Ian Astbury and Billy Duffy to resurrect Death Cult for 40th anniversary concerts

The Cult | Photo by Tim Cadiente

The Cult’s Ian Astbury and Billy Duffy will celebrate the 40th anniversary of Death Cult — the earlier, darker iteration of their long-running band — with a special one-off U.S. performance in Los Angeles this fall followed by a dozen dates in the U.K. and Ireland.

Billed as The Cult Presents Death Cult, the shows will find Astbury, Duffy and their current Cult bandmates performing a set built around the songs recorded by Death Cult before the band changed its name to The Cult. The shows also will feature songs by The Southern Death Cult — Astbury’s short-lived pre-Death Cult outfit — and selections from the first two albums by The Cult (1984’s Dreamtime and 1985’s Love).

What’s being billed as the sole U.S. performance will take place Oct. 23 at The Theatre at  Ace Hotel in Los Angeles. The band will then perform that same celebration of The Cult’s origins and early years at a dozen shows in November in the U.K. and Ireland. See the full tour itinerary below.

Tickets for all of the Death Cult shows go on sale at 10 a.m. local time Friday, Aug. 18.

Watch The Cult’s website for ticketing details.

+ DEATH CULT + // NOVEMBER 2023 +
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Tickets go on Sale AUG 18 pic.twitter.com/rzykEQ8R6d

— THE CULT (@officialcult) August 14, 2023

The Cult has other, previously announced U.S. dates through October, but the band’s representatives say those shows will instead be “traditional performances, spanning The Cult’s discography.”

Astbury formed the Southern Death Cult in 1981 with Barry Jepson, David “Buzz” Burrows and Haq Nawaz “Aky” Qureshi. The group mined a goth/post-punk sound, but only released one single — “Moya”/”Fatman” — before disbanding. Beggars Banquet released a self-titled compilation in 1983 that collected that single along with radio sessions and live material.

That same year, Astbury and Duffy formed Death Cult, the beginning of their now-decades-long musical collaboration. They released a self-titled EP and a follow-up single, “Gods Zoo,” in 1983 before dropping “Death” and continuing on as The Cult. Those two releases were combined on a single CD in 1988 and, in 1996, that CD was expanded with four tracks from a BBC radio session and retitled Ghost Dance.

Since then, Duffy and Asbury have released 11 albums as The Cult, with breakthrough singles coming in the mid- and late-’80s, including “She Sells Sanctuary,” “Wildflower,” “Love Removal Machine,” “Firewoman” and “Edie (Ciao Baby),” as the band evolved from its goth/post-punk roots into a more hard-rock sound.

Below, check out the Death Cult dates:

The Cult Presents Death Cult tour dates 2023

Oct. 23: Los Angeles, CA — The Theatre at Ace Hotel *
Nov. 6: Belfast, UK — Telegraph
Nov. 7: Dublin, IE — Olympia
Nov. 9: Sheffield, UK — Foundry
Nov. 10: Liverpool, UK — Guild of Students
Nov. 12: Glasgow, UK — Barrowland
Nov. 13: Nottingham, UK — Rock City
Nov. 14: Birmingham, UK — O2 Institute
Nov. 16: Bournemouth, UK — O2 Academy
Nov. 17: Norwich, UK — UEA
Nov. 18: Manchester, UK — Albert Hall
Nov. 20: London, UK — Brixton Electric
Nov. 21: London, UK — Brixton Electric

The Cult tour dates 2023

Oct. 5: Sacramento, CA — Aftershock Festival
Oct. 6: Reno, NV — Grand Sierra Resort & Casino – Grand Theatre *
Oct. 8: Eugene, OR — Hult Center for the Performing Arts – Soreng Theatre *
Oct. 11: Spokane, WA — Northern Quest Resort & Casino
Oct. 12: Boise, ID — Revolution Concert House *
Oct. 14: Shelton, WA — Little Creek Casino Resort – Skookum Event Center
Oct. 15: Portland, OR — Roseland Theatre *
Oct. 17: Saratoga, CA — The Mountain Winery
Oct. 19: San Diego, CA — Humphreys Concerts by the Bay *
Oct. 20: San Diego, CA — Humphreys Concerts by the Bay *
Oct. 21: Rancho Mirage, CA — Aqua Caliente Rancho Mirage – The Show
Oct. 26: Chandler, AZ — Gila River Hotels & Casino – The Showroom at Wild Horse Pass
Oct. 27: Las Vegas, NV — The Pearl *
Oct. 28: Las Vegas, NV — The Pearl *

* Cold Cave opens

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