Ian Astbury, lead singer of The Cult, jumped into the pit at a July 19th performance in Washington, D.C. and rescued a fan who had been put in a chokehold.
Footage uploaded to Creative Underground on YouTube shows Astbury performing the 1985 Cult classic “Rain.” “I’ve been waiting for,” he began, before abruptly walking away from the microphone stand and hopping into the pit. He then got into a heated argument with a large man in a green shirt, while the fan who had been choked hugged him. Afterwards, he returned to the stage and began the song from the beginning.
“Brother never, ever put a chokehold on somebody,” he said later. “That is not fucking cool. That’s what the pig does.” As the man in green began to protest, he added, “And stop crying. It’s a fucking rock show. You don’t like it? Go stand at the back. You’re tall. You’re bigger than everybody. You’re standing at the front of a rock show. What do you think?”
Meanwhile, the fan who had been put in a chokehold had exited the show. “He’s gone,” Astbury said. “So we can forget about him. He’s gone.” Check out footage of the altercation below.
Earlier this month The Cult announced Under the Midnight Sun, the band’s first LP in six years and 11th overall. The band is currently on tour, and tickets are available here.