Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds biography

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds are an Australian alternative rock band, formed in Melbourne, Victoria in 1983 by frontman Nick Cave, multi-instrumentalist Mick Harvey and guitarist Blixa Bargeld. The band has included international personnel throughout its career and currently includes Cave, violinist and multi-instrumentalist Warren Ellis, bassist Martyn P. Casey, keyboardist Conway Savage, and percussionists Thomas Wydler and Jim Sclavunos.

The band was founded after the demise of Cave and Harvey's former group, The Birthday Party. Alternating from the noise rock roots of their contemporaries, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds have a distinctive take on alternative rock that has been influenced by various genres, including punk rock, gothic rock, no wave and blues. Their early material—From Her to Eternity (1984), The Firstborn Is Dead (1985), Your Funeral... My Trial (1986) and Tender Prey (1988)—had a primarily post-punk sound; however, as the band progressed, they began to incorporate more refined singer-songwriter elements. Their latest release, Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!! (2008), also experimented with garage rock, inspired by their side project Grinderman.

They are best known for "Where the Wild Roses Grow", a collaborative single with Australian pop singer Kylie Minogue from their ninth studio album, Murder Ballads (1996). The song was an international commercial and critical success, giving them exposure in pop charts; the band also has a large cult following, due to their extensive back catalogue of fourteen studio albums and frequent international touring.

History

Formation and early releases (1983-1988)

The project that would later evolve into Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds began following the demise of The Birthday Party in August 1983. Both Nick Cave and Mick Harvey were members of The Birthday Party, along with guitarist Rowland S. Howard and bassist Tracy Pew. During the recording sessions of their scheduled EPs Mutiny/The Bad Seed, internal disputes developed in the band. Cave and Howard's different approaches to songwriting was a major factor, as Cave explained in an interview with On The Street: "the main reason why The Birthday Party broke up was that the sort of songs that I was writing and the sort of songs that Rowland was writing were just totally at odds with each other." Following the departure of Harvey, they officially disbanded. Cave also said that "it probably would have gone on longer, but Mick has the ability to judge things much more clearly than the rest of us." thumb An embryonic version of what would later become The Bad Seeds was formed in London, United Kingdom—where The Birthday Party was based—in September 1983 with Cave, Harvey (initially acting primarily as drummer), Einstürzende Neubauten guitarist Blixa Bargeld, Magazine bassist Barry Adamson and Jim G. Thirlwell. The band was initially formed as a backing band to Cave's solo intended project, Man Or Myth?, which was given the green light by Mute Records. During September and October, they recorded a number of songs with producer Flood although the sessions were cut short due to Cave's touring with The Immaculate Consumptive, another project formed with Lydia Lunch and Marc Almond. In December 1983, Cave returned to Melbourne, Australia where he formed a temporary new line-up of his backing band, due to Bargeld's absence, including Pew and guitarist Hugo Race. The band performed their first live show at Seaview in St. Kilda on 31 December 1983.

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