3 posts tagged “nick cave”
Being a faithful member of the Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds lifelong fan club, I was notified via email last week of the new 'album' available in the UK. The single and video had been out for a few weeks. Dig Lazarus Dig - the single - is terrific: fast, organ-grinding, chant-like. The video is a chuckle as most of Nick's vids can be (check out Bring It On froma few years ago for some high-powered booty camp - awesome)
But now the album is here. Usually it takes me a few listens to really get a new Nick album. Inevitably I feel a bit guilty at first as if I am starting to fall out of love or something. then a few listens later it clicks in and I slide comfortably back into pure fandom.
Here we have 10 new songs. I am listening to it for the first time and, excuse me but i must raise my voice a bit, THE MUSIC POURS INTO ME LIKE SOME MAGICAL SUSTENANCE AND I FEEL IT FOR THE FIRST TIME - GREATNESS!. From "Midnight Man" to "More News From Nowhere" to the title track we are talking deep and dense, bass driven, organ-energized, Nick-rap. I am very surprised that I like it all so much the first time. Perhaps, I have been waiting for so long that any morsel is a relief. But i don't think so. Nick Cave is about my age. And he is one of the best writers, storytellers, performers of all time. Am I gushing? A little. But I believe he is one of those great talents - hugely productive from the movie soundtracks, scripts and side projects like Grinderman.
Here's a little sampling of Nick's writing.
From "Midnight Man:"
"Wolves have carried your babies away,
oh, your kids drip from their teeth.
The nights are long and the day
is bitter cold beyond belief.
You spread yourself like a penitent
upon the mad vibrating sand,
and through your teeth
arrange to meet your midnight man."
From "I Call Upon The Author To Explain:"
"Well, I go guruing down the street
And young people gather round my feet
And they ask me things – but I don’t know where to start
They ignite the powder-trail straight to my father’s heart
And, yeah, once again
I call upon the author to explain
Who is this great burdensome slavering dog-thing
That mediocres my every thought?
I feel like a vacuum cleaner – a complete sucker!
It’s fucked up and he is a fucker
But what an enormous and encyclopaedic brain!
I call upon the author to explain "
If you have never listened or owned a Nick Cave album, start here. You won't be disappointed.
Back to fanblogging. (Okay, I also hit London between Barcelona and home but enough is enough already). The best part of stopping off in London was picking up the UK release of the Grinderman CD. It's still not here in the US nor do I think it's on iTunes yet.
As you might guess, this is an unqualified "must-have." Grinderman is Nick Cave, Warren Ellis, Martyn Casey, and Jim Sclavunos. Sound familiar? Of course, it's more than half of the Bad Seeds. The sound is dense and driving. Nick actually plays guitar. The boys are having fun and it's a bit dirty, messy and LOUD. This band is a side-project that I owuldn't be surprised to learn gains some Bad Seeds-like legs. They play the All Tomorrows Parties Festival on April 27. I must figure out some reason to be in London....
With songs like No Pussy Blues and Love Bomb, it's that bridge between Birthday Party and the Bad Seeds (I know Nick disavows the Party but the raw sound of Grinderman and the playful lyrics bring me back a little).
This band and collection of songs (almost called it an "album" - geezerland almost speaks) is a story of re-invention and creativity. Nick wrote the Proposition within the past couple of years. He put out Abbatoir Blues. And now Grinderman.
It's fresh, it's creative, it sounds really good very, very loud.
My first post should really have been about Nick Cave. After all, I have been a fan ever since 1982 when I saw Birthday Party on a double bill with the Swans at the East Side Club in Philadelphia. Okay, fast fan facts:
- I have seen every tour since then except three (one of which was a Lolapalooza tour)
- yes, I have a rather complete collection of music and videos
- "The Ship Song" was our wedding song
- My wife and I stood in line for two hours while she was two days away from giving birth to our son just to meet Nick and the Bad Seeds at Tower Records in NYC
- I have an autographed copy of "And the Ass Saw the Angel"
- My son Nick is named after Nick
So, in this particular case, I am a card-carrying member. It has to do with the writing, the Voice, and the performance. Nick's song writing is often quite lovely. He has an earned reputation for darkness while his song base is mostly love songs (okay, there is an occaisional shotgun in there). He is well-read particularly about the bible and has actually taught a university class on the Good Book. His version of humanity comes out crystal clear in his movie, The Proposition. That is a must-see and captures the spirit of Peter Carey's Australia in an original way. Nick Cave wrote it and John Hillcoat directed.
The Voice (alway's capital "V") is up there with Frank Sinatra and early Bowie. He delivers songs like dialogue the way Frank used to. He is unmistakeable, soulful and downright swoony.
The performance is always sharp-edged with lots of head-snaps and a double-grip on the microphone. He used to do this drop to his knees, more of a slam, really. I cringe at the thought of his 40+ year-old knees doing that now. But while he has been doing some shows in Iceland and Europe and played the All Tomorrow's Parties concert (curated by the Dirty Three and bandmate, Warren Ellis), he has not been in the states for a few years.
From the interviews I have read and seen, he has a pretty disciplined approach to work. Some of his songs reveal the battle with work and inspiration.
Nick Cave is simply the best singer, songwriter, performer. The fact that he has not simply survived but flourished is a wonderful little miracle.
