album // Nocturama
Nocturama was actually panned by certain journalistic quarters upon its release, with some reviewers claiming that it sounded like a poor impression of Nick Cave's former glories, by the man himself. True, the album is more of an accompaniment to 2001's No More Shall We Part, with its beautiful songs and rare moments of rage, but this is actually a unique and accomplished fourteenth album from the band, and the final one to feature Blixa Bargeld. The album was learnt and recorded in a week by The Bad Seeds - Mick Harvey (guitar, organ, bass, percussion), Blixa Bargeld (pedal steel guitar, guitar), Thomas Wydler (drums, percussion), Martyn P Casey (bass), Jim Sclavunos (percussion, drums) and Warren Ellis (violin) - and was produced by the band and Nick Launay, who also worked with Nick and Mick in The Birthday Party. Four of the songs feature backing vocals from members of The Blockheads, Ian Dury's old backing band.
Nocturama opens with the melancholy ballad 'Wonderful Life', featuring one of Martyn P Casey's best basslines to date and a particularly rousing chorus, a surprisingly rich and tense backdrop to what is really a very tender love song. 'He Wants You' echoes 'Love Letters' from the previous album No More Shall We Part, featuring some beautiful interplay between Cave's piano and Warren Ellis' excellent violin, as well as one of our newly-cropped singer's most heartfelt, soaring vocals. The Boatman's Call could well be missing one of its songs, judging by the romantic 'Right Out Of Your Hand', a vaguely country ballad detailing a devotion that cannot be supressed, given some resonance on the chorus, where Cave is joined by Conway Savage's higher-octave accompanying vocals.
'Dead Man In My Bed' arrives out of Cave's dervish past with an organ and guitar-led intensity and punk spirit, so surprisingly after so much smooth balladeering. Recalling Let Love In's Thirsty Dog, here Nick and The Seeds rip through this song of bitter sexual inadequacy with barely a pause for breath; its a welcomely ragged blast after so much well-produced, heartfelt serenity. In contrast, the brushed cymbals and discrete fifties tremolo guitar that introduces 'Still In Love With You' somehow comes as even more a surprise after 'Dead Man In My Bed'; there's something tantalisingly skewed about Cave's vocal here, finding him spending the verses commenting on the city by night, and the chorus detailing his love, almost as if he is uncomfortable with the reality he finds himself facing. Mick Harvey and Blixa Bargeld trade rhythm and slide guitar lines against Ellis' violin over a solid bassline on the descending mystery of 'There Is A Town', spiralling pianos backing Cave's chorus of 'It seems that God is only in our dreams', showing once again Cave's refusal to wholeheartedly accept the Christian faith.
'Rock Of Gibraltar' is a brief, pleasant, whimsical folk ballad dominated by Nick's piano and an airy drum and percussion section from Thomas Wydler and Jim Sclavunos, detailing both a romantic trip to the British outpost, and Cave's position as his wife's solid 'rock'. The omnipresent Warren Ellis takes the lead on the melody for the tender 'She Passed By My Window', while all of The Bad Seeds join together on the gentle chorus of 'You've got to sanctify my love'. 'I ain't no loverboy,' sings Cave toward the end of this track, but despite this declaration - and the ensuing counterpoint chaos of 'Babe, I'm On Fire' - you have to beg to differ these days.