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| The Cult @ the Warfield (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Monday night's concert at The Warfield offered a chance to see a headline set by The Cult of their greatest hits, combined with a shorter set just prior of songs from their Death Cult era and an opening set by the impressive LA duo Patriarchy.
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| The Cult @ the Warfield (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
The Cult concert was carrying a heavy weight after the band's announcement last week that the ending concerts of this tour would be the end of The Cult touring for "an undetermined amount of time." "Mother Nature has a cycle of change & evolution that is inevitable. The moon's phases change, tides rise & fall," the band posted on social channels. "Change is necessary for creation & rebirth...we have decided to step away from touring for an undetermined amount of time...we shall now shift our focus to writing, recording new music, and exploring other projects that shall be revealed over time. It is a time for us to turn inward to recharge our spiritual batteries. When we return to the stage, it shall be with an even stronger fire and energy that we will share with all of you."
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| Ian Astbury of The Cult @ The Warfield (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
With only two concerts after The Warfield show remaining on the calendar, Astbury seemed committed to enjoying and savoring every minute of Monday night's show. Astbury has had a long connection with San Francisco - having professed his obsession with both the Haight-Ashbury and psychedelic art.
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| Bill Duffy of The (Death) Cult @ The Warfield (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Despite adopting the Death Cult persona for their first set (really the main differences were a different kick drum cover and guitarist Billy Duffy and bassist Charlie Jones wearing a jacket and long-sleeve shirt, respectively. Death Cult was formed by lead singer Astbury with Duffy in 1983, a year or so before they dropped "Death" to become the more mainstream acceptable "The Cult". The band's 8-song pre-set focused mostly on songs from their 1983 album "Ghost Dance".
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| Charlie Jones of The (Death) Cult @ The Warfield (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Death Cult (in its current lineup configuration of The Cult members) will release a new 16-track live album recorded from their 2023 tour entitled "Paradise Live". The coming live album's early release song "Resurrection Joe" was one of the main highlights of the Death Cult set. "Love you! Love San Francisco!" a gushing Astbury shouted after "Christians", "Cuz we Built this City on Rock n roll. This is for anyone who was at the I-Beam back in 1984!" A terrific version of "Horse Nation" followed (with Astbury teasing the San Francisco Starship classic) before "Spiritwalker" closed out the set.
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| Ian Astbury of The Cult @ The Warfield (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
"This is the best kept secret of the year," Astbury said as the band exited the stage. "That was Death Cult. You might never see that again." Then, spotting a crowd member holding up a lighter in respect, he exclaimed "Is that a REAL lighter?? F@#k yeah!! Thank you!!!"
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| The Cult @ the Warfield (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
When they retook the stage as The Cult, Duffy ignited the crowd with the unmistakable guitar intro for "Wild Flower" as the crowd erupted and the packed general admission floor danced, sang and lifted their arms high in the air. After a driving version of "The Witch" was met with loud applause, Astbury continued his frequent engagement with the crowd. "There you are. That's the San Francisco I know. I can feel that. They are bringing the love here."
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| Ian Astbury of The Cult @ The Warfield (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
"Jim Marshall - I love you. Pigpen - I love you!...City Lights - I love you..." "War (the Presence)" followed with drummer John Tempesta firing at machine gun speed while Duffy got snarly and slithering on guitar.
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| The Cult @ the Warfield (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
"Rain" saw a floor full of cellphones up in the air to video the moment for posterity. A very haunting version of "Edie (Ciao Baby) started with just Duffy and Astbury slowly and methodically easing the song forward (with a bit of assistance from an off-stage keyboard). When the bass and drums kicked in (with some of Tempesta's most memorable drumming of the night), it elevated the song to rock anthem before bringing the song home with a return to Duffy's spotlighted guitar solo.
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| Ian Astbury of The Cult @ The Warfield (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
As the twelve-song The Cult set continued, Astbury continued to soak in the moments -- frequently pausing to take in the crowd and engage with them. Duffy's main engagement came near the end of the set after the band had played "Fire Woman". "Well, I fucked up and on the setlist, we were supposed to play this song before the last one. So, here's a little bonus track and one of Ian's Favorites," he told the crowd. Indeed, a search of prior setlists showed that the song "Lil Devil" had come before "Fire Woman" in the other shows.
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| The Cult @ the Warfield (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Finally, the band brought the show to an end with the set closer "Love Removal Machine" and then an encore of "She Sells Sanctuary". After the song had concluded and house lights were brought up, Astbury provided enthusiastic introductions of each of his bandmates as much of the crowd lingered and applauded. He then got down onto the carpet near his microphone in a Zen position and appeared to meditate for a final moment.
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| Actually Huizenga of Patriarchy @ The Warfield (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Earlier, the night was kicked off by the "industrial electro-shock rock" two-member band Patriarchy who took the stage in near darkness and created a wall of music that was reminiscent of Nine Inch Nails and The White Stripes. Lead singer and guitarist Actually Huizenga's confidence and stage presence was mesmerizing. Her theatrical approach and looks -- combined with drummer AJ English's terrific stand-up drumming and sampling -- created a memorable 30-minute performance that was memorable and stood out among rock acts. Their energy and sound filled The Warfield -- even spilling out into the lobby. While, a traditional rock fan may have been caught off-guard, I thought their selection was refreshing and would put them on my "must watch for the future" list from 2025.
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