Billy Duffy reveals his favourite era of the Cult: “The guitar sounds are probably the best I ever got”
Billy Duffy believes some of his best guitar work within The Cult’s discography ended up being under-appreciated due to tensions among the band and creative differences.
Looking back on the early 1990s, when The Cult released their fifth studio album Ceremony, Duffy recalls achieving some of his favourite guitar sounds, but felt they were unable to find the right producer to deliver the album as intended. Different sonic desires with bandmate Ian Astbury also created an unsettled creative environment, leading to a “necessary” hiatus in 1995.
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Speaking to Guitarist, Duffy reflects on the era of Ceremony: “Ian wanted to go in a different direction. I was a bit more conservative and was like, ‘We’ve just had a multi- platinum record. Why would we depart from that?’ But he wanted to change it up and do something looser and more shambolic, like Keith Richards’ band the X-Pensive Winos,” he says.
“I remember being resistant, so we kind of compromised. Bob Rock was gonna do Ceremony, but he said, ‘Well, I’ve got Metallica. That’s only gonna take a couple of months…’ 13 months later he finished the Metallica record and in the meantime we had to find another producer.
“13 months later he finished the Metallica record and in the meantime we had to find another producer. It was just never right. It was okay, but it didn’t really capture what we wanted to do. It’s sad because the guitar sounds [of that era] are probably the best I ever got,” he adds.
Later asked how he hopes to be remembered as a guitarist, Duffy goes on to name three other albums from The Cult that also show some of his best work.
“I think what I did on Electric, Love and Sonic Temple was interesting. Me taking a Gretsch and putting two overdrives and a wah there, it took Gretsches into another area. I just thought it was kind of cool to try to make this acidy, psychedelic kind of post-punk music – but with a big, solid, chunky rock sound in its foundation.”
He later concludes, “I just think I’d like to be remembered as a guy who kept the values of the 70s – you know, the good stuff – alive. I helped keep the spirit of Free, Bad Company, Mott The Hoople, Zeppelin, Iggy Pop, Sex Pistols, Sabbath and all that stuff alive. I just wanted to keep the essence of proper rock alive.”
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