Synopsis

The Cure perform "The Only One" in a recording studio in this stripped-down promotional clip. Rather than building a narrative around the song, the video focuses on the band playing together in the studio environment, with the performance carrying the visuals. Robert Smith handles the lead vocal while the group delivers the bright, guitar-led track that introduced the 2008 album 4:13 Dream. The deliberately informal presentation gives the clip the feel of a filmed studio session rather than a conventional, heavily produced music video.

Factoids & Trivia

• The video was made as part of a set of quick studio performances filmed for MTV Europe in May 2008. The Cure recorded "The Only One" and "Freakshow" in the same session, with two more singles planned in the same style.

• Robert Smith explained that the band did not feel motivated to make another conventional video after earlier "real" videos had received little exposure. The studio clips were conceived as a practical halfway measure to maintain a promotional presence.

• The filming took place in the same studio where The Cure were recording and mixing material for 4:13 Dream, making the setting closely connected to the album's production.

• After the MTV crew left, Smith said that family and friends were given small HD cameras to make additional Cure videos later that night. Those homemade clips were described by Smith as bright, loud and funny.

• "The Only One" was released on May 13, 2008, as the first of four singles issued on the 13th day of successive months ahead of 4:13 Dream. The date-related rollout reflected the album's status as The Cure's 13th studio album.