S Poddar
An emotional and poignant performance paid tribute to the late Anita Lane as Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds revisited their roots in Berlin. Sunday, 29 September 2024 was marked as the German capital was abuzz when the ‘Wild God’ tour came to town. It filled the evening with nostalgia and intensity, simply captivating the audience.
As things are going spectacular with a string of European dates, the band has been enthusiastically touting its 18th studio album, Wild God. Berlin isn’t exactly a hometown affair for Cave, but there’s something fitting about this being a kind of coming-home concert. The early eighties were spent living in Berlin, and, judging from his words here, Cave also has a very strong connection to these songs and his personal history; he spoke kindly of those who helped him along the way as he talked about the period.
Opening with the set, the band went into a frenetic performance of “Frogs,” one of the high point from Wild God. The crowd revelled in the call to join him and “jump for joy.” Using his stage presence that is so unique, Cave danced amongst the audience, taking the moment to give a thank-filled speech about Berlin, a city he once called home during wild younger days.
Thanks, bloody Berlin, Cave said, visibly overwrought. He then introduced a new song, Song of the Lake, which would receive its first public outing with a combination of nervous excitement. “Okay, this is a song about – ah fuck, I don’t actually know, we’ve never played this song before. It could be a disaster or a very beautiful thing, you just never know, he said to the assembled throng, as was his wont, clever and self-deprecating.
A spine-tingling rendition of the old-school favorite “O Children” had Cave noting how the song is “an unmerciful song in regards to watching our kids while we try to get what we want.” He was straight into the fan favorite in “Jubilee Street,” where Cave’s signature dark humor came through when he said, “This is a scary song with a good end.”. I lied on that second part of that. That is one scaring song in itself, and an even scarier ending.
But during the whole set, the crowd was subjected to a thrilling clamor of old and new: such as the wild energy of “From Her to Eternity,” a fan favorite that’s been that way since day one. More from Wild God, “Long Dark Night” and “Cinnamon Horses” were treated with Hollywood-fairness, back-up singers and Jim Sclavunos on percussion adding a cinematic drama to the live setting.
Perhaps the most amusing light-hearted moment of the evening was when Cave, being in good humor, refers to the King of Rock & Roll while introducing the song “Tupelo.”. Also performing that evening were Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, with whom Elvis shared one final song on a large echoey title like many others. “This is a song about Elvis Presley,” Cave quipped, before stating, “I don’t know if you know him, but you should check him out.” The song, a cut from Here Come the Mexicans, was written in Berlin, further cementing that city’s hold on his life and music.
Tupelo” transported the listener back in time as Cave performed with a raw intensity that has defined his career since the early days of the Bad Seeds. It was as if the years just melted away and Cave let loose the ferocity of his youthful self in a performance full of passion and grit.
The silhouette of Anita Lane followed along the performance. Anita Lane was once a Bad Seeds ex-member and Cave’s collaborator. She died in 2021, and this concert in Berlin became a tribute to her story. Cave’s connection to Lane had been multifaceted and creative, and her presence can be felt in the dramatic weight that defined the overall emotional framework of the performance.
Berlin is, for Cave, just not another stop on a tour: “A city where I found my voice, gave me license to write and speak my mind. It’s a place where personal and artistic transformations for me were wrought.” And the Berliners who witnessed this growth and transformation from their striated patron, with whom they could identify, have been reminded of those early days in a powerfully charged way. The ‘Wild God’ tour, which merged old with new material, was more than just a show of musical fireworks: it reflected Cave’s traverse as artist and as man.
As Colin Greenwood, from Radiohead, who was in the audience for the performance, later remembered, it was full of “euphoric intensity.” Intensity and fragile moments embraced what made Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds so iconic in music. It was more than a concert for Berliners; it was reverence to the past, celebration of the present, and hope for the future.
