Billy Duffy of The Cult says that the relationship between him and singer Ian Astbury is like that of a “separated couple”.

The cult Ian Astbury And Billy Duffy are an odd couple in rock. The band’s frontman and guitarist are an odd couple, but there’s an undeniable chemistry between them that has made The Cult one of the most enduring bands in rock – it’s now been over four decades since they joined forces to form the band Death Cult. Speaking to this writer a few years ago, Duffy explained how their relationship works after the likeable Mancunian was asked how much they talk when they’re not working for Cult.

“I would say we talk like a kind of separated married couple, we keep in touch, we’re not unfriendly, we get on,” he explained. “We have a pretty good business relationship, it’s difficult because we’re basically like two guys running a three-legged race, we’re tied to each other and that’s the way it is and we have to find our way and work it out. If he wants to go left and I want to go right, we fall over. So we have to sort of manage that but socially we’re good. We’ll probably clash in terms of arguments and disagreements about business things, luckily not financial ones, we’ve never had any problems about money or anything like that, but creatively we might have disagreements. I think it’s fair to say that as a guitarist I’m a little more conservative, I like what I like. Ian, the lead singer, is always out there trying to reach out to others and that dynamic and that tension between those two elements can probably be a good thing and a bad thing, but hopefully more good than bad.”

Duffy explained that his role in the group is that of “band leader” who oversees the music and integrates any new session musicians they bring into the group. “I’m kind of the engine room, Scotty, and Ian is up front like Captain Kirk,” he explained, “I design album covers and all the artwork and do the tour merch and am involved in a lot of these things that he’s really passionate and committed to, so we’re lucky that we both get on with it, we have a good division of labor between me and him at The Cult.”

The Cult are currently on a European tour and will return to the British capital in October for a series of dates, including the Royal Albert Hall and Roundhouse in London, the Barbican in York, the Usher Hall in Edinburgh and other cities.