How a studio mistake improved The Cure's hit song

Robert Smith, the enigmatic frontman of The Cure, has long embraced a form of perfectionism that deviates from conventional musical standards. Instead of focusing on technical precision, Smith prioritizes the emotional impact of music, often achieving his signature dark and atmospheric sound through unconventional guitar tuning.

His approach involves intentionally detuning guitars to create a more ambient and eerie quality, a technique he has employed since the band's early days. This method allows the guitar's sound to wander freely, contributing to the music's sense of gentle progression and emotional ebb and flow, rather than reaching a definitive catharsis.

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He often defies tuners, especially when I'm recording extra keyboard parts. I even change tape speeds to detune some parts intentionally.

Smith's guitar playing style is distinct from that of other band members, often described as gentle in contrast to their more forceful approaches. He has spoken about deliberately defying tuners and even altering tape speeds during recording sessions to achieve specific, sometimes unintended, sonic textures.

A notable instance of this occurred during the recording of "Friday, I'm In Love." A mistake involving the varispeed control on the tape machine left the track a quarter-tone off, fundamentally changing its tonal quality. While initially an accident, this deviation lent the song a brighter, more joyful character, ultimately contributing to its status as one of The Cure's biggest hits.

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the whole atmosphere changed