Implies… hell, it requires the presence of death eventually. Speaks of death as inherently linked to life of any form. Sea/You’re a distant memory in the mind of your creator/Don’t you see?” Cave Now/You’re an old man sitting by the fire/You’re the mist rolling off the Inescapable nature of death that all are faced with, regardless of who one isĪnd what supposed nature they have “You’re an African doctor/Harvesting tearĭucts/You believe in God/But you get no special dispensation for this belief Many of the lyrics on display are macabre,Įspecially in the first half of the album. Having said that, the thematic threads are still potent,Ĭontext be damned, and though Cave’s lyrics can border on cryptic, they neverĬross over into pure opacity.
So you can really explore the textures on display. I implore you, beg you even to listen to the album on a good pair of headphones Hiss in ‘Girl in Amber’ and the drumsticks click on ‘Anthrocene.’ If you have Doors creak on ‘Magneto,’ the microphones Not only reveals the presence and placement of the instruments in the mix, butĪlso the raw, unpolished production. Instruments which don’t demand attention from even the most wary of listenersĪt first, and instead reveal themselves on subsequent listens. The liner notes reveal an impressive list of One shouldn’t confuse the emphasis on tone and Most explicitly emotional track here, ‘I Need You,’ sounds far too sedated toĮlicit such intense emotion. Track, though even that feels more apathetic than malignant. Opener ‘Jesus Alone’ presents an imposing, growling drone that dominates the Where the band is content to linger on moments, giving them room to expand, rather than rushing on to reach the conclusion.ĭid this to cultivate an atmosphere of sheer terror however, whereas Skeleton Tree doesn’t aim to cultivate such visceral emotion. Look to ‘Distant Sky,’ where guest vocalist Else Torp and Cave croon over aīackdrop of vibraphone and subtle percussion. Overwhelms the track and Cave withdraws, leaving only an echo in his place. Repeats a handful of musical phrases for four minutes, before a grinding synth More in common with ambient music than any of the genres Nick Cave & theīad Seeds have explored thus far.
Would be somewhat misleading, as each song isn’t so much a journey from A to B,īut an exploration of a given tone or a texture. Imply Cave or the Bad Seeds are headed in any set direction with these tracks Strings, guitars and percussion tumble throughout the mix of each track, risingĪnd falling to compliment the groaning synthesizers on each track. Recites apocalyptic poetry that frequently slips from the measure. Tracks are driven by piano melodies from Cave himself, as his shaky voice An especially challenging listen, it’s by no means an easy one.