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Lol Tolhurst and Robert Smith started together a journey that would take them to the very pinnacle of musical success. Lol and Robert discovered that they shared a similar vision to form a group like the ones that influenced them. This simple inspiration would create in 1978 one of the most influential, critically acclaimed and commercially successful groups of modern times: The Cure. The Cure went on to sell over thirty million albums and still keep on writing music history as we speak. Lol was in a charge of some of the most inspiring albums The Cure ever created Three Imaginary Boys, Seventeen Seconds, Faith, Pornography, The Top, The Head On The Door and Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me. Before the Cure began working on their Disintegration album in early 1988, the band fired Lol, claiming that relations between him and the rest of the band had been irrevocably damaged. Lol would soon file a lawsuit, claiming that his role in the band was greater than stated in his contract and, consequently, he deserved more money.

During the 1990s, Lol moved to California and started a family. After a 10-year hiatus, Lol has decided to head back into the studio with his new exciting project: Levinhurst.

Levinhurst is a suave, exotic group comprised of Lol's keyboards, beats, and sonic landscaping against the stirring vocals of Cindy Levinson and intricate musical crafting by Dayton Borders. The album, Perfect Life, released in March this year, covers that gamut quite nicely with a wider musical range than most electro artists attempt to fill. The album has been called "a subtly crafted fusion of retro and modern electronica."

ReGen's Jez Porat reminisces and looks to the future with Lol and Cindy...

The year 2003 marked the 25th anniversary of The Cure. In addition to first-time eligibility for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, plans are in the works for remastering the entire Cure catalog. Can you tell us something about this?

Tolhurst: The plan is for all the past Cure albums to be remastered and come out with a bonus CD of unreleased rare cuts. The first four albums are due this year I believe.

Are you still in touch with Robert Smith or anyone else from the band?

Tolhurst: Yes I am in touch with him and Michael Dempsey. The original three imaginary boys and basically the original Cure!

Did any of them listen to your album and what were their reactions?

Tolhurst: Michael has heard some songs and likes it very much. He may work on the next release with us. I gave Robert a copy I don't know what he thinks of it yet.

Did you have a chance to listen to the new Cure album? What do you think about the Cure today compared to its sound in the past?

Tolhurst: I have heard some songs and I like them. For a band that has been around for 25 years I think it's hard to compare then and now. It's a lifetime apart.

How do you explain the enormous success The Cure have reached, selling millions of albums and nonstop touring with playing concerts to thousands of fans?

Tolhurst: I think that people all over the world connected with the feeling and emotional content of the band and perceived it (correctly I might add!) as coming from our hearts.

How does it feel to hear that many of the new talents and artists claim they grew up on some of your albums?

Tolhurst: It is both humbling and flattering at the same time to realize what an effect we had on modern music.

What have you been doing musically, since you left The Cure? Were you even focusing on music?

Tolhurst: I put out one CD in the early ?90s with Presence and recorded another one that has not been released, but basically I spent most of the last 10 years raising my son who is 12 years old. I didn't want to be an absent father like a lot of musicians. Now he is a teenager and I will be able to tour more, etc.

In your early days as a Cure member you were extremely dark post-punk in your sound; some say it is even early goth music. It was all about drums, bass and a guitar. How did you get from there to electronica?

Tolhurst: If you listen to early Cure even as far back as Seventeen Seconds I always had some kind of electronic way of music making so for me it is a very natural progression.

Was it easy for you to step into the world of machines and electronics?

Tolhurst: Not only easy but welcome! I don't have the division in my head of machine and man. For me it's all connected.

How did the Levinhurst project come about?

Tolhurst: I had some songs and needed a singer so Cindy was perfect for this, and hence the name too.

Please tell us about the recording process. Where was the album put together, how long did it take and were there any special obstacles?

Tolhurst: It took about a year or so from start to finish. I think the only obstacles are the ones you put in your own way! I prepared a lot of material at home in my little home studio and then we assembled and played live a lot of the sequenced stuff which is why it has the feel of live playing yet programmed, too.

Lol, what have been major influences for Levinhurst whether they are people, events or ideas?

Tolhurst: The last 10 years of my life were a major change for me and the process of that journey is what Perfect Life is all about. The next album is more concerned with the philosophy of that journey than the events, although that may change!

What modern artists do you like to listen to?

Tolhurst: Monolake, some Radiohead, music videos and anything else that floats past my ears!

Who does this album target? Cure fans who followed you along the years? New listeners and audiences who are not familiar with your past?

Tolhurst: Both really, but I think the Cure fans who evolved in their own lives are the ones who ?get it' the most at this time.

Was it easier for you to put out a project with Cindy because she is your life partner?

Tolhurst: Yes, we have a good working relationship which evolved very naturally out of our personal relationship.

Cindy, your voice blends so perfectly with the melody of the machines. Are there any female singers you like listening to, who you use as a reference or who have influenced you?

Levinson: Thank you for your kind words! I love singers like Bjork and PJ Harvey who have a wonderful quality to their voices.

Tell us a bit about the label that put out Perfect Life; did you first try to go with a major label?

Tolhurst: Full Contact is our manager Jay's label. I have no intention of signing to a major label any time soon. I really don't think it's needed or desirable in the 21st century!

Are you planning to take the album on the road?

Tolhurst: We just got back from a long U.S. tour that was very enjoyable! I think one in Europe is next.

What does the future hold for Levinhurst? Is there going to be a second album from you?

Tolhurst: I am just starting to write the second CD now. I want to expand and illustrate what we started with Perfect Life some more and I feel inspired right now, which is great!