CULTS at Lees Palace (529 Bloor West), Friday (June 17), midnight. Free with NXNE wristband/pass or $15. See listing. At Yonge-Dundas Square, Saturday (June 18), 7 pm. Free. nxne.com. See listing.
June has been a great month for Cults.
The New York band’s self-titled debut album came out on June 7, earning the coveted best new music rating from Pitchfork.
Two days later, they played a homecoming show of sorts at the Music Hall in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, a venue guitarist Brian Oblivion had always dreamed of playing.
Now the grind begins.
“You’re catching me at the point where I’m still excited,” Oblivion says, speaking of the six-month tour schedule that lies ahead. The chatter of Cults singer Madeline Follin is audible in the background as they head to a show in Washington, DC.
Right in time for summer, the 60s-girl-group-influenced band’s mysterious first chapter is complete. Earlier this year, they signed to British singer Lily Allen’s label imprint through Columbia/Sony, In the Name of.
While they were still finding themselves musically (and generating hype in the process), Cults used to perform under the pseudonym Lady MJ and the Highwater Bong Boys.
“That’s still what we call ourselves in private,” he says. “If you think about it, Madeline’s voice does sound shockingly like a young Michael Jackson, and everybody else in the band really likes to get high.”
