Beyond Good and Evil (album)

Beyond Good and Evil
Studio album by
The Cult
Released5 June 2001
Recorded2000
Genre
Length51:03
LabelAtlantic, Lava
ProducerBob Rock
The Cult chronology
The Best of Rare Cult
(2000) 		Beyond Good and Evil
(2001) 		Born into This
(2007)
Singles from Album
  1. "Rise"
    Released: 2001
  2. "Breathe *promotional only"
    Released: 2001
  3. "True Believers *promotional only"
    Released: 2002

Beyond Good and Evil is the seventh studio album by English rock band The Cult. Released in 2001, it marked their first new recording in six and a half years. It also marked the return of Matt Sorum. He previously toured with the band on the Sonic Temple tour in 1989 and 1990, but this was the first time that he had recorded a studio album with the band.

Beyond Good and Evil debuted at No. 37 on the charts in the United States, No. 22 in Canada and No. 25 in Spain. Only one single, "Rise", was released and had a music video, though "Breathe" and "True Believers" were released as promotional singles. The album was rereleased as a coloured double vinyl on 31 January 2025

Background and writing

The title of the record is a reference to Friedrich Nietzsche's 1886 book of the same title, and it briefly had the mock working title of Bring Me the Head of Dave Grohl, referencing the frontman of Foo Fighters, and also the former drummer of Nirvana.[1] In 2006, singer Ian Astbury claimed via the band's website that his preferred choice for the record's title was Demon Process.

"My Bridges Burn" was originally titled "Save Me"; "Breathe" originally had the slightly longer title "Breathe (You Bastard)" along with an overdub of keyboards after the guitar solo which was later removed; and "Speed of Light" went through several different titles: originally titled "Black California", then "Who Plays the Devil" before the band decided on its final title.

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic60/100[2]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Rolling Stone[4]

Q Magazine described Beyond Good & Evil as combining "Metallica, nu-metal and the slightly psychedelic ambience of '85's Love[5] while AllMusic praised the album as "heavy metal for the new millennium."[3]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Ian Astbury and Billy Duffy, except where noted.

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."War (The Process)" 4:12
2."The Saint" 3:36
3."Rise" 3:39
4."Take the Power" 3:55
5."Breathe"Astbury, Duffy, Mick Jones, Marti Frederiksen4:59
6."Nico" 4:49
7."American Gothic" 3:56
8."Ashes and Ghosts"Astbury, Duffy, Bob Rock5:00
9."Shape the Sky" 3:29
10."Speed of Light"Astbury, Duffy, Rock4:22
11."True Believers" 5:07
12."My Bridges Burn" 3:51
Total length:51:03
Australia and Japan bonus track
No.TitleLength
13."Libertine"4:30


Personnel

The Cult[6]

Additional musicians[6]

Charts

Chart (2001) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA Charts)[7] 61
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[8] 73
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[9] 21
French Albums (SNEP)[10] 140
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[11] 21
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[12] 33
Scottish Albums (OCC)[13] 76
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[14] 93
UK Albums (OCC)[15] 69
UK Rock & Metal Albums (OCC)[16] 7
US Billboard 200[17] 37
Chart (2025) Peak
position
Hungarian Physical Albums (MAHASZ)[18] 16

References

  1. ^ "THE CULT: Bring Me The Head Of DAVE GROHL". Blabbermouth.net. 18 February 2006.
  2. ^ "Beyond Good & Evil by the Cult". Metacritic.
  3. ^ a b https://www.allmusic.com/album/r534948
  4. ^ Rollingstone
  5. ^ "Beyond Good & Evil - The Cult". Q. August 2001. p. 124. Retrieved 17 October 2025. For the most part, Beyond Good & Evil roots itself between Metallica, nu-metal and the slightly psychedelic ambience of '85's Love
  6. ^ a b Beyond Good and Evil (liner notes). The Cult. Atlantic Records. 2001. 83440-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  7. ^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 126.
  8. ^ "Austriancharts.at – The Cult – Beyond Good and Evil" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  9. ^ "The Cult: Beyond Good and Evil" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  10. ^ "Lescharts.com – The Cult – Beyond Good and Evil". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  11. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – The Cult – Beyond Good and Evil" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  12. ^ "Charts.nz – The Cult – Beyond Good and Evil". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  13. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart on 17/6/2001 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  14. ^ "Swisscharts.com – The Cult – Beyond Good and Evil". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  15. ^ "Official Albums Chart on 17/6/2001 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  16. ^ "Official Rock & Metal Albums Chart on 17/6/2001 – Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  17. ^ "The Cult Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  18. ^ "Album Top 40 slágerlista (fizikai hanghordozók) – 2025. 7. hét". MAHASZ. Retrieved 27 April 2025.
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