I think there might be a bit more to it than that. No one could accuse Robert Smith of “playing the game”. They haven’t released new material in nearly 15 years, he rarely does interviews or other media appearances, and their gigs are usually around three hours long and filled with deep cuts, even deeper cuts still and hit singles. But sure, most of The Cure’s best albums came out in the 80s. Nick Cave, however, is better than ever. Which most critics seem to agree with.
All of these bands have self-respect and they would never manhandle their careers the way Moz does, nor treat their fans as badly as M sometimes do.
I know that Morrissey is infallible in your eyes, but in reality he really isn’t. He’s not as successful as he once was, and he has himself to blame for some of that. This is not me being hateful, I love him, but what’s the point of being a yes-man?