Dancing in the Rain at Cruel World Festival

Saturday, May 17th, 2025 – Pasadena, CA

Goldenvoice’s Cruel World Festival returned to the Rose Bowl for its fourth year. With past alumni including Morrissey, Bauhaus, Siouxsie Sioux, and more, Cruel World has established itself as SoCal’s premier 1980s/new wave/post-punk/goth festival. This year’s headliners included New Order, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, DEVO, and an all-day lineup featuring many legendary acts as well as several contemporary post-punk and darkwave artists.

Credit: Cruel World courtesy of Goldenvoice

This was my third year attending Cruel World, so I was prepared for the oppressively sunny conditions that are typical for Pasadena in the spring. Just seven days earlier, Just Like Heaven Fest took place at the same venue under sweltering hot weather conditions. With several removable layers, sunscreen, sunglasses, a handheld fan in my bag, and a locker rental, I was prepared to battle the heat. I caught some of DECEITS’ set as I walked through the main gates and immediately went to my locker to store my jacket and keys. I headed over to the Outsiders stage, where I spent most of the day.

Light Asylum, in a black leather vest and reflective Oakley sunglasses, was the first set I got to see in its entirety. Shannon Funchess put on a captivating and dark, electronic-drenched set, managing to turn the main stage into a goth club at just 1:30 p.m. Towards the end of her set, I felt a sprinkle of rain touch my shoulder. I crossed my fingers and hoped that we wouldn’t experience another 2023 situation, where the festival was evacuated early due to lightning during Siouxsie Sioux’s set.

Credit: Cruel World courtesy of Goldenvoice

Next, Midge Ure (ex-Ultravox and Visage), a fan favorite among this year’s festival-goers, took the stage — introduced by a KROQ host with a lovely, posh British accent. Backed by synths, Midge Ure laid down some delicious guitar riffs on his shiny black Squier Telecaster — proving that you don’t need an expensive guitar to be a superstar. He cheekily remarked, “This is one of my many number one hits,” before performing an Ultravox song. With a waxed bald head and an all-black uniform, Ure carried himself with the swag and sound of a rock star. Ure shouted out the LA radio stations that were brave enough to play Visage in the ’80s before he played the band’s seminal alternative synthpop song “Fade to Grey.” Ure was happily surprised that so many people showed up early to catch his set, and his performance remained a standout to many people who attended the festival.

It felt like it was time for lunch, so I headed over to the Monty’s Good Burger truck for a bite and caught some of Blancmange’s set from a distance. It was impossible to find a seat, even in the VIP area, so I ate and powdered my face at a standing table. I, my partner, and some friendly strangers talked about the weather before it was time to head back toward the music.

Alison Moyet, most famously known for her work in the ’80s synthpop duo Yazoo/Yaz, stopped to thank the crowd and exclaimed, “I can’t believe you’re all out there [watching] in the rain!” The crowd grew even larger for ’Til Tuesday’s reunion set, with many fans coming to see their first performance in 33 years.

Credit: Cruel World courtesy of Goldenvoice

With the rain coming down heavier by the minute, I headed over to Club Doom to seek some refuge under the large outdoor tent. Clearly, many people had the same idea, because the checkerboard dance floor, covered in muddy steel-toe boot prints, was packed shoulder to shoulder with hundreds of wet-haired people also trying to stay out of the rain. Once I finally made it under the tent, the music was blaring, and there was barely an inch of space between me and the other wet-haired people in the crowd. I took a deep breath to center myself amidst the chaos, then I heard the first few notes of “Born Slippy” by Underworld, and everything was okay again.

The rain wasn’t stopping, but Club Doom was getting more packed by the second, so I planned my next few moves carefully as I eyed the exit. With my white face makeup melting in the rain, I ran back over to the locker station to grab my jacket, which I used as a makeshift poncho. I decided that warmth and comfort would take priority over fashion, and I held my head high to hold up the jacket protecting my face as I ventured back to the main stage to catch OMD. I first saw them perform a while back at Darker Waves 2023, but their set at Cruel World this year was even better. If there’s one ’80s band that has hits on hits on hits, it’s OMD. Everybody and their mother were singing along throughout their set, and I got to dance to my personal favorite, “So in Love.”

Credit: Cruel World courtesy of Goldenvoice

As the sun began to set, I pushed my way toward the front of the crowd for DEVO, with many people wearing the band’s signature red energy dome hats. They put on a theatrical, carefully choreographed performance with fun, DEVO-specific videos and visuals as a backdrop. DEVO wins the award for the most immersive stage setup I saw at the festival. The main highlight of DEVO’s set, though, wasn’t the band on stage — it was a little boy, no older than four, wearing a mini energy dome hat and protective headphones, propped up on his dad’s shoulders. He was dancing, laughing, and grinning ear to ear the entire set as his little head weaved in and out of the crowd. He was positively adorable.

Credit: Cruel World courtesy of Goldenvoice

I had a little bit of downtime before my most anticipated artist, New Order, would close out the fest. I also saw them at Darker Waves 2023, but I was so wiped out and heat-exhausted by the time they played that I didn’t get to experience it fully. Because of my height, I can rarely see the stage at festivals, and that was still the case that evening, but as New Order came on, I stood on my tiptoes to catch a glance at the legends standing on the stage before me. To everybody’s surprise, New Order kicked off their headlining set with Joy Division’s “Transmission,” and, of course, later revisited their roots with a teary tribute of “Love Will Tear Us Apart.” New Order kept the energy high throughout their performance, feeding off the excitement of the crowd of thousands of cheering, elated fans. I finally got to see a personal New Order favorite, “True Faith,” live, and they kept me dancing ferociously for the full hour they played. The most magical moment of all, though, was when I heard the first few notes of “Bizarre Love Triangle” — then the hypnotic synths overtook each of my senses, and my feet and body were lost to the rhythm and melodies of that beautiful song… Dare I say, it might be even better than “Blue Monday,” or at least on equal footing when it comes to discussing the best 12” dance mixes of all time.

Credit: Cruel World courtesy of Goldenvoice

Some artists I wish I got to catch but didn’t make it to were Clan of Xymox, Buzzcocks (sadly without Pete Shelley,) Mareux, and Death Cult.

Besides all the amazing music I got to hear that day, my other takeaway was that you can never be too prepared for festival weather. My advice to myself and anyone attending a day-long outdoor festival is to rent out one of the big lockers in advance, pack a huge bag containing everything you might need in any scenario, store everything you don’t need in the locker, and thank me later.