The Cult

[Doc Emmett Brown]

06?? man, that's ancient!  That was long before TCV so never mind my theory. Ian sure loves to nurse a grudge, or three.

I bet he loves the lyrics to Sorry

'What were you thinking,
Cause I dont forget' 

But if Dave Grohl made a snide comment AGES ago about hard rock vs. punk, he must've had a change of heart since then, seeing as he chose a member from a band the was the arch-nemesis of punk to be the bass player in TCV.  Maybe it was the plane ride with Duffy that did it. 

and speaking of Uncle Axl, I liked Duffy's comments at the end. He could've made any number of stupid remarks about his looks, but he didn't. Seems like a good friend to have.

[mrlee]

Daves being from Nirvana brings this wacky mindset where only the members of that band can understand why only the bands they say are cool, are cool.

i hate the whole "alternative" label when the bands feel they have to do ridiculous things to stay alternative. "oh my god, i cant make my album sound great, ive gotta make it sound like a piece of shit recorded in a garage, im so alternative". Its ridiculous. The Cult are not alternative, The Cult are The Cult.

Far more inventive, original and entertaining than the Foo Fighters, thats for sure.

[Falcon]

Ian sure loves to nurse a grudge, or three.

Good or bad, he's not a forgive and forget guy - still carries the punk antagonistic attitude he had when following Crass around as a teen.

 

[Doc Emmett Brown]

Daves being from Nirvana brings this wacky mindset where only the members of that band can understand why only the bands they say are cool, are cool.

ha, there's power in that.  It's very Orwellian. I was reading about the late Malcolm McLaren (Sex Pistols manager), and how he was genius at that sort of thing.  These days I'm told by various tastemakers to listen to Vampire Weekend and She & Him. I dutifully listened, but it wasn't my cup of tea.

But really, both hard rock and punk lost in the end as loud guitar rock isn't really popular these days. I'm not even talking about the pop/dance world.  Even the rock scene is more oriented toward folk rock and/or electronica these days.

[mrlee]

i agree, its disgustingly weak.

i mean how can we go from The Cult to Mumford and Sons. It fucks me right off. Rocks definitely pretty dead right now, commercially anyway in the UK.


also, i wrote a blog on The Cult. Nothing really new, just my thoughts and praise on the band.

http://mrlee192.tumblr.com/post/598674899/the-cult-kudos-from-the-perspective-of-a-long-time-fan

[Falcon]

Billy going off on an ice thrower in Perth in his own BD way, funny shit

About 3:30 in here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLuk0ZMO2mo&feature=channel

[Falcon]

A great (lengthy) interview with former Cult (Electric era) touring bassist Dr. Steven "Kid Chaos/Haggis" Harris.

Covers tons of stuff from his time with the great Zodiac Mindwarp onto The Cult, Four Horseman and his one fill in gig with GNR.

http://www.uberrock.co.uk/interviews/56-may-interviews/866-stephen-haggis-harris-the-four-horsemen-interview-exclusive.html

[Falcon]

Vids from Tokyo 5/14/10:

Nirvana:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4kYo9KXrvRc

Love:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pnuBLVBmP1Y

Hollow Man:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCT-aXdrvuE

Lil Devil:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCT-aXdrvuE

Sweet Soul Sister:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xUzFI3quMQ

Brother Wolf, Sister Moon:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBVaQ8JNFQc

Rain:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-FeQY5TM9Gw

She Sells Sanctuary:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-FeQY5TM9Gw

Black Angel:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hN77ObPFSWM

[FunkyMonkey]

Billy going off on an ice thrower in Perth in his own BD way, funny shit

About 3:30 in here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLuk0ZMO2mo&feature=channel

He handles that well -- I've never understood why people would pay to see someone perform and then throw stuff at them.

That being said, if I was going to throw something, I'd rather hit Billy Duffy than hit Ian.

[Falcon]

Ian's new ""super secret" Tokyo callaboration is now unofficially confirmed:

http://thedailyswarm.com/headlines/ian-astbury-new-singer-boris/

[Falcon]

BXI, (Boris/ian Astbury) made their debut saturday night in Sydney at Vivid, details below:

http://www.fasterlouder.com.au/news/local/23944/Boris-and-Ian-Astbury-form-BXI-at-Vivid-
LIVE.htm

The Cult frontman Ian Astbury surprised punters when he joined Boris onstage for an encore performance at the band?s second Vivid show.

After the band left the stage a man took the stage and informed the audience: ?You are about the witness the debut performance of BXI, the new collaboration between Boris and Ian Astbury?.

Punters looked on in amazement as Astbury led the band through a cover of The End by The Doors. After an extremely heavy cover, amazing the audience in scope, the band left the stage to a huge applause.

What to expect from BXI is still unclear however, if it can match the sounds played on the 29th of May at the Opera House, then fans of Boris and Astbury should get excited."

[FunkyMonkey]

Ian's new ""super secret" Tokyo callaboration is now unofficially confirmed:

What does this mean, if anything, for The Cult?

[Falcon]

Nothing really, just gives Ian a different creative outlet outside of being "Ian of The Cult".

It's really 'Ian being Ian", if he does The Cult exclusively over a period of time he gets sick of it and bolts. 

Hell, they've had periods apart totalling close to 12 years of their 25+ years of existense.

 

[Falcon]

From Pitchfork:

http://pitchfork.com/news/39000-boris-team-with-the-cults-ian-astbury/

Boris Team With the Cult's Ian Astbury

We talk with Boris member Atsuo about the unlikely collaboration

The forces of awesome randomness strike again! Japanese doom overlords Boris have teamed up with a truly unexpected collaborator: Ian Astbury, the gigantic-voiced yowler from metal mystics the Cult. Together, they've recorded an EP called BXI, which Southern Lord will release on CD and 12" vinyl in September.

Boris and Astbury recorded the EP together in Tokyo, and Sunn o))) mastermind Stephen O'Malley designed the packaging. Astbury sang three of the EP's four songs. The other is a cover of the Cult's "Rain", featuring Boris frontman Wata on vocals.

We asked Boris drummer/vocalist Atsuo a few questions about the EP over email, through a translator. Our interview, as well as the EP's tracklist, is below.
Pitchfork: How did this collaboration happen? Did you approach Ian Astbury, or did he approach you?

Atsuo: From Boris. We had gotten opening offers from the Cult a few times, but we couldn't make it, simply because of schedule conflicts, though we would like to do something with them at some point. During Boris' own recording session early this year, we thought it would be cool if we could work with Ian on some songs.
Pitchfork: Was it a challenge to work with a singer with such a big voice?

A: It was not an adventure sort of thing. It was simply a different process of songwriting from what we usually do.
Pitchfork: Did you actually record the songs in the studio together? And what was it like working with Astbury?

A: Ian came over to Tokyo by himself, and we tracked together in the studio. He is not only a great singer but also a very nice guy on a personal level. We respect him, and it is always important for Boris to work with such a respectful artist.
Pitchfork: Was Astbury familiar with your music before you recorded this EP together?

A: He said so. He actually came to our shows sometimes, bought our records and loved it.
Pitchfork: What does Astbury think of your "Rain" cover?

A: He loved it very much, and said it was a big gift for him.
Pitchfork: If you were to perform live with Astbury, how would it work? Would he sing with you for an entire set?

A: Actually, we did it in Sydney, Australia on May 29. For me, it was a new band thing more than collaboration work. Both of us absolutely enjoyed it.
Pitchfork: What's your favorite Cult record?

A: "Love" and Southern Death Cult [the goth-rock band that went on to become the Cult]. Let me say not a particular record but their whole career, since they always try to do new things on each record.
Pitchfork: Are there any other singers you'd like to work with?

A: Not at this moment. Collaboration is not a thing that we are always aiming or looking for. It happens in a very spontaneous and natural way every time. Same goes for any recording or live performance process of Boris.
Pitchfork: Astbury angered a lot of people a few years ago when he replaced Jim Morrison in the reunited Doors. Do you have any feelings about that?

A: He did? How come a lot of people got mad with him? I don't even understand. We did "The End" at the Sydney show together, actually. Rock history should always be revised.
BXI:

01 Teeth and Claws
02 We Are the Witches
03 Rain
04 Magickal Child

[FunkyMonkey]

BORIS Collaborates With THE CULT's IAN ASTBURY - June 2, 2010

Southern Lord has announced a collaboration between label artists BORIS and Ian Astbury of THE CULT. This finely-crafted four-song mini release, simply entitled "BXI", was tracked and mixed in Tokyo in late April.

Astbury's vocals are a perfect match for BORIS's straightforward, laid-back, but still raw and imaginative songwriting constructed for the EP; another intriguing display within the band's ever-morphing, extensive r?sum? of releases, tours and collaborations.

To see official CD, LP and digital release this September via Southern Lord, "BXI" will showcase the already unclassifiable rock of BORIS in an entirely new light, and shows a new side one of rock and roll's most notorious singers. The release features three new original tracks, as well as a cover of THE CULT's song "Rain", ethereally vocalized by BORIS guitarist Wata. Art and design for the release was commissioned to Stephen O'Malley (IDEOLOGIC.ORG, SUNNO))).

Pitchfork briefly interrogated BORIS drummer Atsuo about this collaboration this week. Check out this exclusive piece on the EP and find out how this collaboration came to light.

This past weekend, Ian Astbury made an unannounced appearance with BORIS at the band's performance at Sydney, Australia's Vivid LIVE, blowing fans away with this unexpected set which showcased some of the material from the "BXI" EP as well as a cover of the classic "The End" by THE DOORS.

"BXI" EP track listing:

01. Teeth and Claws
02. We are the Witches
03. Rain
04. Magickal Child

BORIS will rock North America once again this summer alongside RUSSIAN CIRCLES for half of the tour and RED SPARROWES for the latter. The usual BORIS lineup of Wata (guitar, vocals), Atsuo (drums, vocals) and Takeshi (bass, guitar, main vocals) will once again be joined by additional guitarist, companion Michio Kurihara, as on several previous live and studio ventures together.

http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=141030

[Falcon]

From The Cults Twitter:

" B X I DROPS SEPTEMBER WITH BORIS COVER OF RAIN ( BEST CULT COVER TO DATE PERIOD ) THIS IS RECORDING WITH IAN ASTBURY AND JAPANESE BAND BORIS ALSO NEW CULT COMING IN LATE AUGUST/EARLY SEPTEMBER"

[Falcon]

Ian with Boris May 30th in Sydney:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bAuvSYb1D0

[Falcon]

Looks like my Red Bull consumption will be replaced by:

http://cultenergyusa.com/# 

[FunkyMonkey]

Ian with Boris May 30th in Sydney:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bAuvSYb1D0

It will be interesting to hear the rest from Ian/Boris.

[Falcon]

Ian with Boris May 30th in Sydney:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bAuvSYb1D0

It will be interesting to hear the rest from Ian/Boris.

From what I know from people who've heard, it's heavy for the most part - described to be as "loud" for whatever that's worth.