I got to Vancouver in the morning so I could spend some time around the city. It's nice to get over from the island and have a day off work. We met up with some other fans at a nearby pub/restaurant for dinner and could see the front entrance to the Commodore from where we sat. By the time the doors opened there were quite a few people waiting to get in. Once the line slimmed down a bit we wandered over to head in.
For the opening bands we sat off to the side to have a good view of the activity. Murder of Crows went on first followed by Glory Hound. Murder of Crows were very heavy. The singer reminded me a little of an angry Robert Smith. Their sound was vibrating things off our table. They played 6 or 7 songs and left the stage. Glory Hound is a Halifax straight up rock band. They put good effort into their set and I thought they were pretty good.
Once they finished up we made our way to the dance floor. The venue was general admission and by this time was filling up quite nicely. The concert had sold out more than a week prior to the show.
The crowd was incredibly friendly, there was a lot of drinking going on as everybody waited for the show. I stood beside a guy who was in Seattle the night before. He had a small Cult bandana, grey, white and black. We exchanged some notes about the band and how the Seattle show went. Everybody else around me chatted and joked around while the band set up. Shortly after 10:15 the show started.
Lil' Devil opener was solid and got the crowd revved up instantly. In usual form the band did 3 songs before Ian addressed the crowd. Somebody up front was having a little difficulty with the pushing and shoving and he basically said that if you want to stand on the rail you better be prepared to handle the abuse. He said something along the line of if you're up front you have to expect an elbow or boot to the head. And if you get a finger in the ass, it's just a bonus!
I enjoyed the new songs, they were tight and had lots of energy. Even on the slower songs there was a lot of passion.
Honey From A Knife was introduced by saying that the video was being released as they were playing it online on vimeo. They switched Honey From A Knife and For The Animals from the way the setlist was the night before - probably for the announcement of the video release.
The encore started with Life > Death which Ian stated was the Cult at it's most naked. It was really emotional and well done. Love Removal Machine was the closer filled with a ton of energy.
Overall, the band was very engaging. Everybody looked like they were having a great time on stage. Ian wore a jacked with a fur lined hood the whole night, he must have sweated a ton - it was pretty hot in there. The crowd was very engaging - it was very loud in there. There was a blonde girl near me who was whistling - my god she was loud. Good thing the drinks were in plastic cups I'm sure we would have had a Memorex moment otherwise. There was a ton of dope being smoked and the mood was great. At one point Ian did pause the show it appeared there was a troublemaker in front of Chris close to the stage. He said something about getting the guy out of there before they would resume, but that was the only incident I noticed.
After the show ended the dance floor was a mess of plastic cups and spilled beer. We went to the "Granville Bar" which is where we were told to go with our aftershow passes. Hanging out there for a good hour for the rest of the people to clear we were finally moved into the green room. There were about 8 or 10 of us and Mike was in there first. Chris showed up and left fairly quickly. He returned with an arm full of drinks and passed them out to people in the room - what a host! John also showed up and chatted. I didn't actually get a chance to talk to Mike but did speak with Chris & John. We talked a bit about the tour and where they would be going next. We spoke about coming to Canada and a little about Owl - Chris indicated he'd like to do a proper tour with Owl if he could find the proper touring partner. We were asked to leave the green room at 1:00 as it was curfew and went out to Granville Street. We met more people who were milling around chatting about the show - again with the friendly fans. We then made our way back to the alley behind the venue where the busses were. By the time we got there we had missed Billy and AJ. They both went off into the night, but did get a chance for a photo with Ian. There were a few other fans with some interesting memorabilia including a guy who had a 3D Wildflower print, it looked very cool.
A tremendous night but I sure was beat by the end of it. Cult. Rock.
First it was the Darkness. Last night it was the Cult, who brought the gospel according to Gibson to a sold-out Commodore crowd.
The U.K. quartet's ninth album, Choice of Weapon, finds the Cult receiving the best reviews in decades. It charted No. 1 in England and 15 in Canada, which was always a big market.
Co-produced by Bob Rock, who helmed the breakout Sonic Temple, the new disc also marks the first time in the group's 30-year history where no membership changes occurred between albums. Singer Ian Astbury, guitarist Billy Duffy and the rhythm section of bassist Chris Wyse and drummer John Tempesta are apparently the most stable line-up. Does it make a difference live?
They certainly slammed it with the opener "Lil' Devil," with Astbury in a fur-collared parka acting all the mystic tambourine shaker while Wyse handled the backing vocals with flair. A tour guitarist held down the extra rhythm so Duffy could go all guitar star. He looks and sounds and dresses exactly the same as he did 30 years ago. Astbury for the most part does too, save a slightly deeper range.
Oh, he still has a tendency to mumble on somewhat incoherently in expletive-laden dialogues that leave crowds slightly bewildered. Then a song such as "Fire Woman" follows -- complete with a snippet from the Guess Who's "American Woman" to start -- and it's all good.
They certainly have some classic riffs. The crowd was freaking over "Rain" from the opening chimes off Duffy's hollow body. "The Wolf" managed a Zeppelin Physical Graffiti vibe while sounding like a second part of "Rain." Good song that one.
If you liked the Cult's brand of rock and roll redux, last night reinforced why. If you were someone just checking them out, almost impossible given the crowd who knew every word and motion, you saw a solid band well aware of what it does and with full confidence in the new album.
Opening act Gloryhound can implore the house to request its new single on CFOX all it wants. But would anyone be able to tell the difference between it and all the other songs?
The quartet did nothing for me. Sad, as it was tight and energetic. Some applauded loudly. Others thought the name was Gloryhole. It happens.
It's easy to expect a band that broke onto the airwaves almost 30 years ago to be running out of steam by this point. I'm not even 30 myself and I'm running out of steam! Last Wednesday at the Commodore, The Cult strutted onto the stage and shattered any such naive preconceptions.
Other than a brief lapse from 1995 to 1998, Ian Astbury and Billy Duffy have been leading The Cult since the early '80s. Chris Wyse (bass) and John Tempesta (drums) have only been around since 2006, but six years is apparently more than enough time for these four men to meld their aspirations and talents together and achieve what I can only describe as a truly impressive and genuine cohesion.
The Cult walked on a bit before 10:30 p.m. and, following a Native American-themed drum-pounding intro, promptly churned out a few cuts off their latest album, Choice of Weapon (which, I must say, has unexpectedly grown on me quite a bit over the last few weeks). It was nice to see Astbury's confidence and sense of style very much intact as he walked around his playing field with purpose, tambourine in hand, bedecked of a dark jean jacket with a huge, fur-lined hood.
The second song, "For The Animals", was a standard, straight-up rocker that found the foursome in fine rock form. Not bad - two songs in, and seemingly clicking on all cylinders already. But don't get too excited yet, because listen... here comes the "Rain". My lord I love this song. It's not even nostalgia - I was all of three years old when this came out. It's just what rock should be, you know? Memorable verses, an absolutely unforgettable chorus, a rising bridge, and riffs and rhythms that all mix together to make one beast of a tune. I've been shouting "Here comes the raaaiiin!" as I walk Vancouver's streets (in various states) these last few nights. I can't get it out of my head. If, for some reason, there were any lingering doubts about The Cult's mojo after the first few tunes, "Rain" put the kybosh on them. "The Wolf" kept up the chase with its classic Cult chorus riff and verses punctuated with chunky, modern guitar.
By mid-set, fans were right back in the '80s at the rock show, beer in hand, hand in air, and rock'n'roll between the ears. "It is a fucking absolute joy and pleasure to have crossed that border," Astbury said, as he went on to describe how Canada had over the years become a second home. The feisty Astbury went on to put some fussy fans in their place after the next tune: "It's a rock and roll show, you're in the front, you're gonna get pushed... Fuck!" He went on to explain that if you happen to get a finger in the ass in the process, consider it a bonus. Thank you... Ian... Astbury. I'm so tired of alleged "rock" frontmen stopping shows to calm down hard rockers that are bumping around on the floor. Finally... finally, I hear a rocker tell the fans what's what and if they can't take the heat, they need to get the hell out. Since when is rock'n'roll supposed to be civilized?
The gang played a number of other new tracks ("Embers", "Lucifer") which prompted an appreciative and courteous response from the crowd, never failing to throw in a classic song in there to spike the energy. Astbury prefaced "Fire Woman" with an adlib version of a Guess Who classic/national anthem - "Canadian women... stay away from me..." One of these Canadian women near the front was lucky and able enough to snatch the tambourine out of the air as Ian tossed it into the crowd. She didn't stop banging that thing until the very end. Well done, sweet soul sister.
The set wrapped up on a high note with "Honey from a Knife", a fast rocker with big riffs, handclaps, and group chants ("We got the drugs / We got the drugs / We got the drugs, the drugs in here!"), and then, finally - sweet satisfaction - "She Sells Sanctuary". I won't bother gushing about how iconic and remarkable this song is. You know it all already. And if you don't - get on it, kid. This is Rock 101 kind of stuff. Astbury let his ponytailed hair down for this last one, carefully spreading his mane around his face just so, as he belted out one of the songs that defined a generation. The man's pipes are in truly fantastic shape.
After a quick 60-second walk-off, the guys returned for the mandatory encore, starting off with the woefully forgettable "Life > Death". Astbury mentioned that this song is "as naked as they get"; if that's the case, they should really consider keeping their fashionable, furry denim clothing on at all times. Next!
That minor lowlight was quickly eclipsed by "Spiritwalker" and its driving bass, ringing guitars and Astbury's soulful cries; just another example of what that "Cult sound" is - "She Sells Sanctuary", "Rain", "Spiritwalker", and "Love Removal Machine", which they played last. For an already great show, this last tune was one of the hottest of the night, what with Duffy's extraordinary shredding, and a pedal-to-the-metal finish which had most of us singing along "Look out, here she comes!" The "Machine" came to a stop and the guys gave us all a wave, much love and thanks. Astbury left the stage, but not before praising this fine city's fine rock fans - "In the fucking pit! Vancouver, BC! Recognize!"
Before Wednesday night, I was a rather uninformed, pretty non-committal "fan" of The Cult. By midnight, I had willingly, greedily drunk the Kool-Aid. Where have I been this whole time? Welcome to The Cult, me.
"Here comes the raaaiiin..."