The Cult frontman Ian Astbury admires sheltering spirit of Rothko Chapel Andrew Dansby | May 16, 2017

The Cult, from left: Billy Duffy, Chris Wyse, Ian Astbury and John Tempesta Photo: Michael Lavine

Photo: Michael Lavine Image 1 of 4 The Cult, from left: Billy Duffy, Chris Wyse, Ian Astbury and John Tempesta

About three years ago Beyoncé performed a Houston gig on a Friday night and then spent Saturday playing tourist in her hometown. After some roller skating with the family, she dropped by the Menil and then the Rothko Chapel.

The Rothko has a particular pull among creative types who visit the city - especially touring musicians. Between finding food and doing a soundcheck, musicians typically have only a minimal amount of time to really visit a city while on tour. Unlike a large gallery, the Rothko is a small and contained space, and a welcoming and meditative one at that, which may speak to part of its allure.

Peter Gabriel wrote "Fourteen Black Paintings" after visiting the space. Songwriter David Dondero wrote a song likening the Rothko to a partner's heart ("cold dark void yet simple and intriguing"). When Jenny Lewis was last in town for a concert, she mentioned she stopped by the Rothko.

This week the veteran hard rock band the Cult comes to town, and its frontman Ian Astbury says the Rothko is an appointment he doesn't miss in Houston.

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"The first time I visited I was speechless, it just took my breath away," he says.

Like plenty of other rock 'n' roll guys, Astbury spent some number of years on a self-destructive bent. These days he identifies with Eastern spiritual traditions, referring to himself a few years ago as "a smash-and-grab Buddhist." More Information

The Cult

When: 7 p.m. Thursday

Where: House of Blues, 1204 Caroline

Tickets: $32.50-$59.50; 832-667-7795, hob.com

Though the Rothko Chapel wasn't initially conceived by artist Mark Rothko as a nondenominational space, it has become one over the years, which appeals to Astbury.

"I think because it's open to all faiths and philosophies, it can just hit anybody right in the gut," he says. "This infinity that we're all a part of. The fragility of life, the magnitude of everything. His paintings are like getting a glimpse of what's beyond the velvet rope of what we get while we're on earth. Every now and then a piece of art can eradicate everything you think you know about everything. It can happen in the middle of a concert, where you stop identifying with your feelings in that time and place. It can happen on a street in Manhattan or on top of Mount Everest. Watching a movie, or in the middle of a great book. Those are vital moments. And that chapel provides those moments. In a time where we use technology to destroy each other, it's a shelter from the storm. It's a reminder to lead with your heart."

Nearly 35 years ago Astbury and guitarist Billy Duffy first started making noise as the Death Cult. They've dropped the "death," but continue to mine dark matter as the Cult, the durable hard rock band that has survived by sidestepping all sorts of genres and their isms. The band has always been a curious bird - neither metal, nor punk. Neither glam, nor goth. But the Cult manage to have at least one feather from each of those styles tied into their music. The group is on tour behind last year's "Hidden City." Astbury talked about the new songs.

Q: I've been to a "Lost City" in Colombia, but I don't think that's what you had in mind. Is there a particular "hidden city" the album title references?

A: The real reference point was ourselves. Or myself. The city within. What you don't explore. So much in our current culture is about our great opinions about the external world and pointing fingers and making comparisons, all without truly knowing our own experience. So it could be a mythological place that existed in a different time. But for me, it's about doing more than scratching the surface of our lives ... I feel like music can be a great communicator, a place for conversations to take place to try to reach some resolution or enlightenment.

That said, "The Hidden City" wasn't created as a provocative record. It just came out of our observations and feelings. And Billy and I are very different in terms of how we view the world. We agree and we disagree, and music is one of the best ways to work that out. So musically, too, we wanted something multilayered. And we didn't want to put it out in the old MTV way. I like the idea of the songs as little hidden cities still there to be discovered.

Q: The vocal on the song "Deeply Ordered Chaos" has a bit of Bowie in it. I can't imagine you weren't a big admirer of his.

A: I've been a Bowie devotee since I was 10 and heard "Life on Mars." To be 10 and just thinking about this concept of Mars. And then you find out more about him. Remember, I'm 10, and there's this guy with followers with glitter on their faces. He has orange hair and proclaims there's life on another planet. It dissolved everything I was being told about society and structure and everything. I could see fragmentation starting, old values falling away. It was the beginning of where we are now.

And eventually seeing him on stage, such a huge icon. To perform with him was something I can't describe. He was a mentor in many ways. He led me to so many different influences. When David went to Berlin for that trilogy, we all went to Berlin. Even later, when he did "Outside" you were there with him. I think even his later work, he was writing some of the most powerful things he'd ever done. He dealt with heady subjects, but he was always a great pop entertainer who could turn on the razzle dazzle.

Q: I hear a different sound at the heart of some of these songs. There's some piano that comes out here and there. Was the writing and demoing process different?

A: It was, though the piano came in during the sessions and was secondary. But I was interested in getting away from relying so heavily on chords and riffs from guitar-based songs. The back story is that the Cult grew out of being a performance-based band. We'd go on the road, then we'd go into the studio. And all that touring was reflected in the studio. There would be some reflective and quiet moments like "Edie." But the majority of the work was guitar intensive.

But over the last three records we haven't toured as intensely as when the band started. There's a different dynamic. You grow and learn more about yourself and you share it in the writing. I feel with the piano, it's such a vulnerable place for us, because it instantly creates atmosphere and sentiment. You hit a chord and it strikes something real. I think some of that came from working with the Doors, the way Ray (Manzarek) and (Robbie) Krieger worked their playing into composition.