interviewsofrecordingartists.com
The Cult
When Ian Astbury of The Cult was five years old, he decided that all he wanted to be in life was a rock 'n' roll singer.
While shopping with his mother in his hometown of Liverpool, England,
Astbury noticed a large crowd of people had gathered in front of city hall. As he took a closer look, Astbury saw the Beatles were assembled on the steps of city hall to receive an honorary award from Liverpool's mayor.
"At that time the Beatles were very big in Liverpool, "Astbury said during an interview. "I grew up with the Beatles and my whole love affair with music stared that day when I saw them at city hall."
After years of living abroad Astbury returned to Liverpool for a time. One day in 1980, he was walking down Matthew Street near The Cavern nightclub where the Beatles gave their now-legendary first performances and he heard the news of
John Lennon's murder. "I was eighteen years of age at the time," he said,
"I'd grown up with the Beatles' music so I was deeply affected by the news of Lennon's death. Shortly after that even, Astbury formed a rock band called the Southern Death Cult in Liverpool.
The band enjoyed limited success in the United Kingdom.
By 1983 Astbury had dropped his old band members and he formed The Cult with several musicians from London.
The Cult's music was initially labeled "New Wave" by many British critics .
Astbury reacted to what he considered to be harsh criticism of his work
by turning to alcohol, which eventually lead to heavy drinking binges.
For a time it appeared as if Astbury's career in the music business would come to an abrupt end due to his heavy drinking. "I was a disgrace to myself and I had no self-esteem, said, "Astbury, "I had been very harshly judged by the critics and my peer group, so I took to drinking heavily. It was a lot easier to hide in alcohol from my problems at that time than to confront them. Eventually I decided to confront life and stop wallowing in my own self-pity."
In 1989, with his newfound sobriety, Astbury began working with The Cult to form a new and different sound for the band. The release of their album
"Sonic Temple" began a watershed year for The Cult.
"Sonic Temple" won critical acclaim and earned solid sales around the world.
After a successful world tour the Cult recorded then released their follow-up to
"Sonic Temple" titled, "Ceremony".
For "Ceremony", Astbury decided to draw from his personal experiences when his family moved from England to Canada and resided in Canada for several years.
"When I lived in Canada, I was am immigrant from England which made me not readily accepted by the Canadian kids at school,' he said. "So many of my friends were Native Indian kids."
When he was 11, Astbury's Native American friends brought him onto a reservation for a visit. Afterward Astbury wanted to learn more about his friend's lifestyle and religion. "I traveled to a six-nation reservation and there I was exposed to a native people in their won environment. I later became fascinated with Native American Indian religious and political systems. I saw a whole lot more truth and wisdom there than in what I was being taught by my white schoolteachers"
Even after returning to England, Astbury continued his studies on native people. Years later he would draw inspiration from his studies to write the latest Cult album, "Ceremony".
end.
COPYRIGHT 2008.
interviewsofrecordingartists.com
The Cult
When Ian Astbury of The Cult was five years old, he decided that all he wanted to be in life was a rock 'n' roll singer. While shopping with his mother in his hometown of Liverpool, England, Astbury noticed a large crowd of people had gathered in front of city hall. As he took a closer look, Astbury saw the Beatles were assembled on the steps of city hall to receive an honorary award from Liverpool's mayor. "At that time the Beatles were very big in Liverpool, "Astbury said during an interview. "I grew up with the Beatles and my whole love affair with music stared that day when I saw them at city hall." After years of living abroad Astbury returned to Liverpool for a time. One day in 1980, he was walking down Matthew Street near The Cavern nightclub where the Beatles gave their now-legendary first performances and he heard the news of John Lennon's murder. "I was eighteen years of age at the time," he said, "I'd grown up with the Beatles' music so I was deeply affected by the news of Lennon's death. Shortly after that even, Astbury formed a rock band called the Southern Death Cult in Liverpool. The band enjoyed limited success in the United Kingdom. By 1983 Astbury had dropped his old band members and he formed The Cult with several musicians from London. The Cult's music was initially labeled "New Wave" by many British critics . Astbury reacted to what he considered to be harsh criticism of his work by turning to alcohol, which eventually lead to heavy drinking binges. For a time it appeared as if Astbury's career in the music business would come to an abrupt end due to his heavy drinking. "I was a disgrace to myself and I had no self-esteem, said, "Astbury, "I had been very harshly judged by the critics and my peer group, so I took to drinking heavily. It was a lot easier to hide in alcohol from my problems at that time than to confront them. Eventually I decided to confront life and stop wallowing in my own self-pity." In 1989, with his newfound sobriety, Astbury began working with The Cult to form a new and different sound for the band. The release of their album "Sonic Temple" began a watershed year for The Cult. "Sonic Temple" won critical acclaim and earned solid sales around the world. After a successful world tour the Cult recorded then released their follow-up to "Sonic Temple" titled, "Ceremony". For "Ceremony", Astbury decided to draw from his personal experiences when his family moved from England to Canada and resided in Canada for several years. "When I lived in Canada, I was am immigrant from England which made me not readily accepted by the Canadian kids at school,' he said. "So many of my friends were Native Indian kids." When he was 11, Astbury's Native American friends brought him onto a reservation for a visit. Afterward Astbury wanted to learn more about his friend's lifestyle and religion. "I traveled to a six-nation reservation and there I was exposed to a native people in their won environment. I later became fascinated with Native American Indian religious and political systems. I saw a whole lot more truth and wisdom there than in what I was being taught by my white schoolteachers" Even after returning to England, Astbury continued his studies on native people. Years later he would draw inspiration from his studies to write the latest Cult album, "Ceremony".
end.
COPYRIGHT 2008.
