The Cult Survive Bus Crash in Croatia

For a lot of people, the experience of riding on a bus in Croatia would probably be at least mildly disconcerting all by itself, but members of veteran rock band the Cult took things one step further this week by narrowly escaping serious harm — or worse — in an early morning automotive accident.

The band, currently touring Europe in support of its recent album ‘Choice of Weapon,’ was traveling from Croatia to Slovenia when their trip took a frightening detour. Vocalist Ian Astbury, the only member of the group who was awake during the early morning accident, ended up being thrown into the aisle during the crash, but all things considered, it sounds like he — and the rest of the band — got off lucky.

Recounting the accident in a press release, Asbury recalled, “All of a sudden, the bus veered violently, hit the guard rail and tipped on a 45-degree angle, then righted itself and came to a halt. The guard rail was the only thing that prevented us from going over an 80-foot drop.”

Of course, you can’t live the life of a touring musician for any real length of time without compiling a list of near misses on the road, and the Cult — who will celebrate their 30th anniversary next year — have been at it longer than most. Frightening as the incident must have been, it didn’t even cause them to miss that night’s gig — and they were back on the bus for another long drive after the show.

“No one has had any sleep, so the guys are pretty beat, and we are still in shock, to be honest,” Astbury admitted. “You never think something like this is going to happen to you, and it just did.”

The Cult’s Tour Bus