The Cult at Leader Bank Pavilion 7/23/22

The Cult at Leader Bank Pavilion 7/23

Phoebe recounts a high energy night at The Cult’s recent show in Boston.

Most frontmen come out with a guitar slung across their bodies, but Ian Astbury, the lead singer of The Cult, is armed with his classic tambourine. With a bandana tied across his forehead and a coat that flows behind him as he runs across the stage, Ian commands the ecstatic crowd to their feet. 

For a band that's been playing nonstop for 40 years, their ‘cult’ following is made up of hard rocking Gen Xers. Many, to my surprise, were donning motorcycle jackets, incredible mohawks, or just sipping on some Liquid Death. It was clear this packed concert at the spacious Leader Bank Pavilion on July 23rd was the perfect night for this crowd. 

The tour was titled “We Own the Night,” with ‘we’ including the two opening acts, Zola Jesus, and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, which both carried  heavy rock ‘n’ roll energy. Zola Jesus, who shrieked into the mic, sent chills down my back. The three acts in succession created an immaculate flow that evoked a thrill in myself as well as the crowd. Simply put, the seats of the venue were hardly used that night. 

The Cult performed many of their classics, including “Fire Woman” and “She Sells Sanctuary”. Some of the setlist came off of their hit album Sonic Temple, which leans heavily on hard rock and heavy metal. The intensity of the music was magnified by Astubry flowing left and right across the stage, pumping his tambourine in the air and leaning heavily into the mic to hit those crazy long notes. I was lucky enough to hear one of my favorite songs, “Edie (Ciao Baby)”, perfectly placed in the middle of their setlist. It's melodic and slightly less powerful, being the right song to give the fans a rest in this otherwise high energy show. 

By the end, the crowd was chanting for “One more song!”, and The Cult came back out to play Love Removal Machine, where the guitarist Billy Duffy absolutely shredded, looking at ease, perched on the edge of the stage. Astbury ends our night with a little speech about us being one family, spreading love and how we got to be the good in the world, but my favorite line from the entire night? “F*ck racism”.