The Cult

[edgeofthorns]

Here lately I've found myself getting a little bored with music in general, so I've set out to discover some bands that I've ignored over the years. The Cult being one of those bands. I've always liked the songs such as "Fire Woman" and "Sweet Soul Sister" when hearing them played on the radio, but never actually bought anything from the band.

Having said that, I found The Cult's "Ceremony" disc in the bargain bin of my local CD store yesterday, so I grabbed it. After playing through a few of the songs, I really liked what I hear. I've read some reviews on Amazon about a few of their albums and there seems to be some divided opinions over the span of this band's career. Apparently, they like to change things up with each release causing some dismay among the fans.

Anyway, are their any The Cult fans out there and if so, what's your favorite release by the band?

 

[Harvester]

The Cult are absolutely one of my all-time faves. However, they polarized their fans several times based on dramatic style changes.

"Death Cult" & "Dreamtime" are gothic rockers. "Love" started the movement towards mainstream with the college radio hit "She Sells Sanctuary." "Electric" kept the sound and popularity with "Love Removal Machine."

However, their greatest album by far for me is "Sonic Temple." This was when they thit their peak as every song ruled (Fire Woman, Sun King, Edie Chao Baby, Sweet Soul Sister, etc, etc. This is the one to get!

Ceremony was a step down and I started to lose interest with all of the extended hiatuses. I also said to hell with them after seeing them open for Guns N Roses. Ian was so drunk that he slurred lyrics, forgot lyrics, and generally had a hard time standing up. I was sooooo pissed as I was so pumped to see them after so long.

 

[DemonOfTheWoods]

The Cult is also one of my all time favorite bands. "Sonic Temple" is the album to get, I would say "Electric" is also a hard one to live without. "Beyond Good & Evil" is as heavy and powerful as it is amazing. So theres the top 3 in my opinion.
Fortunatley, I never saw the Cult when Ian was drunk he could not stand. I did see them 6 times on the Beyond Good & Evil tour. Every show i saw was absolutely fucking amazing. I met Ian and Matt Sorum outside the 9:30 Club after a show on 7/14/01. They are 2 of the coolest people I have ever met. Ian talked to everyone and signed everything they asked, and Matt is a very easy dude to talk to. Talked to him all different kinds of drums, and Matt even talked a little about his time playing with GnR.
I'll finish this up by just saying THE CULT KICKS ASS!!

 

[VenomGA]

the 3 best cds of theirs to get are as follows:
1. Sonic Temple-Just about every song is great, their most balanced
2. Electric-started their song towards more metal and less goth
3. Beyond Good & Evil-their last cd and possibly their heaviest too.

On a side note the song "She Sells Sanctuary" is just killer, but nothing tops "Fire Woman"

 

[Matt Crooks]

I personally think that Electric is a better album that Sonic Temple. The production is a lot more stripped down and I think that fits their sound better.

I would place Electric in the same esential hard rock category as "Back In Black".

 

[edgeofthorns]

I've pretty much came to the conclusion that Sonic Temple is a classic must have that I've missed out on for some reason. I've heard more than one person say the last one that the band did is really good, but heavy in musical terms.

Thanks for the suggestions guys!

 

[VenomGA]

I personally think that Electric is a better album that Sonic Temple. The production is a lot more stripped down and I think that fits their sound better.

I would place Electric in the same esential hard rock category as "Back In Black".

Nothing and I do mean NOTHING that The Cult did EVER is on par with Back in Black by AC/DC.

 

[Magius]

Nothing and I do mean NOTHING that The Cult did EVER is on par with Back in Black by AC/DC.

Agree.

 

[BlackenedDawn]

The Cult rules. Sonic Temple is the obvious choice for definitive Cult record. It has everything you could ever want in a Cult record. I also really liked Beyond Good And Evil, which was many years later but was a very strong return record for a once mighty band, in my eyes.

 

[Creeps]

Electric - hands down, the best album IMO. I like them all, I'm a big Astbury fan.

I never really got into Death Cult / Southern Death Cult albums. Dreamtime was a stretch for me too. I got into them from Love on.

Also check out Holy Barbarians (Ian's solo disc) good stuff on there as well.

 

[Yippee38]

Electric - hands down, the best album IMO. I like them all, I'm a big Astbury fan.

Yup. It's got a great bluesy feel. Best album I've heard from them. "Electric Ocean", "Bad Fun", "Love Removal Machine", and "Outlaw" rock. I also love "Love". I remember driving a sharing a ride with a friend from school a long time ago. I had "Electric" in. He said, "Who is this?" I told him. He said, "Oh yeah. I used to like them, but then they totally changed their sound." He was a punk guy. "Love" has a feel that's more like an early U2 album (like "War"). It's great though. "Sonic Temple" also rocks. "Ceremony" never did anything for me.

 

[SharkBlack]

Ian Astbury is one of the most charismatic frontman ever... He Rocks!

Electric and Sonic Temple are great....

My favorite songs are Peace Dog and Electric Ocean off of Electric and Edie (Caio Baby) and Fire Woman off of Sonic Temple..

Love is a cool album too.

 

[Pellaz]

I love almost all of what I've heard from the Cult on CD.

But......

I also said to hell with them after seeing them open for Guns N Roses. Ian was so drunk that he slurred lyrics, forgot lyrics, and generally had a hard time standing up. I was sooooo pissed as I was so pumped to see them after so long.

Ian's drunkenness seemed like it was almost a constant during their career.

Set the Wayback Machine for 1989. The Cult are opening for Metallica on tour, and me and two friends take a roadtrip -- my first-ever! -- to see the show in Greenville, South Carolina at the civic auditorium there. One of my friends already knows Kirk Hammett really well, so we're hoping for a hookup...and we got one. It was the first time I'd met Kirk Hammett, and thanks to our mutual book-reading interests, I made his solid acquaintance that night, and a slight friendship that lasted through 1994 or so. It was a pivotal night for me.

Metallica were awesome; the Cult......less so. They were sloppy, mostly due to Ian A. At the time, we didn't know why.

Later, we found out:

We also stayed at the same hotel the band was, because there aren't many decent hotels in Greenville. Our room happened to be on one of the concierge floors, so after the show we found ourselves hanging out with the bands and crew. Everything was cool and casual. Alcohol was consumed, although not by me, of course.
And then......
My friend had an instamatic camera and he took a photo of James Hetfield and Ian Astbury drunkenly smooching in the hallway. James thought it was pretty damned funny, but Ian got really pissed, chased my friend down, punched him, grabbed the camera and crushed it. A bit later, Ian was really rude to my other friend, in front of several witnesses, slamming a door in his face.

Word got around. Billy Duffy from the Cult apologized to us personally at the Atlanta show right afterward. "Ian lost his father, he's been really depressed...." Maybe so, but we were also told he'd been using that excuse for about six months.

Due in large part to the camera incident and Ian's behavior, the Cult were booted off the tour a few dates later. Their replacement? A little-known band called Faith No More, who were friends with 'Tallica and now getting their first-ever major tour. And good for them!

I kept the pieces of that camera, and I still have them in a plastic bag. In a small way, it might have changed the fate of music.


Err, thus ends my Cult story. I still don't mind hearing them on the radio, but I've never supported them since.

 

[Cheiron]

Does Kirk Hammet love Wraeththu?

 

[BABS]

Loved The Cult!

What's another drunk singer, right? When you think about it, seems to be par for the course. Prolly the GNR tour alone pushed him over the edge (ha ha).

 

[edgeofthorns]

I love almost all of what I've heard from the Cult on CD.

But......



Ian's drunkenness seemed like it was almost a constant during their career.

Set the Wayback Machine for 1989. The Cult are opening for Metallica on tour, and me and two friends take a roadtrip -- my first-ever! -- to see the show in Greenville, South Carolina at the civic auditorium there. One of my friends already knows Kirk Hammett really well, so we're hoping for a hookup...and we got one. It was the first time I'd met Kirk Hammett, and thanks to our mutual book-reading interests, I made his solid acquaintance that night, and a slight friendship that lasted through 1994 or so. It was a pivotal night for me.

Metallica were awesome; the Cult......less so. They were sloppy, mostly due to Ian A. At the time, we didn't know why.

Later, we found out:

We also stayed at the same hotel the band was, because there aren't many decent hotels in Greenville. Our room happened to be on one of the concierge floors, so after the show we found ourselves hanging out with the bands and crew. Everything was cool and casual. Alcohol was consumed, although not by me, of course.
And then......
My friend had an instamatic camera and he took a photo of James Hetfield and Ian Astbury drunkenly smooching in the hallway. James thought it was pretty damned funny, but Ian got really pissed, chased my friend down, punched him, grabbed the camera and crushed it. A bit later, Ian was really rude to my other friend, in front of several witnesses, slamming a door in his face.

Word got around. Billy Duffy from the Cult apologized to us personally at the Atlanta show right afterward. "Ian lost his father, he's been really depressed...." Maybe so, but we were also told he'd been using that excuse for about six months.

Due in large part to the camera incident and Ian's behavior, the Cult were booted off the tour a few dates later. Their replacement? A little-known band called Faith No More, who were friends with 'Tallica and now getting their first-ever major tour. And good for them!

I kept the pieces of that camera, and I still have them in a plastic bag. In a small way, it might have changed the fate of music.


Err, thus ends my Cult story. I still don't mind hearing them on the radio, but I've never supported them since.

LOL Great story! I can see why The Cult left a bad taste in your mouth for sure!

 

[Dave@BEC]

Oh yea the The Cult are awesome, I have everything by them and recommend Sonic Temple as the place to start for new listners. I saw them live earlier this year in Atlantic City and enjoyed it Big Time! They promised not to wait 4 more years to reconnect with the fans...hope that will be true.

 

[zekeyou]

We saw Ian Astbury in a comic book store the afternoon before the Metallica/Cult show in Minot, ND in the summer of 1989.

My buddy went up to him and asked him if he was in town for the show, and he said "Yes". My buddy then asked, "Are you with Metallica or the Cult?" to which he replied "The Cult". My friend, the wiseass, said, "The roadcrew?". "No-- I sing".

We laughed a good while about that....

But yes, you cannot go wrong with Sonic Temple, as many have attested to here-- "Sun King" is probably my all-time favorite Cult song.

 

[Pellaz]

Does Kirk Hammet love Wraeththu?

This was back before those books were published. Kirk was a big fan of Michael Moorcock's books, though, and I was in charge of MM's international fan club at the time.

I've since moved on, but AFAIK Kirk is still an eternal ('lifetime') member of the Nomads of the Timestreams.

 

[KingsGene]

Ten year bump...

THE CULT ANNOUNCE HEADLINING SHOWS, IN ADDITION TO GUNS N' ROSES DATES

"...The Cult have announced a wide array of summer tour dates including four upcoming stadium shows with Guns N' Roses, as well as festivals and their own headlining concerts. The iconic band - founding singer Ian Astbury and guitarist Billy Duffy along with bassist Grant Fitzpatrick, drummer John Tempesta and keyboardist / rhythm guitarist Damon Fox - is on the road now in support of this year's Hidden City album.

Hidden City is their 10th studio album and the final chapter of the band's trilogy of releases which began with 2007's Born Into This then 2012's Choice Of Weapon.

The Cult with Guns N' Roses:
July
27 - Atlanta, GA - Georgia Dome
29 - Orlando, FL - Camping World Stadium
31 -New Orleans, LA - Mercedes-Benz Superdome
August
3 - Arlington, TX - AT&T Stadium

The Cult headlining dates:
August
2 - San Antonio, TX Aztec Theater
September
16 - Hampton Beach, NH - Casino Ballroom
17 - Chester, PA - Talen Energy Stadium
18 - Norfolk, VA - Norva
20 - Raleigh, NC - The Ritz
21 - Charlotte, NC - Fillmore Charlotte
24 - Houston, TX - Houston Open Air
27 - Wichita, KS - Cotillion Ballroom
29 - Kansas City, MO - Harrah's/Voodoo Lounge
30 - Memphis, TN - Minglewood Hall
October
1 - Louisville, KY - Louder Than Life Festival
4 - Denver, CO - Ogden Theatre
5 - Salt Lake City, UT - The Depot
7 - Fresno, AZ - Paul Paul Theater at Fresno Fair
8 - Primm, NV - Star Of The Desert Arena

Hinterland:


Dark Energy:


Deeply Ordered Chaos: