On his seventeenth album with The Bad Seeds, Cave continues to explore grief and life while painting a brighter, more introspective vision of life in 2024’s Wild God.
Released August 30th, 2024 Wild God finds Cave again joined by Bad Seeds members Thomas Wydler on drums, multi-instrumentalist Jim Sclavunos, Warren Ellis on strings, and guitarist George Vjestica. The addition of Radiohead bassist Colin Greenwood and mixing by Dave Fridmann- whose work encompasses The Flaming Lips and MGMT support Cave in creating an atmospheric feel across Wild God serving as an avant-garde foundation for Cave’s poetic ballads.
Notably, Wild God expands upon Cave’s previous work in 2019’s Ghosteen which featured Cave processing the 2015 death of his son, Arthur- subsequently resulting in work that served as a means for him to speak to his departed child. Tragically, Cave again finds himself narrating his loss in Wild God following the death of his other son, Jethro, in 2022 as reported by The Guardian. Despite familiar circumstances, Cave and The Bad Seeds project an alternate tone in Wild God, absent from previous work- now reflecting on his faith and continued search for light amongst the dark.
Cave upholds his elegant lyricism and brilliant storytelling throughout Wild God. Despite soul-baring themes of his grief, Cave reflects on recent life-altering events while maintaining a tone that resembles both acceptance and hope. Themes such as these can be found in tracks such as “Song of the Lake,” in which Cave crafts a feudalist tale beginning in nearly spoken word partnered with a choir singing a gothic backing melody before Cave’s massive, crooning vocals deliver the final verse.
Through a mix of post-punk, gospel, and blues crafted by The Bad Seeds on “Conversion”- Cave’s lyrics flow seamlessly together reminiscent of a story book until the atmospheric sonic scape breaks as percussion and backing choir trade melodies with Cave until the two merge together in a triumphant conclusion.
Additionally, Cave speaks of his loss head-on in the hopeful, “Joy” in which Cave depicts a dream in which he is visited by the ghost of a flaming boy, presumably his late son who reassures him of the light reaming in the world over an ambiance merge of keys and synths- working in unison with Cave’s lyrics in sparking a sense of reassurance in times of upheaval.
Although Cave has endured the unthinkable in recent years, Wild God serves as a reminder that there can always be hope found in seemingly hopeless situations.
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