales andRock Digital Song Sales charts at No. 10 and No. 15, respectively.[35][36] Additionally, the song reached No. 22 on theNew Zealand Hot Singles chart, and No. 31 on theAustralia Digital Tracks chart.[37][38]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Clash |   [21] |
| The Guardian | [22] |
| The Irish Times | [17] |
| PopMatters | [18] |
| The Telegraph | [10] |
| The Times | [9] |
Upon its release as a single, "Alone" received critical acclaim from music critics. Walker-Smart declared that "Alone" was among the band's best works since the early 1990s, and particularly praised Smith's "bizarrely ageless" vocals.[21]Will Hodgkinson ofThe Times concurred, writing that Smith's vocals evoked a "teenage romantic" despite his age, and that "Alone" reflected the band's allure of being "locked within eternal youth".[9] The song's melancholic atmosphere received particular praise from critics. Alison Ross ofPopMatters called it one of the band's "most devastating" songs,[18] whileThe Irish Times's Ed Power compared "Alone" to a "huge aching sigh" in that it elicited comfort through its darkness.[17] McCormick found that the song was "gripping" despite its sorrowful mood,[10] while Petridis found that its lyrics and Smith's performance strayed from the band's previous,nihilistic attitude towards death.[22] Various publications listed "Alone" in their lists of that week's best songs:Consequence, with Jonah Krueger praising its production despite writing that the band was retreading its past sounds and themes;[39]Stereogum, with Tom Breihan opining that the song was both ambitious and elegant;[14]Under the Radar, with Mark Redfern declaring that there was "no other choice" for the best song of the week;[40] andUproxx, which included "Alone" in a list of that week's bestindie music.[41]
"Alone" continued to receive acclaim after the release ofSongs of a Lost World.Rolling Stone'sRob Sheffield called it the band's "tour de force",[42] whileThe Skinny's Lewis Wade listed "Alone" as a standout on the record, alongside "And Nothing is Forever".[20] Ben Cardew ofPitchfork, Lewie Parkinson-Jones ofSlant, and Dom Gourlay ofUnder the Radar all called the track "epic" in their reviews of the album, with Gourlay calling it the band's "most quintessential entrée" since "Plainsong".[43][44][45] In contrast, Dedman lauded the song for its intimacy in spite of its grandiose themes.[26] Multiple critics praised its placement as the album's opening track.[16][46] Mark Richardson ofThe Wall Street Journal observed how "Alone" followed the tradition of the Cure beginning their albums with long instrumental sections, and that it evoked a comforting yet melancholic atmosphere.[47] Meanwhile,Paste's Elise Soutar wrote that the track "serve[d] the same purpose" as the lead single and as the album's opening track, through how it "crack[ed] open a desolate sonic sky".[48] Additionally, several critics noticed similarities between the sounds and lyrical themes of "Alone" and "Endsong", the final track onSongs of a Lost World.[49][50][51] In his ranking ofSongs of a Lost World, Al Shipley ofBillboard placed "Alone" at No. five (out of eight); he wrote that the track did not sound like a lead single, yet that it proved the record as a whole would appeal to fans over chasing radio success.[4]
Several music critics included "Alone" in their rankings of the band's best songs. Petridis placed it at No. 13 on his list of the band's 20 greatest songs, calling it a "triumph" due to its intensity and sentimentality.[52]Clash's writers included "Alone" in their unranked list of the band's 15 best songs, with Robin Murray commending the Cure for being "in full control of their artistry".[53] The staff ofMojo ranked it at No. 29 in their list of the band's 30 greatest songs, praising it as a strong comeback for the band.[54]
A multitude of publications included "Alone" in their lists of the best songs of 2024. In addition, "Alone" wonBest Alternative Music Performance during the68th Annual Grammy Awards in 2026.[55]
| Publication | Accolade | Rank | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Consequence | 200 Best Songs of 2024 | 12 | [56] |
| DIY | Tracks of the Year 2024 | 15[b] | [57] |
| The Guardian | The 20 Best Songs of 2024 | 11 | [58] |
| The Independent | The 20 Best Songs of 2024 | 6 | [59] |
| NME | The 50 Best Songs of 2024 | 19 | [60] |
| Paste | The 100 Best Songs of 2024 | 47 | [61] |
| Pitchfork | The 100 Best Songs of 2024 | 15 | [62] |
| Stereogum | The 50 Best Songs of 2024 | 11 | [63] |
Credits are adapted fromApple Music.[7]
| Chart (2024–2025) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia Digital Tracks (ARIA)[38] | 31 |
| New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ)[37] | 22 |
| UK Singles Downloads (OCC)[34] | 26 |
| UK Singles Sales (OCC)[33] | 6 |
| USRock Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[36] | 15 |
| USAlternative Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[35] | 10 |
| Studio albums | |
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| Live albums | |
| Compilations | |
| Remix albums | |
| Extended plays | |
| Singles |
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| Other songs | |
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| Related articles | |
