Avalon Nightclub, Boston, Massachusets 
Opening band: New American Shame
Seen them the 8th time last night and they were unbelievable. They were the best
I've ever seen them. They did all my favorites and encored with The Phoenix
and Love Removal Machine. Made me realize that just how great they are
especially Ian (when not under the influence of one substance or another). They
were so energized and the crowd totally fed of it. The show was sold out and it
was so hot inside the club but the band seemed to feed of that. Good to see Matt
Sorum again, he rocked amd Billy Duffy is one of the most underrated guitarist
I've ever seen. He was totally on his game last night and the 2 guys they had on
rhythm guitar and bass filled out the sound great. Worth every penny, A must see!!!
Patrick Moynihan - dakotad@mediaone.net
Very disappointing. This was the fourth time I have seen them, first
in 1989 opening for Metallica. Avalon, where they played, is under
construction, and many part of it, including the ceiling itself, had
been ripped out. The sound throughout the show was terrible. I guess
the term would be overdriven. The bass was so high that everything
got drowned out and muffled. From the start, Ian was noticeably
pissed off about one thing or another. You could barely hear the
vocals in the beginning, but that was fixed. Billy seemed out of it
and didn't seem to play nearly as well as I remember. No one seemed
very in tune with the other. And no one seemed very happy to be there
at all. It all seemed almost gratuitous. It seemed to pick up a bit
by the end of the show, but it was almost like too little too late.
And the crowd. At least around me, I swear that the combined IQ of
much of the crowd was less than that of a rice cake. It was great to
get to see them again, but I hope this is not the last so it is not my
last memory of them.
Now listening to Dreamtime Live At The Lyceum. Now that's better....
Ken
The show was great. Ian's vocals I felt were a bit weak until he took a
fall during Fire Woman. Yes, he was out in front of the stage and next
thing you know he was gone. He jumped up and from then on...he was AMAZING.
Highlights for sure were the Peace Dog and New York City just
amazing. The sold out crowd went crazy for Wild Flower and then Ian
introduced She Sells Sanctuary as "The song that invented alternative
rock". What started out as a pretty darn good show turned into an amazing night.
Todd - tharrington@meditech.com
This was my first time ever seeing The Cult live...Having read a gazillion
reviews on the site from people who had seen the show and said it was
excellent, I was expecting to be blown away by the Cult. I was. They are
incredible. However, I feel it's important to write from an objective point
of view when giving a concert testimonial, so....
I must say that the intro music had me a bit perplexed at first, but I
realized that it probably would have worked if Ian had come out on stage on
time. He didn't for one reason or another, after the band had already
launched into Lil' Devil and played through the first verse. I'm not sure
why that happened, but it definitely got the show off to a somewhat
disjointed start. I was even more annoyed when Ian began to throw what ended
up being a royal temper tantrum of the fifth degree when he found his vocals
not as high up enough in his monitors as he would have evidently preferred.
It was even more childish when, after losing his footing and falling off a
stack of speakers, he began to demolish some of the floor spots that were
shining on him and the the rest of the guys. But my man Billy played through
the whole thing...the perfect professional.
Eventually the show got rolling, the bugs got worked out, and the band was
rolling. Absolutely incredible. I have to tell you that although his fits
of immature anger and late arrival kinda bothered me, being in the front row
and seeing the ban up close was a real treat and I was still awestruck by
their prescence. They are powerful, charismatic people. Even at their worst
moments they are incredibly rock and roll.
Ian was pretty much about the music tonight...."You know us, we know you -
let's not fuck about." That pretty much said it for me. He took some
well-deserved shots at local station WBCN's programming habits, addressing
the fact that years ago they were very close with the station's program
director, Oedipus. "It's all about money and the fucking dollars," Ian said,
"but we still fucking love [Oedipus] if you want to give US a call..."
I thought he sang well, I thought Billy was note-for-note one of the best
guitar players i have ever seen or heard play, and Matt Sorum was doing more
with one rack tom-tom than most drummers half his age can do with a 12-piece
kit. I want to also say that Martyn and the second guitar player make an
incredible asset to this band.
All-in-all, definitely worth staying out late for, definitely worth cashing
in a favor for (the show was 200 tickets oversold), and definitely worth
anticipating....in short, this band lived up to exactly what I thought a good
rock show should me. I left not disappointed, but really ready for the next
phase of this band's reincarnation.
.....and keep your eyes out for Bif Naked and New American Shame....wow.
They were worth the price of admission alone.
Aaron Faulls
Great show. Ian tripped and fell about three songs into the set. He got threw
the the amp he tripped over and rocked on. Set list included Peace Dog,
Rain, She Sells Santuary, Edie (Ciao Baby).
Stephen Smith - ss30@worldnet.att.net
Great show. First time seeing them, since I never really got into them until 1994.
Sound wasn't as good as Avalon usually is, but the band definitely gave it 100%. I
was right up front, which resulted in me getting a great view of the band
and getting squished to death. Ian's voice sounded great and the band were tight as
all hell. Once again, with the exception of In The Clouds and The Witch,
nothing from the nineties was played. I don't understand why they aren't playing
anything from the last two albums, in particular "The Cult". A band with this much
talent and creativity should avoid becoming an oldies act at all costs. Kudos to Ian
for attacking corporate radio station WBCN's out-with-the-old, in-with-the-new
tendencies. Most bands don't have the balls to make such statements anymore. Can't
wait for the new album.
Leo - stereoleo@hotmail.com
The concert was a dream come true for me! I never thought I'd get to see them
together again. They seemed more relaxed & happy than I remembered from before,
Ian was joking with the crowd, & even said that coming to Boston was the whole reason
behind the tour, that they really appreciated our support & loyalty over the years.
Deb Dalton - harvestmoon91@yahoo.com
Bif Naked wasn't bad. Kind of Alanis Morrisette meets Gwen Stefani meets
goth. Not bad though, it wasn't painful or anything.
New American Shame. I"m surprised they have a record contract with the 80's
rock they are playing. That has to be tough to achieve as an up and coming
band. I didn't much care for them, but best wishes anyway.
The Cult came on after a long wait between sets, and a botched introduction.
They put the intro music on and the lights went, but the band wasn't ready.
So they went to some Bad Company song, and tried again 5 minutes later. The
band finally came on, without Ian and ripped into Lil' Devil. Ian missed the
first verse and came leaping in late over a speaker. When he did get to
singing, his voice seemed lost behind the music. It stayed like that for the
first couple songs.
It was a good show, but I don't think this is the best they've ever sounded,
in fact I think the last lineup was a little tighter. Maybe these guys need
to play together longer, but some of the stuff hit real nice, and others,
most notably Revolution, weren't so strong. I was a big Porno for Pyros fan
and was very happy to see LeNoble hired as bassist. However I'm not so sure
he and the rythem guitarist have these songs down yet.
Songs that were highlights in Boston were the Sonic Temple stuff...Sun King
sounded excellent and is a great live song. The crowd loved it, and Fire Woman
as well. The Phoenix was good, and of course Love Removal Machine and She Sells Sanctuary (which
Ian introduced as being the "first" alternative rock song ever).
The Avalon was too small for this show. It was sold out in advance and many
were looking for tickets outside, many ended up getting shut out. Great
seeing that kind of response for the Cult.
Gillen4@aol.com
Setlist
Lil' Devil
Sun King
Rain
In The Clouds
Edie (Ciao Baby)
Fire Woman
The Witch
Peace Dog
New York City
Revolution
Sweet Soul Sister
Wild Flower
She Sells Sanctuary
Encore
Phoenix
Love Removal Machine