''Death Cult'' is the debut four-track EP by the

post punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-roc ...

gothic rock Gothic rock (also called goth rock or simply goth) is a style of rock music that emerged from post-punk in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The first post-punk bands which shifted toward dark music with gothic overtones include Siouxsie a ...

band

Death Cult The Cult are an English rock band formed in 1983 in Bradford, West Yorkshire. Before settling on their current name in January 1984, the band performed under the name Death Cult, which was an evolution of the name of lead singer Ian Astbury's ...

(who later shortened their name to

the Cult The Cult are an English rock band formed in 1983 in Bradford, West Yorkshire. Before settling on their current name in January 1984, the band performed under the name Death Cult, which was an evolution of the name of lead singer Ian Astbury's ...

). Released in July 1983 on the

Situation Two Situation Two (a.k.a. Situation 2) was a British independent record label founded in 1981 by Peter Kent as an offshoot of the Beggars Banquet label. At the time, Beggars Banquet releases were often distributed by WEA; to appeal to the indie ...

label, the EP reached No. 2 on the

UK Independent Chart The UK Independent Singles Chart and UK Independent Albums Chart are charts of the best-selling independent singles and albums, respectively, in the United Kingdom. Originally published in January 1980, and widely known as the indie chart, the rele ...

. The EP is often erroneously referred to as ''Brothers Grimm'' (after the song title of the first track on the

A-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...

of the record). In 1988, the EP was released on

compact disc The compact disc (CD) is a Digital media, digital optical disc data storage format that was co-developed by Philips and Sony to store and play digital audio recordings. In August 1982, the first compact disc was manufactured. It was then rele ...

coupled with the contents of the group's only other official release, "

Gods Zoo "Gods Zoo" is a single by the English post-punk/gothic rock band Death Cult (who later shortened their name to the Cult), released on 23 October 1983 by Situation Two. The song is often, erroneously, spelled "God's Zoo" (with an apostrophe in the w ...

", retaining the same eponymous title. In 1996, the contents of the 1988 CD release were remastered and

reissue In the music industry, a reissue (also re-release, repackage or re-edition) is the release of an album or Single (music), single which has been released at least once before, sometimes with alterations or additions. Reasons for reissue New aud ...

d with an additional four tracks from a

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

session. This release was titled ''Ghost Dance''.

Development

Death Cult formed in April 1983 when

Ian Astbury Ian Robert Astbury (born 14 May 1962) is an English singer, best known as a founding member, lead vocalist and frontman of the rock band the Cult. During various hiatuses from the Cult, Astbury has fronted the short-lived Holy Barbarians in 1 ...

(formerly of

Southern Death Cult Southern Death Cult were a British post-punk/ gothic rock band in the early 1980s. They are now primarily known for having given their lead singer and parts of the name to the multi-platinum hard rock band the Cult. Despite the similarities in ...

) and

Billy Duffy William Henry Duffy (born 12 May 1961) is an English rock musician, best known as the guitarist of the band The Cult. Early life Duffy was born and grew up in Manchester. He has Irish and Jewish heritage and ancestry. He began playing the guit ...

(formerly of

Theatre of Hate Theatre of Hate are a British post-punk band formed in London, England, in 1980. Led by singer-songwriter Kirk Brandon (formerly of the Pack), the original group also consisted of bassist Stan Stammers (formerly of the Straps and the Epilept ...

) joined forces after meeting each other when Southern Death Cult supported Theatre of Hate on a number of dates during the latter's tour. By June 1983, the group had written 10 songs, four of which would be recorded for their debut EP. The first track, "Brothers Grimm", was originally written by Duffy and

UK Decay UK Decay are an English rock band, based in Luton, England. History UK Decay was born out of the ashes of another Luton band called the Resiztors, who had formed in 1978. The Resiztors' line-up consisted of guitarist Steve "Abbo" Abbott, ...

vocalist Steve "Abbo" Abbott after both musicians had left their respective bands (and prior to Duffy joining Astbury to form Death Cult). Two of the songs delved into Astbury's respect and fascination with the Native American cultures previously explored during his tenure with Southern Death Cult. "Ghost Dance" was inspired by the

Ghost Dance The Ghost Dance ( Caddo: Nanissáanah, also called the Ghost Dance of 1890) was a ceremony incorporated into numerous Native American belief systems. According to the teachings of the Northern Paiute spiritual leader Wovoka (renamed Jack Wilso ...

religious movement as well as the writings and teachings of spiritual leader

Wovoka Wovoka (c. 1856 - September 20, 1932), also known as Jack Wilson, was the Paiute religious leader who founded a second episode of the Ghost Dance movement. Wovoka means "cutter" or "wood cutter" in the Northern Paiute language. Biography Wovok ...

, whose name is mentioned in the lyrics ("Wovoka had a vision"...), while the lyrics to "Horse Nation" were taken nearly verbatim from the book ''

Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee ''Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West'' is a 1970 non-fiction book by American writer Dee Brown that covers the history of Native Americans in the American West in the late nineteenth century. The book expres ...

''. Astbury and Duffy's interest in the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

was also in evidence, both in the photograph that appeared on the picture sleeve, as well as the lyrical content of the final track, "Christians", which directly referenced the war and featured lyrics referring to the Chiêu Hồi program and the tiger stripe camouflage pattern worn by United States infantrymen. At the time, certain groups within the British post punk

subculture A subculture is a group of people within a culture that differentiates itself from the parent culture to which it belongs, often maintaining some of its founding principles. Subcultures develop their own norms and values regarding cultural, poli ...

developed a "trendy" fascination with the Vietnam War that spilled over into dress and music. According to Astbury: :''"My interest in Viet Nam started when I saw '

Apocalypse Now ''Apocalypse Now'' is a 1979 American epic war film produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola. The screenplay, co-written by Coppola, John Milius and Michael Herr, is loosely based on the 1899 novella ''Heart of Darkness'' by Joseph Conr ...

'. What they were doing was the closest to some uplifting experience that you can get".'' During Death Cult's 1983 tour, Duffy was often seen wearing a

green beret The green beret was the official headdress of the British Commandos of the Second World War. It is still worn by members of the Royal Marines after passing the Commando Course, and personnel from other units of the Royal Navy, Army and RAF wh ...

with a Vietnam War-era

5th Special Forces Group The 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne) (5th SFG (A)) is one of the most decorated active duty United States Army Special Forces groups in the U.S. armed forces. The 5th SFG (A) saw extensive action in the Vietnam War and played a pivotal role i ...

beret flash along with tiger stripe fatigues. Duffy later referred to it as "Apocalypse Now chic".

Original 1983 EP

The original EP was released only in 12" format, solely in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. The photograph that appeared on the front sleeve was taken by renowned Vietnam War photographer Tim Page. The group's logo and the lettering on the EP picture sleeve were done by bassist Jaime Stewart. The initial UK 12" release included a folded A4 insert written by Tom Vague which included information on the group in the form of a series of short interviews.

UK 12":
Situation Two Situation Two (a.k.a. Situation 2) was a British independent record label founded in 1981 by Peter Kent as an offshoot of the Beggars Banquet label. At the time, Beggars Banquet releases were often distributed by WEA; to appeal to the indie ...
SIT 23T

# "Brothers Grimm" # "Ghost Dance" # "Horse Nation"this track was re-recorded for the group's (as the Cult) debut album ''

Dreamtime The Dreaming, also referred to as Dreamtime, is a term devised by early anthropologists to refer to a religio-cultural worldview attributed to Australian Aboriginal mythology, Australian Aboriginal beliefs. It was originally used by Francis Ja ...

''. # "Christians"

French 12": Situation Two/New Rose Records SIT 23T

# "Brothers Grimm" # "Ghost Dance" # "Horse Nation" # "Christians"

Japanese 12": Nexus International K15P 517

# "Brothers Grimm" # "Ghost Dance" # "Horse Nation" # "Christians"

1988 compact disc

In 1988, the group's label,

Beggars Banquet ''Beggars Banquet'' is the 7th British and 9th American studio album by the English rock band the Rolling Stones, released on 6 December 1968 by Decca Records in the United Kingdom and London Records in the United States. It was the first Ro ...

(via its subsidiary label Situation Two, which Death Cult was originally signed to), issued a compact disc edition, marked "SPECIAL LOW PRICE CD FEATURING THE COMPLETE RECORDINGS", in the UK only. This CD collected the original EP along with the

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

"Gods Zoo". The material was allegedly

remaster Remaster refers to changing the quality of the sound or of the image, or both, of previously created recordings, either audiophonic, cinematic, or videographic. The terms digital remastering and digitally remastered are also used. Mastering A ...

ed, but no evidence exists to support this claim. This CD release retained the eponymous title of the original EP.

UK CD: Situation Two SIT2329CD

# "Gods Zoo" – 3:25 # "Brothers Grimm" – 3:31 # "Ghost Dance" – 3:58 # "Horse Nation" – 3:24 # "Christians" – 3:48 # "Gods Zoo (These Times)" – 5:09

''Ghost Dance''

In 1996, Beggars Banquet remastered and reissued the 1988 eponymous ''Death Cult'' compact disc. This new collection was released in the UK and US simultaneously (marking the first time Death Cult material was released in the US). The compact disc collection featured new artwork and was given the title ''Ghost Dance''. In addition to the material from the 1988 compact disc, the 1997 CD appended a four-track

David Jensen David Allan "Kid" Jensen (born 4 July 1950) is a Canadian-born British radio DJ and television presenter. Born in Victoria, British Columbia, Jensen began as a radio DJ on Radio Luxembourg. Jensen was later a broadcaster for the BBC from 1976 ...

BBC Radio 1 session engineered by

Dale Griffin Terence Dale "Buffin" Griffin (24 October 1948 – 17 January 2016) was an English drummer and a founding member of 1970s rock band Mott the Hoople. Later, he worked as a producer, and produced many of the BBC Radio 1 John Peel sessions from 19 ...

and broadcast on 27 October 1983. One of these BBC tracks, "A Flower in the Desert", was a rewritten version of "Flowers in the Forest", originally written and recorded by Astbury's earlier group Southern Death Cult. This track had previously been released as the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

to the 1984 "

Spiritwalker "Spiritwalker" is a single by the English rock band The Cult and was released in 11 May 1984. "Spiritwalker" is the lead single from the ''Dreamtime'' album, although it was released nearly five months before the album was released. Song origin ...

" single, released shortly after the group changed its name to the Cult. "Too Young" was later rewritten as "Rider in the Snow", appearing as such on the group's debut album, ''

''. "With Love" was originally titled "The Waste of Love", and only changed to "With Love" when it was recorded during the BBC radio session. The song was later rewritten and recorded (as the Cult) during the "

Go West (Crazy Spinning Circles) "Go West (Crazy Spinning Circles)" is a single by the English rock band The Cult and was released on 10 August 1984. Often truncated as just "Go West", it is the second single from the ''Dreamtime (The Cult album), Dreamtime'' album. B-Side The B- ...

" recording sessions on 22 June 1984, under the

working title A working title, which may be abbreviated and styled in trade publications after a putative title as (wt), also called a production title or a tentative title, is the temporary title of a product or project used during its development, usually ...

of "Ship of Fools". The track was then retitled "Sea and Sky" and released as the B-side of the "Go West (Crazy Spinning Circles)" single.

UK/US CD: Beggars Banquet BBL 2008 CD

# "Gods Zoo" – 3:25 # "Brothers Grimm" – 3:31 # "Ghost Dance" – 3:58 # "Horse Nation" – 3:24 # "Christians" – 3:48 # "A Flower in the Desert"additional track recorded for the David Jensen BBC Radio 1 show - 3:14 # "Too Young" - 2:56 # "Butterflies" - 2:47 # "With Love" - 3:25 # "Gods Zoo (These Times)" – 5:09

Personnel

– vocals *

– guitar * Jamie Stewart – bass guitar *

Ray Mondo Raymond Taylor-Smith (birth date unknown, born in Sierra Leone) was a drummer for several notable British post-punk and gothic rock groups during the early 1980s. He is best known by his stage name, Ray Mondo. Ray Mondo first appeared on the Briti ...

– drums (on the original four-track EP) *

Nigel Preston Nigel Preston (4 April 1963, Birmingham, England – 1 April 1992) was an English drummer. He was a founding member of the Cult. He also played and recorded with Theatre of Hate, Sex Gang Children, the Baby Snakes, the Gun Club and DeLuca. He ...

– drums (on "Gods Zoo" single and BBC sessions)

Footnotes

References

* *

External links

Death Cult
at Deathrock.com
Death Cult
at Discogs {{DEFAULTSORT:Death Cult (Ep) The Cult albums 1983 EPs 1996 compilation albums Situation Two compilation albums