THE CULT Confirms North American Tour - Full Schedule Available!

Venerable Rock band The Cult will hit the pavement hard this summer with the first leg of its 2012 North American tour.  The 20-date trek is set to kick off on Friday, May 25 in San Diego, CA bringing the band's incendiary Rock energy to major and secondary markets across the continent.  In addition, the tour will include headline dates at the Great Canadian Beaverfest in Windsor, ON, and at Buffalo, NY's Erie Canal Harbor Central Wharf Concert Series (see itinerary below).  For most of the dates, The Cult will be supported by Against Me! and The Icarus Line. Ticket on-sales begin later this week, see the link below.

"This is going to be a very intense, high-energy tour," said The Cult's vocalist, Ian Astbury.  "We are really looking forward to the time we spend on stage connected to our music and our audience.  That's our purpose."

The Cult - Astbury, Billy Duffy, called one of the post-Punk era's greatest guitarists, Chris Wyse on bass, drummer John Tempesta, and touring member Mike Dimkich on rhythm guitar - is touring in support of 'Choice of Weapon', the band's first NEW studio album in five years, due out May 22 (Cooking Vinyl). Featuring The Cult's signature sounds of Astbury's vocals and Duffy's guitar, the album was produced by Chris Goss (Queens of the Stone Age, U.N.K.L.E. Masters of Reality) and Bob Rock (Metallica, Bush, The Cult's Sonic Temple), recorded in New York City, Los Angeles, the California high desert and the band's Witch Mountain studio between July and December 2011, and written by Astbury and Duffy.

"When we were writing and recording 'Choice of Weapon,'" explained Astbury, "we had no agenda, there was no particular destination, no place to be, and no chart position to aim for.  We took our time, we went in, we grabbed the jewels, and stayed focused on keeping everything as fresh and as raw as possible.  The new songs are a sharpened and heightened extension of everything we have ever done."

On these North American dates, The Cult will play many of their classics as well as introduce fans to some of their new songs, including "Lucifer" - not a song about the devil, but a reference to the morning star, the idea of a journey through darkness and decadence to find the road to wisdom - "Honey From a Knife" - based on the Buddhist teaching about the seductiveness of addiction - and "For The Animals," the first official single from Choice of Weapon.  "For The Animals" asserts the rising tensions, the rage and hostility of the growing group of disenfranchised youth in our society.

"Again, we find ourselves with our backs against the wall," Astbury continued, "and we like that, we like being outside the perimeter.  We're the long shot, so place your bet on us."

Confirmed dates for The Cult's 2012 North American tour are as follows:

- MAY

25        San Diego, CA - Humphreys By the Bay
26        Las Vegas, NV - M Resort
27        San Francisco, CA - The Fillmore
30        Denver, CO - Ogden Theatre

- JUNE

 1         Chicago, IL - Congress Theatre
 2         Windsor, ON - Great Canadian Beaverfest, Riverfront Festival Plaza
 3         Pittsburgh, PA - Stage AE - Indoor Stage
 5         Boston, MA - House of Blues
 7         Buffalo, NY - Erie Canal Harbor Central Wharf
 8         New York, NY - Terminal 5
 9         Hampton Beach, NH - Ballroom
10        Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory
12        Washington, D.C.  - The Fillmore
13        Norfolk, VA - The Norva
15        Myrtle Beach, SC - House of Blues
16        Orlando, FL - House of Blues
17        Atlanta, GA - The Tabernacle
19        Houston, TX - House of Blues
20        Dallas, TX - House of Blues
22        Tempe, AZ - Marquee Theatre

Related links:
The Cult's Official Site (Ticket information available)
The Cult on Facebook

THE CULT Has A NEW Song Entitled "For The Animals" - Listen Right NOW!

"For The Animals," the first single from 'Choice of Weapon', The Cult's upcoming studio album due out May 22 (Cooking Vinyl), is available now on iTunes. To purchase the single, go here.

As vocalist Ian Astbury told Rolling Stone about the single, "'For the Animals' reflects the sentiment the we are a raw, visceral animal, independent and beholden to no one. We celebrate that aspect that is also rising in the culture. We go where nature takes us."

The 14-track 'Choice of Weapon', that includes four bonus tracks, is also available now for pre-order on iTunes. To pre-order go here.

Related links:
Official Site of The Cult
The Cult on Facebook

THE CULT Announce UK Tour With THE MISSION & KILLING JOKE!

Live Nation are thrilled to announce that three of the most incendiary bands from the Alternative Rock Era are coming together to tour Arenas throughout the UK this September. The Cult, The Mission and Killing Joke will be hitting the road together for the first time in celebration of the dazzling trails they've continually blazed through the musical landscape since their respective inceptions. This incredible tour, the likes of which hasn't been seen before, will be hitting arenas in Newcastle, Sheffield, Manchester, Birmingham and London. The Cult, The Mission and Killing Joke tickets will go on sale on Friday 23rd March at 9am and will be available from Livenation.co.uk

The Cult are one of the most influential and controversial Rock bands of our time. They have continued to push musical and artistic boundaries making them as vital today as ever. The tour comes on the heels of the band releasing their brand NEW studio album 'Choice of Weapon' due for release via Cooking Vinyl on May 21st in the UK (May 22nd in North America). The album was written by Ian Astbury and Billy Duffy, recorded in New York City, Los Angeles, the California high desert and the band's Witch Mountain studio between July and December 2011. Long-time Cult collaborator and producer Bob Rock (Metallica), who produced one of The Cult's most successful albums, the Platinum-certified 'Sonic Temple', put the finishing touches on the foundations that were laid by co-producer Chris Goss. The NEW release features founding members Astbury on vocals and Duffy on guitars, with drummer John Tempesta and bassist Chris Wyse. On this incredible gathering of vitally important musicians, Ian Astbury had the following to say:

"This is a fantastic bill and these will be magical shows, a unique occasion that we look forward to with great anticipation. The band is killing it right now and we are excited to get back to the business of playing live."

Wayne Hussey and Craig Adams left the Sisters Of Mercy and formed The Mission, enlisting Simon Hinkler and Mick Brown into their ranks. Having performed together in Europe before, but never on UK shores, this special tour will see The Cult and The Mission performing together for the very first time ever in the UK.

Speaking on the tour, Wayne Hussey had the following to say:

"It'll be great. We played a festival show in Belgium with The Cult back in October last year and it was really lovely to see Ian and Billy again, it was like no time had passed at all. We'd gone our separate ways over the years and travelled different roads but I always think of Ian and Billy as brothers in arms, kindred spirits. I'm looking forward to hearing 'Sanctuary' every night. And it'll be great to have Killing Joke along too. I've been a long time admirer of Jaz and his cohorts. I was fortunate enough to be able to work with Jaz, he is a huge personality. It'll be good to see him again."

Since the emergence of the post Punk scene Killing Joke have been pioneers across multiple genres from Metal, industrial to dance. They have been covered by everyone from Metallica to Foo Fighters evolving and influencing musical generations for three decades. In 2008 the original members Jaz Coleman, Geordie Walker, Youth and Big Paul Ferguson reunited for a sold out world tour which culminated in the band recording the critically acclaimed album 'Absolute Dissent' on Spinefarm/Universal. The album went on to win Metal Hammer 'Album of The Year' and they were honoured by Jimmy Page at the Classic Rock Awards for Innovation. 2012 sees them return with highly anticipated new studio album 'MMXII' released April 2nd on Spinefarm/Universal. Speaking on the tour, Youth adds:

"Killing Joke are honoured and are proud to celebrate together and play alongside The Mission and The Cult, at this great gathering of the tribes , we look forward to unleashing an apocalypse of sonic destruction and giving the crowd a good kick in the teeth."

Tickets go onsale at 9 AM on 23rd March 2012 priced at £35.00 REGIONALLY / £37.50 LONDON (subject to booking fee) and are available from Livenation.co.uk .co.uk

Related links:
Official Site of The Cult
The Cult on Facebook