The Fat Angel Sings

The Cure announced plans to play a series of Christmas shows at London’s Eventim Apollo, the band promised to deliver “surprises galore”. At tonight’s opening of the three-night stand, The Cure delivered a marathon 40-song set that included a full performance of 1984′s The Top, the live debut of a rare B-side and the reintroduction of songs not played live in decades.

Among the setlist highlights: that full performance of The Top, albeit not in order; the first live performance of The Top’s “Wailing Wall” and “The Empty World” in 30 years; the first-ever performance of Head On the Door-era B-side “A Man Inside My Mouth”; the return of “Piggy in the Mirror” for the first time since 1997; and the first performances of Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me’s “Like Cockatoos” and “Hey You!” in a decade.

The performance of The Top and resurrection of Head on the Door– and Kiss Me-era rarities are certainly in line with Robert Smith’s announcement earlier this year of plans to stage another “Trilogy”-style tour that would find the band performing those three albums. Such a tour, however, has not been announced — nor have any of the other things Smith laid out in that February press release, for that matter.

check out the full setlist from tonight’s show — which, while exceedingly long, still was 10 songs short of the band’s monster 2013 gig in Mexico City — as well as a smattering of video via Chain of Flowers.

Setlist: The Cure, Eventim Apollo, London, UK, 12/21/14

1. “Shake Dog Shake”
2. “Kyoto Song”
3. “A Night Like This”
4. “alt.end”
5. “Wailing Wall” (First time since 1984)
6. “Bananafishbones”
7. “The Caterpillar”
8. “The Walk”
9. “A Man Inside My Mouth” (Live debut)
10. Close to Me”
12. Lullaby”
12. “High”
13. “Birdmad Girl”
14. “Just Like Heaven”
15. “Pictures of You”
16. “Before Three”
17. “Lovesong”
18. “Like Cockatoos” (First time since 2004)
19. “From the Edge of the Deep Green Sea”
20. “Want”
21. “The Hungry Ghost”
22. “One Hundred Years”
23. “Give Me It”

Encore:
24. “The Empty World” (First time since 1984)
25. “Charlotte Sometimes”
26. “Primary”
27. “The Top”

Encore 2:
28. “Dressing Up”
29. “Piggy in the Mirror” (First time since 1997)
30. “Never Enough”
31. “Wrong Number”

Encore 3:
32. “Three Imaginary Boys”
33. “M”
34. “Play for Today”
35. “A Forest”

Encore 4:
36. “The Lovecats”
37. “Let’s Go to Bed”
38. “Why Can’t I Be You?”
39. “Boys Don’t Cry”
40. “Hey You!” (First time since 2004)