I jumped at the chance to see this double header of a gig at one of my favourite Midland venues Sheffield O2 Academy.  The Cult and  the Mission on the same bill…..I mean, what’s not to like?  As a fan of both bands from way back, I was eager to see if they were exactly how I remembered them.

 As Wayne Hussey steps onto the stage, not much seems to have changed about him that’s for sure.  The hair might be shorter these days, but there’s still the trademark shades and a closer look onstage reveals that there is still a wine bottle close to hand. It’s impossible to check to see if it’s his old favourite Blue Nun. I could be wrong but I’m guessing he’s probably upgraded since then.

 Thundering into ‘Beyond The Pale’, they immediately have the crowd on side, and hands are already in the air and words are being screamed, and I do mean screamed, back at Hussey with all the desperation of fans wanting to connect with their heroes.

 Early Mission track ‘Garden of Delight’ from their ‘Gods Own Medicine’ album reminds us of how delectably seductive Wayne’s velvety vocals are and his voice has never sounded better and as the lustful lyrics of the songs chorus of “take my hand and lead me to the garden of delight” envelop you it’s hard not to fall completely under his spell.

 On a more serious note, there are many references to Hillsborough.  With the setting being Sheffield, and with this being the day that the truth about the tragedy is revealed,  mixed with the fact that Wayne is an avid Liverpool F C fan it was probably always going to be so.  It also means that emotions tonight are running high.

 This gig  could also be seen as a homecoming of sorts for Simon Hinkler,  who apart from his day job as Mission guitarist is a well known musician, songwriter and producer in Sheffield.  The haunting sound of  Hinkler’s guitar signals the start of ‘Severina’ which once again has the crowd bouncing along (which begs the question – Do Goths bounce? I might have misjudged that sentence somewhat).  Mission fans have always been a fanatical bunch, and the passing of years has not changed this.  Something else that hasn’t changed is Wayne’s flirtatious nature and as a blonde woman perches aloft singing along on her boyfriends shoulders, Wayne can’t resist blowing her a kiss.

 New song ‘Chernobyl Heart’  is given an airing and its extrememly exciting to see the band are writing new material and i’m hoping to hear more. The new track fits into the hit heavy set well,  as its sound is very much like the classic Mission tracks that we know and love.

 Wayne dedicates ‘Blood Brothers’ to Ian Astbury of The Cult, and knowing that The Cult took The Mission along with them for The Mission’s first European tour back in the late Eighties it’s obvious that the bond between them is strong and enduring.

 After playing  Bob Dylan cover ‘All along the Watchtower’ someone from the crowd suggests that they do a Killing Joke cover (in reference to the fact that this should have actually been a triple header tour  until Killing Joke pulled out after lead singer Jaz went missing, only to be found some time later allegedly wandering in a desert) showing their innate ability to improvise they immediately burst into a Killing Joke intro before saying “We could do cover versions all night….” and the crowd would happily let them.

 Still the hits are coming, and they haven’t finished yet as the crowd are whipped into a frenzy with ‘Wasteland’ producing the largest amount of ‘goth hands’ shooting skyward yet the raw tone of Wayne’s vocals ripping through the air during  ‘Deliverance’ and as the band leave the stage, the crowd are literally begging for more and luckily this is one gig where the ‘support’ gets to do an encore.

 ‘Tower of Strength’ seems like a very apt way to end the  triumphant gig  especially with Wayne returning, starting the song alone with a guitar and then part way through, being joined onstage by the other band members.  It’s a wonderful metaphor for the ethos of the song, and this emotional rendition cements its place in my heart further.

 How on earth will the Cult follow that? Well they’ve never been shy in coming forward, and so start the gig as they mean to go on.  The Indian chanting of the Intro is interrupted by the crash of Billy Duffy’s guitar ripping straight into ‘Lil Devil’.  Lead singer Ian Astbury is bedecked in leather jacket with fur attachment  and he looks a very striking and imposing figure.  Billy stands forward so the crowd can marvel at his fancy fretwork, and marvel we do.  That man sure knows his way round a guitar.

 No sooner than the first hit is out of the way than the next one appears and ‘Rain’ is pouring upon us and the crowd are loving the downpour! New track  ‘Honey from a knife’ titillates the crowd with a sampler of what the new album is like and as the driving guitar intro pounds into the song it sounds very promising indeed.

 Billy’s wizzardry on his guitar is once again awe inspiring as the intro of  ‘Firewoman’ produces a mad frenzy of movement and a mass crowd singalong, although the new songs are a powerful indication that their new album ‘Choice of Weapon’ will surely be a hit it’s the older hits that, as you would expect,  create the most crowd reaction.

 Ian starts the next song with a chant about Jarvis Cocker,  it seems bizarre, but not totally unexpected in Sheffield, and especially from the wonderfully eccentric and complex character that is the the frontman of The Cult. However, I’m still baffled that Ian has not fainted with his leather and fur attire that he shows no sign of discarding.  As if to add to the heat further, he then takes down his previously tied up hair and I am startled by the fact that he bears an uncanny resemblance to Jim Morrison.  I didn’t see that one coming.  Having been temporarily distracted by this, it is the vibrant vocal of the chorus of ‘Spiritwalker’ that brings me sharply back to reality.

 Much like The Mission, they end their set with an absolute powerhouse of hits . The wonderful  “Wildflower” is pure class and has the crowd rocking their socks off and Ian’s strong and ballsy vocals on the anthemic ‘She Sells Sanctuary‘ coupled with the uplifting guitar breaks are a joy to behold. Pondering what on earth they could be saving for an encore after such a fantastic set,  they ramp the energy and temperature up further with a mind-blowing performance of ‘Love Removal Machine‘ and with the last primal scream of the song hanging in the air the crowd go home more than satisfied having seen two class acts tonight.  For anyone thinking that this was all about a trip down memory lane they are way off the mark.  If anything this was a lesson in Rock ‘n’ Roll and we could not have hoped for better teachers.

Jackie Nutty