Publication Date: Friday Jan 30, 1998

On Tour Forever

Blue Oyster Cult? Those guys are still around?" Many people may not know that Blue Oyster Cult, once a platinum-selling band that sold out major arenas around the nation, is still touring and recording. They've long since fallen off the charts and onto the club circuit, but, yes, the Cult is still ticking.

"We never stopped playing. We play the whole United States every year," said BOC vocalist Eric Bloom. "I mean, we are playing smaller venues, but we sell out almost every night.

"There is still interest."

That's what Jimmy Arceneaux is counting on. Arceneaux is the talent buyer for The Edge in Palo Alto and has had great success booking bands that once played arenas but are now willing to perform at his comparatively dinky club. Such once-mighty acts as Cheap Trick, Night Ranger, UFO and seemingly every other hard rock act that hasn't been heard of in some time has appeared at The Edge.

Following in those footsteps, BOC comes to The Edge on Feb. 4. It's your chance to see a band that once headlined such places as Jack Murphy Stadium in San Diego and Aloha Stadium in Hawaii, in front of crowds in the 50,000 range, at a venue that holds roughly 500 folks.

Sure the band members have gotten (quite) a bit older since their '70s heyday, and the music scene has changed. But the songs--especially hits like "Don't Fear the Reaper" and "Godzilla"--definitely still rock.

And, unlike a number of other acts, BOC promises not to torture the audience by performing a load of unwanted new songs before arriving at the desired golden oldies. Bloom says that folks who attend The Edge gig can expect to hear two or three new songs, a few semi-obscure tracks from the band's huge catalog, and a bunch of classics.

It's been more than a quarter of a century since the Cult's self-titled debut was released and much more than a decade since their last legitimate hit. Taking those facts into consideration, after all these years, you'd think that the band would get a little tired of playing the same tunes (especially ones as insipid as "Burning For You") night-in, night-out. "Don't Fear the Reaper" is indisputably a rock classic but doesn't Bloom ever get a bit bored performing it?

"Nah. Not really," Bloom said. "We know people want to hear it, so that's OK with me."

The Long Island-based crew began its career known as the Soft White Underbelly, a band that specialized in psychedelic rock. But times and attitudes changed, and in 1971 Soft White Underbelly moved to a harder and heavier approach and, coincidentally, took the name Blue Oyster Cult. The rest was heavy metal history.

The first two albums, 1972's "Blue Oyster Cult" and 1973's "Tyranny and Mutation," made the Cult a critics' darling. Albums such as 1974's "Secret Treaties," 1976's "Agents of Fortune," and 1981's "Fire of Unknown Origin" made the Cult one of the biggest acts on the planet.

Bloom's vocals played a big part in BOC's success, but most discussions about the band tend to center around the talents of Donald "Buck Dharma" Roeser. His killer licks, stinging riffs and floating solos (see "Buck's Boogie") simply define the Cult.

"What saves the Cult from becoming a smug parody of the early metal scene--at first, anyway--is lead guitarist Donald "Buck Dharma" Roeser," Mark Coleman wrote in "The Rolling Stone Album Guide." "Buck Dharma couples an understanding of raw chord power with a sense of melody and restraint."

Roeser is still a member of the Cult, as is original keyboardist/guitarist Allen Lanier. Bloom, Roeser and Lanier are joined by newcomers Danny Miranda, on bass, and Bobby Rondinelli, on drums. Besides the continual touring, the band plans to release an album's worth of new material in mid-March.

The Cult has also been in contact with the folks behind "Godzilla," the upcoming movie that just about everyone has pegged as the likely summer blockbuster. BOC's own "Godzilla" seems like a natural to feature on the soundtrack but ...

"They have no interest in using it," Bloom said.

One of the obstacles, Bloom believes, could be that the song identifies Godzilla as a Japanese monster while the producers might want to go for a more American feel.

"Also (the lyric) 'Oh no, there goes Tokyo.' This (movie) is different. I don't know if Tokyo gets destroyed in this movie," he said.

The Cult's every move isn't covered in the fashion that it once was, but "plugged-in" fans can still easily find out what's going on with the band. BOC has a prominent presence on the Web, with at least 10 sites dealing with the band, and Bloom recommends checking in with www.bocfanclub@aol.com.

Or you can just be patient, because most likely the Cult will be making regular stops in the Bay Area for sometime to come.

"One of our tour T-shirts says 'On Tour Forever,'" Bloom said.

What: Blue Oyster Cult in concert; Vicious Rumors open

Where: The Edge, 260 California Ave., Palo Alto

When: Show starts at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 4

How much: $10 (advance)

Information: Call 324-EDGE 

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