The Cult 8.22.09 | Club Nokia | Los Angeles, CA by Aaron Pompey When The Cult brought their Love Live tour to the newly-minted Club Nokia downtown on Saturday, I imagined that the 500 or so cougars crowding onto the venue’s laminate wood flooring had probably ignored me the last time I’d seen Ian Astbury’s mystic rock band when they played the Great Western Forum with Lenny Kravitz during the Ceremony tour in the early 1990s. Seeing Astbury and Duffy onstage nearly 20 years later, I kept myself in check – appreciating equally the band’s full Love album set, as well as the second half, with its post-1985 crowd-pleasers. However, like an old addiction, it became increasingly difficult not to join the heightened roar at the opening strands of “Fire Woman,” “Wildflower,” and “She Sells Sanctuary.” Mike Dimkich, Chris Wyse, and John Tempesta continue to bring yankee ethos to the otherwise British collective, as well as solid musicianship. There was a day, remember, when the band’s infamous evolution included a revolving door of 20 or so musicians whose minor flings with line-up slots meant an ever-changing tour bill and some inevitable hard feelings.
I don’t typically drink while on assignment but, after some photo-pass drama and in the spirit of the band’s now-and-again battles with drug and alcohol addiction, I thought it appropriate to suck down something that I could tuck onto the nifty beer ledge that lined the rear of the venue. Besides, to gear up for the ride on Astbury’s melodic strains of Doors-and-lysergic-influenced spiritualism, I wanted to be at least marginally anesthetized. Talking us through some of the set, Astbury glided through the 1985 Love album with an awareness of the group’s historical influence and the nuanced way that The Cult contributed to the soundtrack of the 1980s and 90s. After “Black Angel” and a short intermission, the band sampled hits off a number of other albums before signing off with “Dirty Little Rockstar,” “Love Removal Machine,” and the admirable, ego-free absence of an encore. Cheers to that. For tour dates, news, and the band’s blog, click to http://thecult.us/index2.html. The Cult will continue their North America tour into September, when they close out in Portugal and Spain.