NICK CAVE AND WARREN ELLIS @ Riverside Theatre
Nick Cave and Warren Ellis @ Riverside Theatre
Tuesday, December 6, 2022
It was the perfect concert. A night where music, lyrics and performance collided in such a way as to produce laughter, tears and genuine awe. More remarkably, it touched on something even less tangible: the spiritual.
And let’s not forget a thing rarer still in this part of the world – a member of Radiohead live on stage. Yes, that was indeed Colin Greenwood playing bass.
Ostensibly touring last year’s wonderful record Carnage, this was more a celebration of that album’s creators collaborating over 30 years than just the past 12 months. Had I known they’d play most of the Bad Seeds’ last record Ghosteen, I likely would’ve bought tickets to both nights.
Such is that record’s power, they started with Ghosteen‘s opening two tracks. Warren Ellis’ otherworldly synths filled the air and Cave was immediately in fine form on Spinning Song, stalking the stage, then taking to his grand piano for the conclusion of Bright Horses.
The Carnage numbers more than held their own, with the title track showing off the talents of a brightly dressed, three-piece gospel section made up of the amazing Wendi Rose, T. Jae Cole and Janet Ramus (the latter memorably taking on PJ Harvey’s part in Henry Lee for the encore). White Elephant was an altogether more menacing beast, as Cave ranted “I’ll shoot you in the fucking facе If you think of coming around here,” before things got truly biblical during the song’s coda – this song needs a review of its own to unpack it.
Best of all was a fearsome Hand of God, which exceeded its studio counterpart in every way and saw the gospel according to Nick take full effect. He preached from the stage and he preached in the stalls, reaching out to touch his worshippers and hug those who wanted it from down in the aisles. Like Balcony Man later, it was some avant-garde crowd involvement, but Cave has never been one to play things straight.
Ghosteen‘s title track left barely a dry eye in the house as Cave touched on his son Arthur’s passing in 2015: “baby bear, he has gone to the moon in a boat.” Equally as epic was Hollywood in the encore, a near 15-minute vibing drone, in which the refrain “It’s a long way to find peace of mind” was counterbalanced by the eerie Buddhist tale of Kisa Gotami and the Mustard Seed.
Having since lost a second son, Cave’s grief was deeply felt by all in attendance, as was the sense of healing that accompanied these and other remarkable Ghosteen numbers such as Galleon Ship, Waiting for You and Leviathan.
Want more? How about a cover of T.Rex’s Cosmic Dancer (“I danced myself right out the womb/ Is it strange to dance so soon?”) with Warren Ellis going full Dirty Three for a mighty electric violin solo that impressed even Cave. Or the flute leading a perfectly breezy Breathless, one Ellis’ many amazing arrangements for the night. The pure poetry of Shattered Ground was equally memorable: “The moon is a girl with the sun in her eyes,” Cave sang, presumably in dedication to wife Susie.
The encore did what encores do, but even then it was a welcome surprise to hear Bad Seeds classics The Weeping Song, Jubilee Street and Into My Arms played with this unique seven-piece ensemble. It left Ghosteen Speaks to close the night 2.5 hours after it began, as the ‘ghost teen’ of the album’s title had the final word from the other side: “I am beside you/ Look for me.” By that time, a standing ovation had never felt more deserved.
Recently at X-Press we’ve stopped utilising a scoring system and allowed our words to do the talking. In short, this was the best concert WA has seen since COVID. More expansively, it was a night so profound and filled with the spirit of life that it was impossible not to feel completely alive; yet at others, there might have even been a glimpse behind the veil to the other side. Like Cave’s daily meditation practice, occasionally it was transcendental. Put simply, it was a 10/10.
HARVEY RAE
Photos by Linda Dunjey
