Sometimes, simple is better. So is playing to your strengths, something Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds are experts at.
This song, Higgs Boson Blues, from their terrific (though not as catchy as previous releases) album Push The Sky Away is built around one simple groove, but layered and textured with multiple levels of restraint and taste captured brilliantly by directors Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard, and cinematographer Lol Crawley.
The hirsute men comprising The Bad Seeds (currently Warren Ellis - not the comic book writer - Martin P. Casey, Conway Savage, Thomas Wylder and Jim Sclavunos) are capable of rocking out with the best of them - they are, in fact, among the best of them - but they are just as adept at holding back and letting Nick Cave unroll his storylines where they need to go.
In this case, from Robert Johnson's selling his soul to the Devil (for better guitar skills) through to current-day Geneva, home of CERN (The European Organization for Nuclear Research) where the so-called ''God-particle'' (Higgs-Boson) was discovered, he weaves a cautionary tale that the only certainty we have about the future is death, and we will get there anyhow, no matter the path taken, and that everything in between is at best a discovery, at worst trivial (death of a pop icon, hereby represented by Miley Cyrus, pre-VMAs/naked meltdown, ironically), and the middle just tragic (the fatal shooting of Martin Luther King at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis).
All told through a golden voice meant to lure nubile young females into dark places.
Showing posts with label Nick Cave. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nick Cave. Show all posts
Thursday, December 5, 2013
Saturday, March 23, 2013
Video Of The Week: Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds were back in town this week, playing an hour and a half songs where the dark crooner once again mystified and hypnotized a sell-out crowd at Metropolis with an energetic performance, backed by one of the tightest bands in the world, which is why I decided to feature one of his live videos (though the sound is from the studio version) this week, Get Ready For Love, from Abattoir Blues (disc one of the Abattoir Blues/The Lyre Of Orpheus double album).
I prefer his Murder Ballads album, for sure, and his late-1980s stuff, but on any given record, there will be 5 songs I'll permanently add to my Eternal Playlist on all music devices, sometimes more. You just can't go wrong with this modern poet.
I prefer his Murder Ballads album, for sure, and his late-1980s stuff, but on any given record, there will be 5 songs I'll permanently add to my Eternal Playlist on all music devices, sometimes more. You just can't go wrong with this modern poet.
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
Video Of The Week: Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
A little over 4 years ago, I treated myself to a very good Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds show at one of my favourite venues, Metropolis (in Montréal). Nick Cave's music has been a staple of most of my playlists (first on cassettes, then CDs, now in mp3 players) since the mid-nineties, as I got into him and his songwriting style in my teens; I'm not sure I would have liked his earlier band The Birthday Party when they were active and I was very young, but I do listen to them now as well.
Many of the things he touches turn to gold, although some of his artsier endeavours such as 2004's double-album Abattoir Blues/The Lyre Of Orpheus seem a bit too gimmicky for me, and I don't turn to them unless I feel I specifically want to, unlike, say, this week's featured song, Red Right Hand, which I randomly insert in all of my playlists.
It's a song that's been overused, particularly in film (he could probably retire on the strength of this song's royalties alone), the version most people have heard in the movie Hellboy was actually performed by Pete Yorn; if you like cheese and odd covers, you might also enjoy Frank Bennett's version from Five O'Clock Shadow, which also contains a ridiculously overblown version of Pearl Jam's Betterman.
Without further ado...
Many of the things he touches turn to gold, although some of his artsier endeavours such as 2004's double-album Abattoir Blues/The Lyre Of Orpheus seem a bit too gimmicky for me, and I don't turn to them unless I feel I specifically want to, unlike, say, this week's featured song, Red Right Hand, which I randomly insert in all of my playlists.
It's a song that's been overused, particularly in film (he could probably retire on the strength of this song's royalties alone), the version most people have heard in the movie Hellboy was actually performed by Pete Yorn; if you like cheese and odd covers, you might also enjoy Frank Bennett's version from Five O'Clock Shadow, which also contains a ridiculously overblown version of Pearl Jam's Betterman.
Without further ado...
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
2008 In Music
Is it just me, or was 2008 one of the worst years in music history? Not that it was as cheesy as 1984 (think '80s' without a record by GN'R or Michael Jackson or Prince - no balls at all) , mind you, but nothing really stood out in terms of records, albums...
Coldplay were the year's best-selling band, clocking in at well under 5 million copies sold worldwide, combining both online sales and physical CDs... a poor number by any standards.
Madonna, Britney Spears and Pink are back, sort of. Again. With half their records, at least, being utter blandness. And the rest not breaking any sort of ground either.
Spin magazine named Metallica and Guns N'Roses in their top 15, yet placed The Raconteurs at #46... so I know for a fact they've gone mad, because The Raconteurs' record was a solid piece of rock while Metallica's opus, even if it recaptures some of their past sounds and sentiments, is nowhere near anything they've done before, and should not be on anyone's list of tops of nothing (it's also too good to be on a list of shitty records, I'll admit that much). GN'R, on the other hand, could make a list of the year's worst, and likely did mine, with only one song, Madagascar, good enough to make the grade (as the worst song, perhaps) on any of their previous records, and the rest was just some overproduced crap that I got bored of after no more than three listens.
There seems to be a lot of decent independent releases, some only on vinyl, this year, but there were so many that it was hard to keep count. Looking at many of my friends' Top Of '08 lists, I found many acts I had never heard of before, and very few that were repeated from one person to the next, so either they were all trying to one-up one another in the 'oscure reference' department, or many starving artists who have only sold/given 5 copies of their stuff have made very good music.
At least there were memorable singles. The song of the year, without a doubt, was I Kissed A Girl, by Katy Perry. No contest. It was everywhere, it took longer than any other song to get tired of, it was sung by a hottie, and didn't just use a fashionable beat that we'll get tired of within year's end to bring its groove home, unlike, say, anything by Lady Gaga, who also takes the prize of worst name.
My choice for #2 single of the year is the theme from the latest James Bond flick, Another Way To Die, by Jack White and Alicia Keys. Many will disagree with this choice, as most people I've talked about this song to didn't like it; only actual musicians did. It's got everything you could want from a Bond song, from the fast breaks to the lush phrasing, but they added a sense of satire when bringing in the orchestral parts where it fits so well in the song that you could never fathom the song being without it, but at the same time seems like they're making fun of every past Bond song. It's really a pleasure to listen to.
Thirdly, I'll put a Coldplay song because it wasn't annoying, surprisingly, and the drum beats were quite penetrating. And, no, I'm not talking about the yawnfest that Viva La Vida was, I'm talking about the exact same song but with soul, the one they titled Violet Hill. Like Green Day, Goo Goo Dolls and Nickelback before them (and many others even further back), Coldplay have etched out a career for themselves by re-writing the same song over and over again, barely changing anything in the process, but actually making the more recent version a little more tolerable than the last (although since Viva came out after Violet, I guess they'll be regressing now).
The Raveonettes never get their due respect. Hopefully, the sounds of Aly, Walk With Me will keep rolling for them in '09; they sure deserve it.
And to round out my Top 5, Radio Radio may not have made a dent in the worldwide electro-hip-hop scene, but they made a killing here in Québec with their originality and humour. It's like as if the Beastie Boys meant something again. Cliché Hot, the title track to their CD, was on most stations' playlists and got them into a slot at Pop Montreal, but Jaccuzzi is the song that had more of everything they do right.
Top Singles Of 2008
1. I Kissed A Girl, Katy Perry
2. Another Way To Die, Jack White and Alicia Keys
3. Violet Hill, Coldplay
4. Aly, Walk With Me, The Raveonettes
5. Jaccuzzi, Radio Radio
6. Gangsta Rap Made Me Do It, Ice Cube
7. Rich Kid Blues, The Raconteurs
8. We Call Upon The Author, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
9. Gamma Ray, Beck
10. Nine In The Afternoon, Panic At The Disco
Top Live Shows Of 2008
1. Eddie Vedder, Place-Des-Arts, summer
2. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Metropolis, October 2nd
3. The Nevers, UnPop Montréal, The Pound, December 6th
4. Might, UnPop Montréal, Cagibi, December 4th
5. The Raconteurs, Metropolis, summer
6. Madonna, Centre Bell, fall
7. Radiohead, Parc Jean-Drapeau, summer
8. Eagles Of Death Metal, late fall
9. Coeur De Pirate, Laval, late fall
10. Sébastian Hell, Montréal Chose, Cagibi, April 27th (hey, it was a slow year, and I rocked!)
Top Albums of 2008:
1. TV On The Radio, Dear Science
2. Wolf Parade, At Mount Zoomer
3. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Dig! Lazarus! Dig!
4. Amanda Palmer, Who Killed Amanda Palmer
5. The Raconteurs, Consolers Of The Lonely
6. Coeur De Pirate, Coeur De Pirate
7. The Kills, Midnight Boom
8. The Raveonettes, Lust, Lust, Lust
9. The Nevers, single
10. Ice Cube, Raw Footage
11. Nine Inch Nails, The Slip
12. The Black Keys, Attack & Release
13. T-Bone Burnett, Tooth of Crime
14. Beck, Modern Guilt
15. AC/DC, Black Ice
Biggest Shits (in no particular order): Tam, Guns' Chinese Democracy, Nickelback released the worst record of the year for the fourth (?) time, rap had little to offer of consequence - and the major labels seem to have died - good riddance.
Coldplay were the year's best-selling band, clocking in at well under 5 million copies sold worldwide, combining both online sales and physical CDs... a poor number by any standards.
Madonna, Britney Spears and Pink are back, sort of. Again. With half their records, at least, being utter blandness. And the rest not breaking any sort of ground either.
Spin magazine named Metallica and Guns N'Roses in their top 15, yet placed The Raconteurs at #46... so I know for a fact they've gone mad, because The Raconteurs' record was a solid piece of rock while Metallica's opus, even if it recaptures some of their past sounds and sentiments, is nowhere near anything they've done before, and should not be on anyone's list of tops of nothing (it's also too good to be on a list of shitty records, I'll admit that much). GN'R, on the other hand, could make a list of the year's worst, and likely did mine, with only one song, Madagascar, good enough to make the grade (as the worst song, perhaps) on any of their previous records, and the rest was just some overproduced crap that I got bored of after no more than three listens.
There seems to be a lot of decent independent releases, some only on vinyl, this year, but there were so many that it was hard to keep count. Looking at many of my friends' Top Of '08 lists, I found many acts I had never heard of before, and very few that were repeated from one person to the next, so either they were all trying to one-up one another in the 'oscure reference' department, or many starving artists who have only sold/given 5 copies of their stuff have made very good music.
At least there were memorable singles. The song of the year, without a doubt, was I Kissed A Girl, by Katy Perry. No contest. It was everywhere, it took longer than any other song to get tired of, it was sung by a hottie, and didn't just use a fashionable beat that we'll get tired of within year's end to bring its groove home, unlike, say, anything by Lady Gaga, who also takes the prize of worst name.
My choice for #2 single of the year is the theme from the latest James Bond flick, Another Way To Die, by Jack White and Alicia Keys. Many will disagree with this choice, as most people I've talked about this song to didn't like it; only actual musicians did. It's got everything you could want from a Bond song, from the fast breaks to the lush phrasing, but they added a sense of satire when bringing in the orchestral parts where it fits so well in the song that you could never fathom the song being without it, but at the same time seems like they're making fun of every past Bond song. It's really a pleasure to listen to.
Thirdly, I'll put a Coldplay song because it wasn't annoying, surprisingly, and the drum beats were quite penetrating. And, no, I'm not talking about the yawnfest that Viva La Vida was, I'm talking about the exact same song but with soul, the one they titled Violet Hill. Like Green Day, Goo Goo Dolls and Nickelback before them (and many others even further back), Coldplay have etched out a career for themselves by re-writing the same song over and over again, barely changing anything in the process, but actually making the more recent version a little more tolerable than the last (although since Viva came out after Violet, I guess they'll be regressing now).
The Raveonettes never get their due respect. Hopefully, the sounds of Aly, Walk With Me will keep rolling for them in '09; they sure deserve it.
And to round out my Top 5, Radio Radio may not have made a dent in the worldwide electro-hip-hop scene, but they made a killing here in Québec with their originality and humour. It's like as if the Beastie Boys meant something again. Cliché Hot, the title track to their CD, was on most stations' playlists and got them into a slot at Pop Montreal, but Jaccuzzi is the song that had more of everything they do right.
Top Singles Of 2008
1. I Kissed A Girl, Katy Perry
2. Another Way To Die, Jack White and Alicia Keys
3. Violet Hill, Coldplay
4. Aly, Walk With Me, The Raveonettes
5. Jaccuzzi, Radio Radio
6. Gangsta Rap Made Me Do It, Ice Cube
7. Rich Kid Blues, The Raconteurs
8. We Call Upon The Author, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
9. Gamma Ray, Beck
10. Nine In The Afternoon, Panic At The Disco
Top Live Shows Of 2008
1. Eddie Vedder, Place-Des-Arts, summer
2. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Metropolis, October 2nd
3. The Nevers, UnPop Montréal, The Pound, December 6th
4. Might, UnPop Montréal, Cagibi, December 4th
5. The Raconteurs, Metropolis, summer
6. Madonna, Centre Bell, fall
7. Radiohead, Parc Jean-Drapeau, summer
8. Eagles Of Death Metal, late fall
9. Coeur De Pirate, Laval, late fall
10. Sébastian Hell, Montréal Chose, Cagibi, April 27th (hey, it was a slow year, and I rocked!)
Top Albums of 2008:
1. TV On The Radio, Dear Science
2. Wolf Parade, At Mount Zoomer
3. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Dig! Lazarus! Dig!
4. Amanda Palmer, Who Killed Amanda Palmer
5. The Raconteurs, Consolers Of The Lonely
6. Coeur De Pirate, Coeur De Pirate
7. The Kills, Midnight Boom
8. The Raveonettes, Lust, Lust, Lust
9. The Nevers, single
10. Ice Cube, Raw Footage
11. Nine Inch Nails, The Slip
12. The Black Keys, Attack & Release
13. T-Bone Burnett, Tooth of Crime
14. Beck, Modern Guilt
15. AC/DC, Black Ice
Biggest Shits (in no particular order): Tam, Guns' Chinese Democracy, Nickelback released the worst record of the year for the fourth (?) time, rap had little to offer of consequence - and the major labels seem to have died - good riddance.
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds
Nick Cave is a difficult beast to explain to the profane. He has switched his song topics enough to not really be classified as one specific type of writer. My favourite record of his is Murder Ballads, which consists of, of course, songs about murders. He's mostly into a darker style of songwriting, I'll start there.
On his slower, more orchestral songs, he can be like Hell's equivalent of Tito Puente's Big Band, with dark topics, with some references to the underworld, crime, satanism, things that crawl into dark places in the night. His harder songs are like if Bruce Springsteen's band had balls. And then there are the soft songs, which sound like a Burt Bacharach character is about to kill a zombie. His baritone could scare Depeche Mode back to the gay bars of London.
Then you see him live. They're all wearing suits. Not matching suits, they're not attending a wedding, just nice suits. To show they care. To make us think they're the Mob. Or undertakers. They make nice suits look grim. They all have long hair, albeit receding and with patches of baldness, but at their age, nothing could be more normal. Except they don't really look normal, either.
The show started off softly, with Hold On to Yourself. But then the show kicked in with a harder track and off we went. Highlights were, of course, Red Right Hand, Weeping Song and Stagger Lee. A (more) complete account of the evening's proceedings can be found here. I would have taken another song from Murder Ballads, at least, maybe The Curse of Millhaven or O'Malley's Bar, and thought after the first encore that, at 16 songs in total, it was a short one. He'd usually do 20 on this tour; other bands I like (step right up, Pearl Jam) often go to 25, sometimes even 30. But the Cave-man had a second encore in store for us, a long while after the first one had ended. An actual encore, where the artists has to come back because the crowd just won't leave. A good night indeed.
On his slower, more orchestral songs, he can be like Hell's equivalent of Tito Puente's Big Band, with dark topics, with some references to the underworld, crime, satanism, things that crawl into dark places in the night. His harder songs are like if Bruce Springsteen's band had balls. And then there are the soft songs, which sound like a Burt Bacharach character is about to kill a zombie. His baritone could scare Depeche Mode back to the gay bars of London.
Then you see him live. They're all wearing suits. Not matching suits, they're not attending a wedding, just nice suits. To show they care. To make us think they're the Mob. Or undertakers. They make nice suits look grim. They all have long hair, albeit receding and with patches of baldness, but at their age, nothing could be more normal. Except they don't really look normal, either.
The show started off softly, with Hold On to Yourself. But then the show kicked in with a harder track and off we went. Highlights were, of course, Red Right Hand, Weeping Song and Stagger Lee. A (more) complete account of the evening's proceedings can be found here. I would have taken another song from Murder Ballads, at least, maybe The Curse of Millhaven or O'Malley's Bar, and thought after the first encore that, at 16 songs in total, it was a short one. He'd usually do 20 on this tour; other bands I like (step right up, Pearl Jam) often go to 25, sometimes even 30. But the Cave-man had a second encore in store for us, a long while after the first one had ended. An actual encore, where the artists has to come back because the crowd just won't leave. A good night indeed.
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