Muse-Sick (The Beauty Of Horror)
Love is the strongest and most dangerous emotion. It is the one thing that truly scares me. 'Do you love me' is not a question I have ever been comfortable asking and never will be because once you've been lied to, honesty becomes a four letter word. Flesh made words were carved the first time I saw Nick Cave play live. It was at the Wiltern Theater in Los Angeles. On this night the room felt more like a church than a concert venue. When Saint Nick walked on the stage with his microphone in hand he appeared larger than any evangelist I'd ever seen on tv. From the second he opened his mouth I felt him. His presence was so intense it made my eyes water. I had forgotten what being a fan felt like. I discovered Nick Cave in '96 when I was on my first tour of Europe. I was introduced to him through 'Murder Ballads' and have been a devout believer ever since. I must admit that until then he was just a name I had heard from people who were into his previous band, The Birthday Party, but I never paid much attention. Although I've never met Nick Cave I feel like I know him. I guess the same way some people feel like they know me, through my lyrics and songs. His intricate views on religion and preoccupation with death have always fascinated me. Not a huge fan of the press, he has remained true to his art and his muse to the end. Tonight he was King Ink. A compelling black-eyed Christ with milk white skin and explicit wounds. His bone chilling set was far from a poetic revelation; it was rock and roll redemption. With his trademark black crow suit and greasy hair he looked he looked like he had walked straight out of a 50s Rat Pack movie. He sang with the voice of an angel caught in the throat of the devil, revealing his own comprehensive good and evil twin personas that equal his true self. Nick Cave is a wet dream and a worst nightmare, which is why I believe he's so misunderstood and remains so intriguing. Painfully honest, he seems so protective of who he is that this has become his awe-inspiring contradiction. Grotesque and gorgeous his words are consuming and seem to drag me deep into that place I am always so afraid of... my mind. The mind often takes us to places our bodies fear to go. There is love and there is hate and we can be friends with both when we need to be, but the enemy is the fear that falls in between. I saw Nick Cave the second time at the same place but this time with Mick. Not Harvey but Murphy. The man with the red right hand sat behind his piano, opened his heart and sang his love letters to all who were there to witness. It all had a new meaning. It was more subdued, nut never less intense. My heart aches from love lost when I hear him sing and it also beats just as hard for love gained. As someone once wrote: "True icons are always controversial. They touch on the deepest most volatile feelings, inspiring fear in some and devotion in others." I admire his writing because he is completely free and unafraid to speak from his mind no matter how sacred or profane the outcome. When we began writing for the 'Prayer' record, I wanted to cover a Nick Cave song and 'Do You Love Me' seemed the most fitting. Mick agreed. After listening to the final mix I felt like it embodied all that I needed to say and gave me the closure I needed on my past while opening up a new door to my future. While some may find certain things about Nick Cave repulsive I find him to be brave, beautiful and apocalyptic. He is what rock is really all about. Artistic credibility, not sound scans and heavy rotation. In a world of false prophets and fake aesthetics, Nick Cave is not a necessary evil. He is necessary.

Next

Back