BEGGARS BANQUET Sonic Temple

2019 marks the 30th anniversary of The Cult’s epic album SONIC TEMPLE. To celebrate the anniversary, Beggars Arkive will release THE CULT: SONIC TEMPLE 30 on August 30th. There is a deluxe box set, a 5-CD set, and we are also reissuing Sonic Temple on Double LP, which has been out of print for over 20 years. The sets both contain limited-release demos in addition to previously unreleased tracks. Originally released in 1989, Sonic Temple proved to be a pivotal moment for both band and the wider rock scene. Produced by the legendary Bob Rock (Metallica, Bon Jovi, Aerosmith), Sonic Temple had four hit singles; “Fire Woman”, “Edie (Ciao Baby)”, “Sun King” and “Sweet Soul Sister”. The album catapulted The Cult into superstar status and remains their most commercially successful release. It has sold over 1.5 million copies in the US alone, and was declared platinum in 1990. It made it to #10 on the Billboard charts, and the abovementioned songs are all rock-radio staples to this day. The Cult continues to record and tour and they have released six albums since Sonic Temple, the most recent being Hidden City in 2016. They’ve been spending 2019 celebrating this album by performing it all over the world on a tour they’ve billed as A Sonic Temple. The BOX SET contains three pieces of vinyl and a cassette plus tour memorabilia and ephemera (replica of original laminate, backstage pass, original press releases and label copy and more). It’s numbered and limited to 3000 pieces worldwide and contains 46 tracks, which include 4 previously unreleased. LP1+2 contain the album as originally released. LP3 contains Live At Wembley recorded by the BBC, and the included cassette contains limited-release demos. Four of the live tracks are previously unreleased. The FIVE-CD SET contains 53 tracks (including 6 previously unreleased) with the original album on disc 1, alternate edits, mixes, extended versions and acoustic versions on disc 2, limited-release demos on discs 3 & 4 and Live at Wembley recorded by the BBC on disc 5. Six of the live tracks are previously unreleased. It is beautifully packaged in book form with rare photographs and interviews with the band by esteemed journalist James Brown. The DOUBLE LP is a re-vamped reissue of the original album. Now cut onto two pieces of black vinyl, the audio is improved and contains 16 tracks total, which comprise the original album plus 6 B-sides. It’s been out of print for over 20 years.