Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds last night

I would consider myself more a casual fan than a devotee of Nick Cave, and so was at first something of an observer at this gig, which was full of fully-paid up worshippers of the lanky gothic Aussie.

Seeing how he and the Bad Seeds fed off this energy though, and used it to whip up an absolute stormer of a performance, I vowed to go back and get into his stuff more so that if I ever get a chance to see them again I can get into it 100%.

As it was, I had a very good time, especially when I got nearer to the stage (it makes a lot of difference to the enjoyment for me to be upclose, though we fell back at the end to get a different perspective). The version they did of The Mercy Seat was monstrous, and the closing version of Stagger Lee with it’s ferocious, stomping beast of a bass-line was also a highlight, as was ‘Get Ready for Love’ from Abattoir Blues.

Cave himself was like a man possessed, I would have him as a preacher possessed by an unearthly power; TheSteinbergPrinciple would have it that he is the devil himself, and that Warren Ellis was Jesus! Certainly, the interplay between them both was riveting to watch.

I still don’t know if I’ll ever love Nick Cave quite as much as some of his hardcore fans though – there’s some emotional connection missing there for me still, perhaps because he is so much of a performer, a larger than life persona, that it’s hard to get a measure of the real man..

Hear Nick Cave – ‘We Call Upon the Author’