Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds – Dig!!! Lazarus Dig!!!

Now that I have my first review of the year under my belt, I find myself wandering back out into the musical desert, searching once again for that always elusive musical fix. With The Black Crowes having left me in a state of serious wanting, I picked up two new releases and decided to see what they are made of.

The first was Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds new album, Dig!!! Lazarus Dig!!! Initially, I wasn’t very excited about reviewing this release. I’ve heard Nick Cave many times before and while I can admit respect for his artistic vision, I have never found myself in desperate need of listening to anything he has created, with the exception of the song “Red Right Hand”. So I found a quiet bench in an abandoned park and I half heartedly pressed play.

The album opens with the title track “Dig!!! Lazarus Dig!!!” which strangely reminds me of a cross between Franz Ferdinand and that old Suicidal Tendencies track “Institutionalized”, you know the one that has a hilarious amount of talking? Nick Cave talk-sings his way through most of the track telling a rather strange story that lyrically, is very interesting. But while interesting, I am certain I only need to listen to this song once.

I am a big believer in the fact that truly great music is best quantified by the strength of the urge that it gives you to listen to it over and over again.

The second track “Today’s Lesson”, while it was easy to see the potential there, just didn’t have enough on it to connect with either. Actually, it reminded me of Kiss in a couple spots. It might be a kick-ass song to hear live though.

With the album off to an average start “Moonland” begins. Surprisingly, I found myself captivated within a few seconds. Cave’s dark swooning lyrics instantly connect. I absolutely love the tiny drum scattering about in the background throughout the track. I found myself smiling because I had finally found a good song, the first one of the year.

From here we move on to “Night of the Louts Eaters”, a hypnotically dark hymn that takes you down into a darkened basement and locks you inside the bowels of what could be an old clock, that seems to be stuck. Parts of this song remind me of The Doors vocally. Cave’s lyrics are proving to be near genius. From the title to the fade out, Nick and his Seeds nail this one. It’s even better than “Moonland”.

“Albert Goes West” shatters the hypnotic spell of the last few minutes with it’s much more aggressive sound. I found this to be a terrible transition. While the song gets better as it goes, I found it slightly too noisy and a bit unfocused. It’s something you might find yourself listening if you are having sex in a bathroom with the town whore. I’m pretty certain I won’t be listening to that one again. “We Call Upon the Author to Explain” follows that up and again Nick Cave’s vision is brave. I imagine that he doesn’t give two shits about what other people think about what he is doing. He talk-sings his way through this track as well, telling another incredibly interesting story. He definitely took some chances on this song. Overall, I think great lyrics make this song worth listening to.

“Hold On to Yourself” comes over you like an icy wind, I love the strings that sit back, itching away in the back of your mind. Cave’s voice is truly great on this track. At times he reminds me of PJ Harvey. This song clearly shows why you have heard of Nick Cave. The track is just really fucking good. After that “Lie Down Here (and be my girl)” cracks you in the head with a distorted guitar, violently being played like a dying pterodactyl. It’s a harsh transition again, but more bearable than that last one. This is the kind of song that might grow on you.

“Jesus of the Moon” brings it back down and Nick Cave all of the sudden is reminding me of Neil Diamond. Well not Neil Diamond, but definitely his evil twin. Another really good song. I just can’t seem to find any fault with these songs. The lyrics keep standing out. All the musical choices are brave and inspired I think. “Midnight Man” is next and it has great sound to it. The keyboards really make this one, bubbling up kind of like the drums do on “Moonland”. Another kick-ass song. Unbelievable. With only one song left, I start to look back at my notes and find myself completely shocked at how many good tracks are on this album.

“More News From Nowhere” wraps up this album, coming in at seven and a half minutes long. It’s a seriously mellow tune that is filled with so many stories and great lyrics, it feels more like five minutes. With lyrics like “i don’t know which is which, or who is whom, they’ve stolen each others faces” and “it’s getting strange in here” it reminds me of a group of friends completely wasted on mushrooms, locked in someone’s apartment.

Ok. It’s a great ending to an album filled with some of Nick Cave’s best work. Indeed. If The Black Crowes got two-point-five stars, this should get at least four. If you get a chance you should check it out. I’ll be reviewing that other mystery album in a few days. Check back soon for it, it think it has the potential to be even better than this one was.

Maybe this year won’t be so bad after all?

~ by mughead on March 5, 2008.