Image via Summerfest
Blue Oyster Cult
In 1976, Blue Öyster Cult reached the mainstream with their spine-tingling hit, “Don’t Fear the Reaper.” The band had been active since the ‘70s began, emerging out of biker bars with a post-psychedelic, post-Quicksilver, post-Steppenwolf sound. They collaborated with interesting lyricists, including their mythopoetic manager-producer Sandy Pearlman, literate rock critic Richard Meltzer, British fantasy author Michael Moorcock and poet-rock star Patti Smith. BOC’s guitarist Buck Dharma guested on Smith’s epochal debut album, Horses, speaking to his band’s ability to straddle subcultures.
BOC infused their songs and presentation with an aura of mystery and menace, vaguely occult and hinting at drug deals gone wrong, a fascination with fascism and other subjects from the margins of the counterculture. Arena tours followed in wake of their success with “Don’t Fear the Reaper” and the platinum-selling Agents of Fortune album. BOC scored an FM hit with the more playful “Godzilla” (1977) and after a commercial slump, rebounded in the ‘80s with Fire of Unknown Origin (1981) and a Top-40 hit, “Burnin’ for You.” The usual arguments and personnel changes ensued.
BOC spent the late ‘80s/early ‘90s on tour without releasing an album of new material. In 2020 they issued their fifteenth studio album, the critically acclaimed The Symbol Remains.
