Concert Review: The Cult - Auckland - 21 November 2024

Presented By TEG MJR

The CuLT LIVE IN AUCKLAND- PHOTO CREDIT MEGAN MOSS

CLICK HERE TO SEE THE FULL CULT GALLERY BY MEGAN MOSS

Review By: Riccardo Ball

Artist: The Cult

Date: Thursday 21st November 2024

Venue: Spark Arena, Auckland, New Zealand

They say every fire starts with a spark and The Cult proved that maxim true, the purveyors of Fire Woman lit up Spark Arena with a set that celebrated the best of what was, while delivering proof that they were still an artistic force with something to say.

Wagner’s ‘Ride of the Valkyries’ played the band onto the stage and like the scene from Apocalypse Now set A simmering atmosphere alight.

The discordant riff of ‘In the Clouds’ opens the show and sets the table perfectly, framing Ian Astbury’s haunted vocal with Billy Duffy’s post punk bone-saw playing, the crowd immediately finds its voice screaming and singing.

This is a 40th anniversary tour and the band’s setlist was constructed to reflect that with ‘Rise’, from 2001s’ Beyond Good & Evil next and building the volume but it was what came next that really tore the roof off.

This show was originally scheduled to be at all seated Bruce Mason Theatre in Takapuna; I was grateful when it sold out so fast the show was moved to the more Rock n Roll friendly Spark Arena, and was more than a little surprised to find the floor seated for the show. Those on the floor didn’t stay seated for long when the Firestarter riff from Wildflower kicked in and the audience as one rose to their feet in a crescendo whoops, hollers and screams.

‘Star’, ‘The Witch’, ‘Mirror’, ‘War’ and ‘Resurrection Joe’ followed as the band relentlessly plowed through a set stacked with cult classics.

Given the seated arrangement at the venue, it was funny to hear Astbury comment “Oh we have to sit down now”, as two bar stools were introduced to the stage for a stripped down version of Sonic Temple’s power ballad, ‘Edie (Ciao Baby)’. It was clear the band had hit the sweet spot with their fans as “the dogs lay at your feet” was belted back at them at tenfold volume.

The epic ‘Sweet Soul Sister’ continued the momentum, and the impromptu choir of 40 & 50 somethings provided a wall of backing vocals before a change of pace with Ian Astbury pointing out (or potentially trying to pick up) a crowd member in a red dress and kicking into “Choice of Weapon” track Lucifer.

Astbury’s voice has lost none of its luster, as deep, rich and powerful as it’s ever been and showcased beautifully in renditions of the phenomenal ‘Rain’ and ‘Spirit Walker’, the vocalist taking time to extol the virtues of New Zealand, saying “i’d love to spend time here, connect my feet to the land … and eat an endless amounts of Whitakers chocolate”.

If those songs showcased the front man then the band's sign off tune, ‘Love Removal Machine’, put guitarist Billy Duffy firmly in the spotlight. A signature tune from Electric, an album once described as ‘the best AC/DC album AC/DC never wrote’ and Duffy’s reputation as a riff lord is well established and on show here.

The Cult returned to the stage in quick time for a two-song encore, ‘Brother Wolf, Sister Moon’, giving Astbury the platform to showcase his inner Jim Morrison before launching into their pièce de résistance ‘She Sells Sanctuary’, which launched Spark Arena into the stratosphere one more time.   

Special mention needs to be given to Dunedin opener Death and the Maiden, I wasn’t aware of them before this show, but they impressed.

Ethereal, lo-fi, gothic. Banks of samples and keys complimented by guitar, bass and a hushed atmospheric vocal. There’s plenty of 90’s influence in their sound, think a dialed back Nine Inch Nails fronted by Melissa Auf De Mar, the first three songs set the tone beautifully before technical and sound issues interrupted the second half of the set, a band to watch.

The Cult were superb, a catalog of epic tunes delivered as intended, they promised to come back, and I sincerely hope they do, Whitakers - this is on you, ditch Nigella and embrace the Spirit walker, Ian Astbury. 

The CULT TOUR PR 2024

---