The Cult’s Ian Astbury Proclaims: ‘The Idea Of Making Albums Is Dead’
Cult frontman Ian Astbury has issued a distressing diatribe about the current state of the music industry, revealing: “I don’t think we’ll ever see a [new] Cult album.”
Speaking to the El Paso Times, Astbury grumbled:
“Rock’n'roll now is pretty much in the garbage. It’s barely alive. Everybody has taken from it. Nobody has given back. There are a very few who have given back. It’s a very selfish occupation. A lot of people never really returned. That’s why we have a lot of pastiche and we have a lot of artists who are never involved beyond their sophomore albums. It’s a travesty.”
When asked whether The Cult are working on material for a new album, Astbury barked:
“There will be no new album. I don’t think we’ll ever see a Cult album. Albums are dead. The format is dead. iTunes destroyed albums. The whole idea of an album. Albums were established in the 70s and 80s and into the 90s, but they’ve been dead for a long time. Nobody buys albums. It’s been proven. It’s an arcane format, as much as the 78 rpm or writing sheet music for an orchestra. It’s an old form and, for me, it’s much more about if we have a great song we really believe in, then we’ll record it and release it.”
“For me, the idea of making albums is dead. The idea of spending a year and a half in the studio arguing over agendas and trying to fit into a format that’s settled before we started the creative process [is unappealing].”
Hmm. When Astbury says “nobody buys albums” does he mean albums in general, or Cult albums in particular? After all, The Cult’s recent comeback album Born Into This was hardly a runaway success. Discuss.
Gene $immon$ said a similar thing and Kiss have a new record out in September…
What a twat. I rarely download and when I do I only do it legally. I’m sure I’m not the only one reading this who still loves buying music the ‘proper’ way. Yeah, we all miss vinyl but I’m not about to forsake the pleasure of buying a new release because the format’s all but dead. I agree that illegal downloading has a damaging effect but Rock n’ Roll definately isn’t ‘in the garbage’ as he so eloquently puts it.
The “art of the album” as a mainstream artistic pursuit has been in decline since CD came along and i-Tunes has only escalated its demise. However, there are still artists looking to create albums as whole cogent entities that follow a line of inspiration throughout rather than just plonking a list of songs on a CD or releasing odd tracks via i-Tunes. You just have to look a bit harder for them these days.
It will never be exactly the same as the days of vinyl when you had opening and closing tracks for each side and great albums had a dynamic that flowed through the whole disc but, for some, “the album” is still an art-form to aspire to.
The album, in the classic sense of the word, is dead. What’s the doubt, really? And it’s not so much iTunes fault, as it is of major record labels and the artists themselves. The former did all they could do to kill the single, since the album was much more profitable for them. And the artists happily went along, cutting full-length records which, for the most part, were merely singles + filler. The ploy worked very well when major labels controlled all retail and promotion channels at their will, and the only chance people had to sample an album was through the listening posts at the record store. As soon as Napster reared its head though, everything went bonkers. People now could carefully sample their records and know immediately if it was worth spending their hard earned money on. Plus, the Internet gave people the opportunity to discover music that otherwise would have been harder to track down during the days of the old model.
So yes, things changed. Better just live with it and try to work things out.
Remember when wankers like Elton John were screaming that “Home taping is killing music!!”?
This defeatist garbage sounds a bit like that.
Shame he didn’t think of this before releasing the steaming pile of cack that was “Born Into This”.
Maybe if Born into This had atually been any good you’dve sold more albums Ian!!
As the Metallica, AC/DC and Whitesnake releases last year proved, if you bring out good material people will buy it
You to could buy a new Cult album!…. So long as it aint shite like the last two they released!
We still love you, Ian!
The rock’n'roll people!
As a huge Cult fan I must sadly say that the latest offering by the band was their weakest ever and was nowhere near the standard of 2001’s beyond good and evil and previous albums.
As much as Ian and Billy are Idols of mine and always will be I think its time to stop “whingeing” and arguing over agendas and just make make a killer album up to the standard we have come to expect from THE CULT.
I have 200 cds, I only download music to see if
I want to buy the cd.
Born into this was actually a quality release but with little to no promotion and expecting the name to sell the product it was doomed to begin with (the pink cover art didn’t help it leave the store shelf either mind!)… Beyond Good and Evil was a real comeback but again suffered form lack of promotion.
The artform isn’t dead, it’s the old school way of business that is dead.
No argument downloads have reduced sales, but the art still thrives and modern business equates to healthier sales!
Record industry dug a hole for itself by signing trash bands, controlling the airwaves by playing said trash bands, controlling the venues by booking trash bands, etc… Yet, after all this was said and done, they continue to do so.
I agree with Ian, the MP3 format (or P2P file sharing) in particular, had a lot to do with album death. Personally, I like owning the pressed CD/LP’s. I check out the songs on Youtube then buy what I like from Amazon or CDuniverse…..most of which are classic reissues or vintage rock releases.
Primo
I am a big fan of The Cult, but the last album was weak, it is true that downloading is partly responsible for the downfall of music, but the magazines, radio and tv have played an even larger role, record companies jump on trend led bandwagons and the media follows suit, CD’s still sell well for big acts, The Cult were never a huge draw despite being a great band, their latest release was never going to sell big.
But it still saddens me as a musician that any chance of a real rock band making it are now long gone.
Fantastic to hear they are touring in August performing the sensational LOVE album. There’s a great article about the Cult at Sugarbuzzmagazine dot com!
but that kind of attitude won`t bring the buyers back, even though I believe a lot of young and old rockers do buy albums now. I can see a lot of people buy records, eagerly awaiting new releases. So I think it`s more of an opposite trend than what Astbury is proclaiming, the albums are on their way back! And rock n`roll lives on, because as we all know, it can`t die…
Any Cultalbum I’ll buy ,play and love
Any concert in the neighbourhood I’ll visit
it’s time for the radioprogrammakers they broadcast some new shit, of my heroes
CFFC
cmon ian
stop talking
sing and let billy play
everything else is absolutely unconsequent
see you in paris for love live tour
ps : born into this was a middle lp with 3/4 great songs : enough for happiness!
ive loved everything the cult have ever released..ian is a great song writer..enough said..born into this is a great album..ive played it to death..hurry up with the new one boys..
well said darren hayes
the cult are an amazing band so bring on the new album (Well, EP, Same thing).
john bethel and sparksy can shove a sharp pencil up their cake pit!!!!!!!!!!!, motherfucking potato-shaggers!!!!
EARTH, SOUL, ROCK’N'ROLL!!!!!!!!!
Also…
for all those insulting the cult’s albums and songs.
Go and f**k a goat and eat it, ‘cos the cult have never made a bad song.
EARTH, SOUL, ROCK’N'ROLL!!!!!!!!
All you Cult haters are missing out…
EARTH, SOUL, ROCK’N'ROLL!!!!!!!
If anyone is looking for awesome cult collectables I have just listed my entire collectionon e*bay that took me about 15 years to put together. You wont see another chance to get hold of most of this stuff. It is item no 300459111517 and the seller name is cult123
I was a big fan of The Cult in the days of Spiritwalker/Love/Electric, and can still enjoy them today. I really do admire Astbury’s sincerity; yes, at times it can seem a bit much, but he clearly believes in what he says, much respect to that. His voice is so distinctive, his charisma as a singer is second to none. Surely one of the great voices (and characters) in rock history. The band rocks, too! Here’s a free download of White: http://aderra.net/Cult_download.html