The Cult
May 28, 2012
Venerable rock band, The Cult, are back at it once again with Choice of Weapon, the band's first new studio album in five years, due out May 22nd on Cooking Vinyl. Featuring The Cult's signature sounds of Astbury's vocals and Duffy's guitar, the album was produced by Chris Goss and Bob Rock. When describing the album, the band agrees that Choice of Weapon reflects the survival in today's volatile world where the sense of entitlement is growing.
Born out of the ashes of the UK post-punk scene, The Cult evolved to become one of the most influential and controversial rock bands of the late 20th century, selling millions of albums, headlining arenas and stadiums around the world, infusing innovative possibilities into the worlds of music and art, and quickly ascending through the ranks of the indie music world to achieve global status. Their music has transformed from punk rock to post-punk, psychedelia, heavy dance music and transcendental hard rock and has become one of the handful of important bands in the U.S. post-modern and hard rock communities. They were embraced by a generation that was waking up to the influence of 60s and 70s rock icons like Led Zeppelin, The New York Dolls and David Bowie. The constant core of The Cult is the "head and heart" of the band, vocalist/lyricist Ian Astbury and guitarist/composer Billy Duffy. Attitude incarnate, the chemistry between these two vastly different artists - equal parts genuine affection and palpable tension - remains the source of their long-standing partnership. Duffy grounds Astbury's esoteric side with a hard rock perspective, and there is no doubt that at all times, these two have each other's back. The Cult's current line up, together for six years now, is Astbury, Duffy, bassist Chris Wyse and drummer John Tempesta.
The Cult will hit the pavement hard this summer with the first leg of its 2012 North American tour. The 20 date trek is set to begin May 25th in San Diego, CA, bringing the band's incendiary rock energy to major and secondary markets across the continent. "This is going to be a very intense, high-energy tour," said The Cult's vocalist, Ian Astbury. "We are really looking forward to the time we spend on stage connected to our music and our audience. That's our purpose." On these North American dates, The Cult will play many of their classics as well as introduce fans to some of their new songs, including "Lucifer" - not a song about the devil, but a reference to the morning star, the idea of a journey through darkness and decadence to find the road to wisdom - "Honey From a Knife" - based on the Buddhist teaching about the seductiveness of addiction - and "For The Animals," the first official single from Choice of Weapon. "For The Animals" is about the rising tensions, the rage and hostility of the growing group of disenfranchised youth in our society.
The Cult will be supported by Against Me! and The Icarus Line on the North American dates of their tour.