This was a little different setting than the night before at the Exit/In in Nashville. A festival type atmosphere with an estimated 50,000 people present. There were several different stages set up with musice going all the time. The Cult were scheduled to play the time slot between Jonny Lang and George Clinton & Parliament on the Cingular Wireless stage. My wife and I arrived just as Jonny Lang hit the stage and tore through a blistering set (boy, what a great guitarist he is!!). As he played, we kept inching our way forward through the crowd towards the front of the stage. After his set was over we found ourselves front and center in front of the stage. I called Tammy from my cell phone and asked where they were and she said that Lori (Evil Flame On), Nancy, and she were right in front of the stage on the right side. We decided to stay put and find them after the show. When the band hit the stage and opened with Rise the crowd was rocking! I was suprised when the next song was Fire Woman but I figured that they thought it was important to have a familiar song early in the set in a festival atmosphere where there might not be as many "diehard fans". Peace Dog was next, followed by Sweet Soul Sister, and Lil' Devil. The Witch was followed by two new songs, Breathe and The Saint. Before the new songs Ian announced that they were going to play some new songs from their forthcoming album entitled 'Beyond Good & Evil' and that it would be out on June 5th. I thought overall that the crowd response was good to the new tunes. Before the next tune Ian said "this next song is the song that started a million bands" and broke into She Sells Sanctuary. The crowd went nuts with the entire area in fron of the stage jumping. There was a little bit of crowd surfing going on as well. They ended the show with Wild Flower and Love Removal Machine with the crowd headbanging the entire time. Ian said "than you, Memphis, see you soon" and tossed his tambourine deep into the crowd as they departed the stage. Overall it was a much shorter set than the previous night (only 11 songs) but they had a time slot to fill because of the next band scheduled. What a great atmosphere to see The Cult in - outdoors, on the banks of the mighty Mississippi River, a near full moon, temperatures in the sixties, and a large crowd! The band was just as energized as they were the previous night and physically looked more rested. My wife and I met up with Lori, Tammy, and Nancy afterwards and exchanged our thoughts on the show. We then headed home and they were off to get some rest before heading to Atlanta for the festival show on Saturday night. I told them that I'd see them in Nashville for the Sunday show.

Two totally different settings to see The Cult in two days in a row and I came away from both tired and smiling. The Cult is back!!!

I hate to admit it, but the only song I liked (well KNEW) by the Cult was Painted On My Heart, but I was so obsessed with that song. I live in Memphis so I wanted to see them play Friday in hopes that they'd play that song. Well, they didn't, but they were SO loud and rocked SO bad that they definitely got themselves a new fan!!! I can't believe I never liked them before, they're really my type of music. My fave song from the show was Sweet Soul Sister. It was great cuz the drummer's mic kept falling down and he'd make this hilarious face to get the roadie to come fix it. I took tons of pics that I'm getting back tomorrow.

The Phoenix has Risen. Ian, donning the same outfit as last night, gave a highly energetic performance to the huge crowd, kickin and cursing his way back into Memphis for the first time since 1995. Festival crowds usually suck and this one was no different, but the first couple of rows were still filled with a good bit of die hard fans. Ian noted the lack of recognition by some of the crowd and said somthing like "for those of you who don't know our music, we are The Cult, and we are about fuckin kick your ass." They followed this with the with The Saint if I'm not mistaken, and it sounded like no other song I've heard in years. They kept with virtually the same set-list as last night, minus Edie (Ciao Baby), War (which is perhaps the best of the new songs), and Nirvana. No encore because another band had to take the stage, but they ended with Love Removal Machine. See you all up front in Baton Rouge and New Orleans this week, I'm gonna be deaf soon if I keep this up. The Cult is on tour again!

First of all, Ian didnt say "we are THE CULT and were going to kick your ass" He said "we are THE CULT and were going to show you how we do it" followed later by "if you ever feel like you don't fit in, you can always fit in with us, because we don't fuckin fit in with anybody". The show was great, they seemed so happy to be there. My wife made a poster that read "happy early birthday to Ian, Billy and me, Ian never saw it in Memphis, but Billy gave us a thumbs up twice. We also met three new friends from Chicago, who are really true CULT FANS, hope to see future shows with you guys. Jason & Susan Willoughby

The Cult is a must see show! No words can explain what an awesome show these guys put on. This was my first time to see The Cult live and standing 15 feet from front center stage was a blast. These guys rocked Beale Street! 60 bands played this past weekend but there is only one band that stands out in my mind. The Cult, the guys from the old school of rock-n-roll.

The Cult headlined the Budweiser stage that night, and myself and a few of my friends were center stage in the midst of a very huge crowd. They band entered and kicked off there new single Rise and Ian followed shortly after. It was the first time I had ever seen them, and I must say, they're appearance and performance was much different than I expected. Ian had short hair and a large headband on, and some type of tantric/eastern skirt around his waist. Matt, Billy, and the rest of the guys were in great shape...and looked like a band who was revamped and ready to rock. Which is just what they did. They played mostly the old classics....which was fine with me. They had a killer sounding set that was high energy, and a pleasure to be a part of.

Rise
Fire Woman
Peace Dog
Sweet Soul Sister
Lil' Devil
The Witch
Breathe
The Saint
She Sells Sanctuary
Wild Flower
Love Removal Machine