Nick Cave is Better Than All The Artists That Have Threads In Here

[jackhammer]

He is a superb lyricist. One of my favourites.

[FireInCairo]

Originally Posted by LOOMER

NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS
DIG, LAZARUS, DIG!!!
Mute Records (2008)

1. Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!
2. Today's Lesson
3. Moonland
4. Night of the Lotus Eaters
5. Albert Goes West
6. We Call Upon the Author
7. Hold On To Yourself
8. Lie Down Here (And Be My Girl)
9. Jesus of the Moon
10. Midnight Man
11. More News From Nowhere

Nick Cave is one of those artists that nowadays, at first glance, seems to possess no real special qualities. Sure, you might point in the direction of his old albums and pinpointing the really freaky results of an oddball junkie's literary ramblings and goth-flirting gestures and say: "he's unique!" Sadly enough, it has been revealed that the source for these really special moments (the audial ones) was Blixa Bargeld. What is left is conventional songwriting by Cave and his fellow seeders, such as Warren Ellis. The conventionality annoyed me when I first heard Abattoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus, but after a while I understood that my annoyance wholly depended on the very thought of it. So I dropped that thought, in order to really be able to listen to the new Nick Cave. In that light, Dig, Lazarus, dig!!! is a very good album, with a more focused sounding content than it's double predecessor, where a sense of decadence and decay dominates the atmosphere (largely instilled by its marvelous cover).
One of the great feats of this album is its upright and honest tone, which is in fact strenghtened by its great weakness: it's Rock Music. The songs are, like most ones that originate from what we call the sphere of popular music, the type of songs that you've heard before. Riff rock-convention, piano blues, and slammering guitar chords are the potato of this dish, paired with an ironic sauce of odd backing vocals and the well-cooked filet of Cave's rambling/singing/recital, which is at its height in the gem that is the third track, "Moonland".
The album is very dynamic in the aspects of tempo and intensity,with "Night of the Lotus Eaters" being the slowest and most haunting piece of the record, and "Midnight Man" and "Lie Down Here (And Be My Girl)" the opposite: energetic pieces following a more standard rock script. Cave's faiblesse for situating his lyrics in a more literary context is still live and kicking, as seen in the fact that the entire seven-minute piece "More News From Nowhere" is based on the Ulysses story. Although somewhat forcibly literary, it's still a good song, where Cave's recital is accompanied by an almost aggravatingly simple effort by the Bad Seeds.
Overall, the record is an honorable effort: it captivates me with its theatricality, where Cave himself, with his unbuttoned shirt and greasy moustache, is the main actor. The dirty, nightly atmosphere (which is brilliantly captured in the official video for "More News From Nowhere") constitutes great scenery for his lyrical gestures, and it has the upper hand against Abattoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus in the sense that the context of the record is narrower and the style of production more focused.

4/5

Conventional? Have you not heard the Birthday Party>?

[LOOMER]

Originally Posted by FireInCairo

Conventional? Have you not heard the Birthday Party>?

I was talking about his conventionality nowadays; neither of his two most recent albums is experimental, in my most humble opinion.

[Janszoon]

Originally Posted by jackhammer

He is a superb lyricist. One of my favourites.

I totally agree.

[4ZZZ]

Mick Harvey has left the Bad Seeds. This was actually announced a couple of weeks back. His replacement for the European tour is Ed Kuepper. You lucky Europeans.

From The Age

ED KUEPPER has replaced Mick Harvey as guitarist in Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds. "The Seeds thing should be a ball — I am really looking forward to it," the guitar slinger told Sticky. Kuepper, who played an integral role in the recent Bad Seeds-curated All Tomorrow's Parties festival with the Saints and the Laughing Clowns, will join the band soon for some European festivals. After releasing 20-odd solo albums, was he enjoying the camaraderie of playing in the Saints and the Laughing Clowns over summer? "I see what you mean regarding bands versus solo, but in my case — perhaps oddly — it didn't feel that different.

So is he a big fan of the Seeds?

"To me the Bad Seeds are a band that have always been great, but the albums from the last few years are particular favourites." Is he intimidated about filling Mick Harvey's shoes? "Mick and I are fairly different in approach, I guess, and they'll be difficult shoes to fill, for sure. I just hope the people on my side of the stage don't turn their backs in protest."

After 25 years with the Bad Seeds, Harvey left the band in January citing "a variety of personal and professional reasons". The Laughing Clowns play the Forum Theatre as part of the Melbourne Jazz Festival on May 1.

[Schizotypic]

Discography Review:
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds have been around for over twenty-five years. That just plain and simply stuns me. Just looking back to what I've learned in the past year, the things they could explore and express in twenty-five leaves my mouth watering of curiosity. I have never heard one of their albums, but I do have their discography and am stung by a desire to break it open and bathe in it. I've decided to take MusicBanter with me.
If anyone is planing to keep track of this, expect an album review every three to five days, as I am busy.

[Bulldog]

About time someone went through their discography like this. I'm a massive fan myself, so I'll be keeping a close eye on this one.

[jackhammer]

Me too as I am nowhere near as au fait as I would like to be with Mr Caves music, only owning 4 albums.

[right-track]

Originally Posted by Schizotypic

If anyone is planing to keep track of this, expect an album review every three to five days, as I am busy.[/CENTER]

Looking forward to this.

[4ZZZ]

Originally Posted by Schizotypic

If anyone is planing to keep track of this.

I will be reading.

For your edification Nick was influenced by the magnificent The Saints initially. He has said that himself. So much so that Ed Kuepper is now the touring guitarist with The Bad Seeds, replacing Mick Harvey. If you can find it in your part of the planet Nick wrote a book called And The Ass Saw The Angel. As goth as Caves music. You may enjoy it.


I look forward to these revues.