Continuing a recent tradition which has brought joy to many, many music fans who came of age in the '80s, the Cruel World festival in Pasadena has announced its lineup for the 2024 event, and - as has been the case for the previous two Cruel World festivals - it's packed with a plethora of artists who helped define punk, post-punk, new wave, synthpop, and other genres which continue to thrive decades after their original inception. Duran Duran, Blondie, Interpol and Simple Minds are set as headliners for the May 11 festival.
The initial Cruel World festival was scheduled to take place in May 2020 in Carson, California, just outside of Los Angeles, but the global pandemic put the kibosh on that plan as well as the efforts to reschedule it for September 2020. It wasn’t until May 2022 that it finally took place – now relocated to Pasadena – but it proved successful enough to warrant a second event in May 2023.
Okay, granted, the May 2023 event didn’t exactly go off without a hitch, with concerns about “extremely severe weather conditions” causing an abrupt conclusion that led to the postponement of sets by Siouxsie and Iggy Pop until the following day. But it was still deemed another huge success nonetheless, which in turn brings us to the lineup for Cruel World 2024.
The 2024 Cruel World festival lineup features a blend of old and new artists...if decidedly heavier on the old.
Duran Duran will be serving as headliners for Cruel World 2024, which should come as no surprise to anyone, really, given the way their tremendous mainstream popularity has stayed mostly consistent for the past 40+ years.
In addition, they’re joined by – deep breath – Interpol, Blondie, Simple Minds, Placebo, Soft Cell, Adam Ant, Ministry, the Jesus and Mary Chain, Gary Numan, Dreamcar, TR/ST, The Faint, Heaven 17, French Police, the Mission UK, the Stranglers, General Public, Lol Tolhurst and Budgie, Model/Actriz, the Alarm, Adult, the Motels, Nuovo Testamento, Harsh Symmetry, Body of Light, Zanias, Patriarchy, Leathers, Balvenera, and – lest we forget – special guest Tones on Tail.
There are a couple of very important things to note about a couple of these performances. For one, Ministry will be performing a set of material from their With Sympathy and Twitch albums. Additionally, Gary Numan will be performing his classic album The Pleasure Principle in its entirety, so prepare to sing "Cars" at the top of your lungs. (Like he wasn't already going to play that one, anyway.)
Registration for access to passes has begun. If you were fortunate enough to attend the 2022 or 2023 event, you’ll have already gotten an email containing information about the loyalty presale. Otherwise, however, the onsale begins on Friday, December 8, at 12 pm PT.
Passes for the event begin at $209 for general admission, with GA+ passes set at $299, VIP at $429, and Clubhouse at $949. General parking at the site costs $25, preferred parking is $75, and you can get a merch package upgrade for $50 that provides you with a limited-edition poster, a tote bag, and a Cruel World patch. For more details about all of these things, just click here.
