Ian Astbury

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Ian Astbury
Background information
Born	14 May 1962 (1962-05-14) (age 47) Heswall, Merseyside, England
Genres	Post-punk Hard rock Gothic rock
Occupations	Vocalist, songwriter
Instruments	Vocals, percussion, harmonica, guitar
Years active	1981-Present
Labels	Beggars Banquet
Associated acts	The Cult Southern Death Cult Death Cult Holy Barbarians The Doors The Wondergirls

Ian Astbury (born Ian Robert Astbury, 14 May 1962, Heswall, Merseyside) is an English rock musician, known for his role in the The Cult.

Biography

Astbury made his appearance in the Liverpool punk scene in the late 1970s. He became friends with many of the other younger punks based around the Eric's Club punk scene. He was in and out of various bands before moving to Bradford and forming the Positive Punk band Southern Death Cult in 1981. At that time, he was going by the name Ian Lindsay. Southern Death Cult gigged to support its "Moya" single, and secured a slot as an opening act for Bauhaus in 1983. Shortly after that tour, the band split up.

Along with guitarist Billy Duffy, bassist Jamie Stewart and drummer Ray Mondo, Astbury (now going by the surname "Astbury") formed a new band, Death Cult, released the Death Cult (EP) and later dropped Death from the name. He has two sons named Dustyn and Che.

The Cult

The Cult was a successful British rock band in the late 1980s and early 1990s. With the 1983 release of their first album, Dreamtime, The Cult became the darling of the indie post-punk scene, their chart topping single "Spiritwalker" having held at number one for three months. Their second album, Love, evoked memories of 1960s psychedelia such as The Doors and the Pretty Things. It also featured their now classic hit "She Sells Sanctuary", which introduced them to an international audience. On their third album, Electric, The Cult made a radical transformation to hard rock reminiscent of AC/DC and Aerosmith with the help of Rick Rubin. This further broadened their audience as rock began making a comeback in the late 1980s. Guns n' Roses, which was heavily influenced by Electric, opened for The Cult on their 1987 North American tour, before going on to sell millions of copies of their debut album, Appetite for Destruction.

Although they went on to greater heights with their mainstream hit single "Fire Woman" (from the followup 1989 album Sonic Temple), Astbury relocated to Los Angeles, California anyhow. He became friends with The Fuzztones, often jumping up onstage with them at live concerts. One such concert, at Scream in Los Angeles, was recorded and a cover of The Stooges song "Down on the Street" was released as a picture disc in the UK on Situation Two Records. It featured Astbury on vocals and the In Heat-era Fuzztones (John Carlucci, Jordan Tarlow, Mike Czekaj, and Jason Savall) as his backing band.

1990s

The dent in their reputation was amplified by the loss of many Sonic Temple fans, when their next album, Ceremony, released in 1991, delivered disappointingly in the wake of an oncoming grunge movement.

In 1994, The Cult returned with an untitled album and a change of musical pace. Gone was their hard rock sound, replaced instead by Astbury's growing interest in alternative music, fashion and introspective lyrics. The self titled album was not a commercial success, due mostly to the lack of radio support for the albums two singles (Coming Down and Star). To support the album they set out on a tour; in Brazil, however, Astbury's creative differences with guitarist Duffy reached their peak, and the former walked out on The Cult.

Inspired by his sudden change in direction, Astbury soon after assembled another group of musicians and began writing new songs. He called the group The Holy Barbarians, and in 1996 the band released the album Cream. Although they were not a commercial success, the Barbarians were well received by many who had regained respect for Astbury as an artist. One notable appearance by the band was at the small Tunbridge Wells Forum which saw them being joined onstage by Vic Reeves for a rendition of The Cult's classic "Wildflower."

Personal difficulties and a drive for further introspection drove Astbury away from his new group, as he began working on a solo album (eventually released as Spirit\Light\Speed). Despite its rich texturing and diverse style, it received mixed reviews and low sales.

In 1999, Astbury and Duffy reformed The Cult to head one of the most financially successful tours that year. A new contract with Atlantic Records was inked, and in 2001 came the release of Beyond Good and Evil. Early radio success was being had by the single "Rise", until the band had a falling out with Atlantic and they ended all commercial promotions and radio play for the album. Astbury described the fight with the record label as "soul destroying"; disillusioned, he brought The Cult to another hiatus in 2002.

Astbury said he had some minor drug problems. He revealed that in an interview for Dr.Drew's newsletter saying: 'I was cultivating a nice healthy drug habit. I was your run-of-the mill adventurist, I'd try anything once. I was a day-tripper, though - I never really became a hardcore user. When drugs aren't working for you, forget about it. I don't want to spout philosophical that "drugs are evil" [because] drugs had a place in my life. I think achieving a balance is the key, though.'

2000s

Having long been influenced by Jim Morrison, in 2002 Astbury followed in his hero's footsteps by becoming lead singer in an updated version of The Doors, with original members Robby Krieger and Ray Manzarek, known as The Doors of the 21st Century, renamed in 2005 at the VH1 Classic Decades Rock Live Concert TV Special at Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City to become Riders on the Storm. In 2003, Astbury also performed with surviving members of MC5 at the 100 Club in London, before finally reforming The Cult with Duffy again in 2006, for a series of live dates and rumours of reissues and another greatest hits compilation in the works.

During early 2007, The Cult entered the studio to begin production on Born into This, the group's first album in six years. Also planned for release was a DVD of the band's November 13, 2006, concert at Irving Plaza in New York City.

The Cult's current lineup consists of Astbury and Duffy, alongside bassist Chris Wyse, drummer John Tempesta and touring rhythm guitarist Mike Dimkitch. In October 2007, The Cult finally released Born into This. The first single was "Dirty Little Rockstar," which enjoyed strong radio airplay. He lives in Los Angeles and plays on the soccer team Hollywood United with Billy Duffy and Steve Jones of "The Sex Pistols" and is a supporter of English Premier League club Everton FC.

In 2009, The Cult announced a series of shows across the US, Canada, and Europe billed as "'Love' Live", where the band will perform its classic album, "Love," in its entirety.

Other musical ventures

Astbury is featured on the UNKLE tracks "Burn My Shadow" and "When Things Explode." He also sings "Flame On" on Tony Iommi's (Black Sabbath lead guitarist) solo album Iommi, as well as duets with Deborah Harry on her 1989 album Def, Dumb and Blonde's song "Lovelight".

Solo discography

• Spirit\Light\Speed (2000)

External links

• VH1 - The Cult
• IMDB biography
• Cult central fansite
• The Cult official website by Sonya Koshuta
• Sacred Soul - Fan site/magazine