Markus Larsson about the song with Robert Smith
The fight between a British pen troll and a haka from the same country is long over.
Who won?
The one who sings in a brilliant duet with Olivia Rodrigo, of course.
Few have noticed.
But on Wednesday it is supposed to Morrissey will play in Dalhalla. All fans who intend to travel there should probably not do as the Norwegians did – claim the victory in advance and start rowing with happiness. Wait a little longer, just in case.
The erratic 67-year-old from Lancashire is possibly known for quite a few things. For example, he once made a classic David Bowie and performed on “Bingolotto”. But lately you can always count on two things:
That he cancels his concerts at short notice and that he rages Johnny Marr.
What the former depends on is a bit difficult to know. But Morrissey, like so many others in the same industry, has not been gifted with the smallest ego in the world. That the concert in Dalhalla seems to be quite sparse is therefore a bit worrying. There are many tickets left.
The quarrel with guitarist Johnny Marr is easier to unravel. Marr politely refuses to put up with a reunion of the radar couple’s old band The Smiths. In other words, he has turned down a shocking amount of money for everyone involved.
Moz is no stranger to verbal warfare. He and Robert Smith from The Cure humped each other from each side, and in countless interviews, for several decades. In their internal competition as to who was England’s most depressed Smurf, the country wasn’t big enough for either of them.
The feud died down after Morrissey apologized for his attacks a few years ago. At the moment, there is no doubt about who won. Where Morrissey is struggling to sell an opencast mine in Dalarna, Robert Smith, who has also turned 67, is experiencing a fascinating renaissance.
In 2026, certain artists and songs can apparently have any number of lives. Unlike his old antagonist, Smith releases new, good and acclaimed music with The Cure. The band has stubbornly maintained a well-built live reputation and is one of the biggest names in the heavy schedule at the Way Out West festival. In a few weeks he will also appear on a new album with The Rolling Stones.
That’s one thing. But that he has also done an adorable duet with Olivia Rodrigo is the real surprise. On her latest album “You seem pretty sad for a girl in love”, it is quite often noticeable how much she admires old depression rock from the old world. One song is called “The cure” in short.
The 23-year-old artist and actor from California places Robert Smith at the zenith of the streaming era. There is nothing that unites different generations of people like melancholy. That the music suits The Cure’s frontman is no wonder. Few others have asked the question in the duet’s title, “What’s wrong with me,” to themselves in public as often since 1976.
But the fact that it is one of the best songs of the year is still as big and gratifying a bang as if Sweden were to beat France in soccer.
Larsson’s top three
1. “What’s wrong with me” (song, Olivia Rodrigo & Robert Smith)
How many guessed that Robert Smith would record a delicious pop duet with Olivia Rodrigo after his retirement?
2. “Hate that I made you love me” (song, Ariana Grande)
There aren’t many who release more perfect pop singles than Ariana Grande. Especially when she works with Swedes Max Martin and Ilya Salmanzadeh.
3. “Lost boys” (song, Phoebe Bridgers)
Phoebe Bridgers is one of the main reasons why alternative music is starting to challenge the producer-driven hegemony of the charts.
