The day was “Hot, Hot, Hot,” but the night was even hotter as the Curiosa Festival heated up the night at San Francisco’s SBC Park. The show was almost as hot as the weather, and, with two stages of music and five or so bands, the air was full of new and interesting music. So, who was on this festival tour you ask? The Cure, The Rapture, Mogwai, Interpol and, last but not least, Cursive.

 As the summer sun was sinking down into McCovey Cove, the crowd was growing more and more excited, knowing that it would soon be time for legendary goth rock band The Cure to take the stage. Then the lights flashed on and moved about the crowd in the stadium. The fans rose to their feet and began to scream and cheer widely as the spiky-haired, eyeliner-wearing goth god Robert Smith took the stage with the rest of the band. People were yelling and screaming “Robert, we love you!” and, “Ah, there they are.”

The Cure spent the night rocking away, playing songs off their new self-titled album like, “Alt. end,” “Never,” “It’s the End of the World,” and more. They mixed in classics like “Love Song,” “Pictures of You,” “Fascination Street,” and closed the night with my personal favorite, “Why Cant I Be You?”

The band rocked the audience with a super light and visual display show and their wonderful songs. My only complaint is that Robert Smith does not move hardly at all when on stage and does not talk to the audience, though every time the crowd burst into applause he would say, “Thank you” or “Cheers.” But I must say, he does do quite well for a man with a massive self-proclaimed social phobia.

Cursive: This band from Omaha rocked it hard on the smaller second stage. The band balances a cool sound that hits hard and fast with some songs and mellow and chill with others. Cursive really got the crowd going. I highly suggest that you check them out by either picking up one of their albums or checking out their web page http://www.cursivearmy.com for more info. All I can say is this: Cursive is the best thing to come out of Omaha since well…uh…. They are good, so just check them out.

Mogwai: This band was weird. Some of their stuff I liked, and some of it was kind of “meh.” You have to have a very eclectic taste for these fellows from across the pond. They have a very techno-goth-punk sound. They play a lot of string instruments. There are not many words to describe them, but some of their stuff is all right. If you want to check it out, they have free downloads on their website at http://www.mogwai.co.uk.  So if you are looking for something offbeat and kind of out there, look up these gremlins, or Mogwai, I should say.

Interpol: Some of you may have heard of this band. They have a catchy sound, if I may say so: kind of indie rock, with smooth vocals and hip guitar riffs. They were OK but not really my cup of tea. But it was still very enjoyable-the kind of rock music you can dance to. You can also meet the band on Tuesday, Sept. 28, in San Francisco at the Virgin Megastore at 8 p.m. That is also the day their new album comes out. You can find more info at their web site, .

So next summer when Curiosa rolls on through again, check it out. It’s a great way to spend a day.