Perry Bamonte, guitarist and keyboardist for The Cure, dies at 65

NEW YORK -- Perry Archangelo Bamonte, longtime guitarist and keyboardist for the influential goth set The Cure, has died. He was 65.

The set made the announcement connected their authoritative website connected Friday.

"It is with tremendous sadness that we corroborate the decease of our large person and bandmate Perry Bamonte, who passed distant aft a abbreviated unwellness astatine location implicit Christmas," the set wrote.

"Quiet, intense, intuitive, changeless and hugely creative, 'Teddy' was a lukewarm hearted and captious portion of The Cure story," the connection continued. "Our thoughts and condolences are with each his family. He volition beryllium precise greatly missed."

Bamonte worked with the set successful assorted roles from 1984 to 1989, including arsenic roadie and guitar tech. He officially joined the set successful 1990, erstwhile keyboardist Roger O'Donnell quit. It was past that helium became a full-time subordinate of the group, playing guitar, six-string bass and keyboard.

Having joined conscionable aft the band's mainstream breakthrough, 1989's "Disintegration," Bamonte is featured connected a fig of The Cure's albums, including 1992's "Wish" -- which features the career-defining hits Friday I'm successful Love and "High" -- arsenic good arsenic the 1996's "Wild Mood Swings," 2000's "Bloodflowers" and 2004's self-titled release.

Bamonte was fired from The Cure by its vocalist and leader, Robert Smith, successful 2005. At that constituent successful time, helium had performed astatine implicit 400 shows crossed 14 years. Bamonte rejoined the radical successful caller years, touring with the set successful 2022 for different 90 gigs.

In 2019, Bamonte was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame alongside the remainder of The Cure.

His past show with the set was connected Nov. 1, 2024, successful London for a peculiar one-off lawsuit to motorboat their latest medium and archetypal successful 16 years, "Songs of a Lost World." The performance was filmed for "The Cure: The Show of a Lost World," a movie released successful cinemas globally this month. It is besides disposable to acquisition connected Blu-ray and DVD.

The Associated Press described "Songs of a Lost World" arsenic "lush and profoundly orchestral, swelling and powerful" -- 1 of the champion of the band's career.