Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds - The Beacon Theater, New York City - March 28, 2013.
Touring for their latest album, Push The Sky Away, Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds played the first of three nights at New York City's Beacon Theater on March 28, 2013 to an enthusiastic sold out crowd.
The set started out with the decidedly mellow We No Who U R before launching into Wide Lovely Eyes, which Nick noted was 'dedicated to, inspired by and because of' his wife. Backed by a six piece string section, two female vocalists and a children's choral group identified as the Harlem Voices, the first two numbers made it seem like we were in for a very calm evening. As Jubilee Street started out, it seemed to be more of the same - very well performed, polished sounding and most of all controlled mid-tempo material focusing on the new material for which the band was touring. As Jubilee Street started to build, however, the show started to take on something else entirely. Building slowly but surely into a beautiful, fucked up wall of sound, the third song became almost deafeningly intense. The choral group got louder, Nick got more manic, the dueling drum kits pounded heavier than before and Warren Ellis was jumping about the stage like a lunatic.
The show calmed down again for two more tracks off of the new album, the almost quiet and serene We Real Cool and the slightly more energetic Higgs Boson Blues before once again erupting with the opening and instantly identifiable strains of From Her to Eternity, which sounded like it was going to bring the roof down at any second (the choral group had left the stage at this point). A few more lively 'classic' tracks followed, with the obligatory Red Right Hand being a stand out, followed by O Children and the persistently angry Jack the Ripper. Deanna was up next, Cave noting that the song was about a 'friend' back in Australia, before the Bad Seeds took a break leaving Cave at the piano for Love Letter and God Is in the House. With the Bad Seeds back on stage for a version of The Weeping Song with Cave doing all the vocals - Blixa's presence is and always will be missed for this song - things once again picked up an exceptionally heavy version of The Mercy Seat. The stage bathed in red light, Stagger Lee was up next, with Nick improvising a bit by switching some lyrics around about how the devil himself did appear with an iPhone in his hand. During this song a gothish girl from the audience was pulled on stage… but then decided to stay. Cave looked kind of befuddled by this and moved to the opposite side, and she followed, doing odd dances to various parts of the song before he eventually had enough and, ever so gently, pushed her off into the audience. And that was the end of the main part of the performance.
The band came back again for a truly beautiful version of The Ship Song, the Harlem Voices back on stage and providing backing vocals once again. Cave then muttered something to the man conducting the choir about wanting to do a different song, effectively putting the kids on pause as The Bad Seeds launched into Tupelo. The night closed off with a remarkable version of the title track off of the new album.
Whatever misgivings there might be about the quality of the new material, live the tracks off of Push The Sky Away sound amazing, the night's rendition of Jubilee Street being breathtaking not just in terms of the quality of the performance but in the intensity and the volume of the way that the song finishes. It was one of those performances you didn't just experience and didn't just hear but literally felt. The Beacon is a sizeable venue and it was shaking. Cave has lost none of his stage presence, relaxed for the first two songs and then slowly but surely turning into that weird mix of fire and brimstone preach by way of Jack Skellington, a spidery and freakishly thin character jumping and strutting about the stage with a weird class and style all his own. The band did their part too, dueling drum kits pounding out underneath the slick bass lines and Warren Ellis going back and forth between a flute, various violins, a small portable keyboard and whatever else happened to be handy. Truly an amazing night, one of those rare concerts where everything came together, the Harlem Voices adding some unexpected by very effective emotional depth to a few tracks and the string section helping to build to a sound that was as original and unique as it was full and enveloping.
Check out this page at Brooklyn Vegan for some really nice photos from that performance…
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Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds - The Beacon Theater, New York City - March 28, 2013.
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Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds - The Beacon Theater, New York City - March 28, 2013.
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#1Mark TolchSenior MemberFind all postsView Profile03-31-2013, 09:17 AMEditing a commentThe Nick Cave I saw almost 20 years ago would have NEVER let anyone else on his stage.
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#2ScytherSenior MemberFind all postsView Profile03-31-2013, 11:12 AMEditing a commentI saw the Orpheum show in Boston and thought it was fantastic. I hadn't heard Push the Sky Away in its entirety prior to going, but thought the songs took on a stronger life in the live arena, for sure. Nicely balanced set list, as well.
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