What about Wish or Wild Mood Swings? I like those very much :)

That's where they got lame, imo. They still had some decent songs here and there, but overall I'm not a fan of their post-80s career.

It took awhile but I started to really like their 2004 self-titled album.

That's my favorite album from their post 80's era :)

Well I'm not banned yet. 👍

I find Smiths bland and boring, and tbh I have other biased reasons why I can't stand them.

The Cure for me.

The Cure

Oh boy where do I start? I guess f*ck you for making me choose. Really I love both bands to bits and both have played a huge part in making me who I am. But looking at both bands:

The Cure: I got into The Cure before The Smiths so their music has stuck with me the longest. No two Cure albums sound the same and therefore they have an incredibly varied and colourful discography compared to some bands who churn out nearly the same album every time. While not all their albums are classics, their 80's albums (apart from The Top) certainly are. They were hit and miss after that but I still enjoy Wish and their self-titled quite a bit. Robert Smith might not have the lyrical skills and wit of Morrissey but he has a voice that's unmistakable and is responsible for some of the most amazing guitar sounds I've ever heard, and of course some of the most amazings songs I've ever heard.

The Smiths: I seem to listen to The Smiths more than The Cure these days, although that could swing around within a few months. The Smiths give me a greater sense of isolation and outsiderism that is almost comforting and romantic in a way. The combination of Morrissey's lyrics and Johnny Marr's guitar playing is a match made in heaven and made them untouchable, that kind of chemistry cannot be matched very easily. Unlike The Cure who have probably released more albums than they should have, The Smiths had that perfect career where they didn't stick around and let their music become a shadow of their glory years, their short career was their glory years.

At the moment I'm not really that biased towards either band, but The Cure have been one of my favourite bands for a long time and their music has left a deeper imprint.

:beer:

Good minds think alike :D

I think The Top was a messy and unfocused effort, even 'The Caterpiller' was a weak single compared to their other singles in the 80's. The Head On The Door felt like the rebirth of The Cure in a way.

The Smiths. As much as I like The Cure's first 8 or 9 albums (and, yes, I might like The Top more than most possibly for being the mess that it is. "Shake Dog Shake" is still a favorite), The Smiths to me had a more solid collection of songs from start to finish. Johnny Marr's playing is something I always value highly, Morrissey's lyrics connected with a lot of their listeners, the humor was sharp, they had excellent singles (great A's and B's enough for many excellent collections), and they ended at the right time winding up a very iconic band. It's great that The Cure has continued for a long time, but music-wise, The Smiths were the band that had everything more right on target.