Live report THE CULT & LYS MORKE, Grosse Freiheit 36, Hamburg – August 8th, 2024

The Cult was founded in 1983 in Bradford, UK, a moniker that went from Southern Death Cult to Death Cult to The Cult. The band debuted in 1984, and you don’t have to be a math nerd to figure out that’s 40 years ago. “Dreamtime” is the title of The Cult’s first album, which along with “Love” was the springboard for the band to become one of the most iconic rock bands, with stellar albums like “Electric” and “Sonic Temple” being part of their musical treasure trove.

To celebrate 40 years of The Cult, the band is currently on tour. The “8424” road trip includes a few shows, one of which is tonight at the legendary Grosse Freiheit 36 in Hamburg.

On a warm summerly evening, many rock fans find their way to the venue, and while the sun is shining brightly outside, the darker sounds of The Cult is what everyone is waiting for inside the Grosse Freiheit 36.

Although everyone is excited to see the four-piece on stage again, there is still some time to bridge. With The Cult on tour is a solo artist. Lys Morke comes from Barcelona, Spain and has her solo project up and running. The strange thing tonight is that Lys Morke’s music doesn’t fit to the dark rock sounds of the main act. Instead there are electro sounds, synth elements and samples that fill the room together with Morke’s vocals. It might be good music, but it doesn’t work at all tonight and even with an open mind the fans have another musical direction on their radar this evening.

After such an unusual start, the stage is prepared for the main band of the evening and this includes burning incense. After such a special ceremony, The Cult enter the stage at quarter past nine to start their 90 minute set. With “Into The Clouds” from the 1996 compilation “High Octane Cult” the guys have a great kick start into the night. It is the first of 17 songs tonight, covering all four decades of The Cult. “Rise” from the “Beyond Good and Evil” album is next and it is very evident that energy and power is the chosen theme for tonight.

Rather early comes “Mirror”, a fairly new song, while it’s the earlier hits that ignite the flame of rock’n’roll even more. “Resurrection Joe” (from the debut) with the fans clapping along as well as the very appreciated acoustic version of the soulful “Edi (Ciao Baby)” are moments where everyone has the feeling of the already sauna-like temperature at Große Freiheit 36 rising even more.

Regardless of whether the band is playing earlier classics or newer material, there is always a great vibe in the room. The band and the crowd seem to be one – musical partners in crime. Ian Astbury, Billy Duffy and bandmates seem to enjoy the night and so do the fans. It is a real rock party that gets more and more intense with each song played and everyone has enough energy left to also enjoy songs like “Brother Wolf, Sister Moon” and “She Sells Sanctuary”, both being the encore of tonight’s show.

Tonight is all about the music with a lighting setup that gives the musicians more shadow than light. Sure, the guys have gotten older too, but you can’t tell tonight as Astbury’s vocals are great, he has this mystical presence on stage and the guy is constantly in motion, including a tambourine performance that might explain the bandage on his right hand. Duffy’s enthusiastic guitar playing with well delivered solos is also what everyone expects tonight and The Cult deliver.

The Cult showed tonight why they belong to the greats of hard rock music. The band has been delivering great music for 40 years and after a performance like tonight I think we can expect a few more great years from The Cult.