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BUY THE CD
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Not long ago, I heard a song on my favorite
radio station that made me stop and pay attention. “That sounds like Nick Cave,” I told
my husband. “But…it can’t be.”
But, according to the DJ, it was. I
wasn’t sure whether to be shocked (and a bit disappointed) that Nick Cave would go
mainstream or totally impressed that my radio station was cool enough to play something
so…alternative. Either way, I rushed out to the library to pick up a copy of the latest
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds album, a two-disc set: Abattoir Blues and The Lyre
of Orpheus.
Nick Cave was one of my favorites during my
combat-boot-alternative college days. His music was dark and sinister and grim, with
growling vocals and often gruesome lyrics. Yet there he was, on my local radio station,
singing an almost-top-40-sounding “There She Goes, My Beautiful World.” The voice was
still Cave’s gritty sound, but the music was different. The album, however, is still
very Nick Cave. The songs are hypnotic, heavy with piano and percussion, giving parts of
the album a grim bluesy feel.
Abattoir Blues is the more
toned-down and mainstream of the two. The songs are more fast-paced, with songs like
“There She Goes…” The Lyre of Orpheus is generally the slower—and sometimes more
shocking—of the two. Though he throws in a few curveballs—like the surprisingly
Van-Morrison-esque guitar-and-flute love song, “Breathless” (which, incidentally, is
amazing…just unexpected)—most of the songs are slower and written in minor keys, and
you’ll occasionally find rather disturbing references to violence and death (I was
personally struck by a reference to dead bunnies in the title track).
I
loved Nick Cave when I was in college, and I still do—because of both his different sound
and his pure lyrical genius. Yes, his lyrics are often shocking and gruesome, but
they’re poetic and even beautiful. His imagery, allusions, and word usage are absolutely
brilliant. You’ll find yourself poring over the lyrics and studying their
meaning.
Nick Cave's music definitely isn’t for everyone—it’s more the
music of poets and philosophers and the chronically depressed (not to mention fans of
Edgar Allan Poe). If you do decide to check him out, you’ll be in for a poetic treat—but
be warned that some of the things you hear may be a bit disturbing. If it’s your first
Nick Cave experience, be sure to start with Abattoir Blues as a warm-up.
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