Takin’ a Trip to 1996 (feat. Griff)

Episode 4

Nick Cave and the Bad Seed’s Murder Ballads (Mute Records)

Released in the US on February 20th Murder Ballads was a concept album about murder. Sixty-four people are murdered over the course of ten songs and that includes the album’s closer, a Bob Dylan cover in which no one is technically killed. Each song tells a different story, but they all end up the same. “Henry Lee,” which features PJ Harvey, tells the story of a woman scorned by the man she loves. So she kills him. “Where the Wild Roses Grow,” which features Australian pop singer Kylie Minogue, tells the story of a man courting a young woman by the name of Eliza Day. Then he kills her. I’m not for sure why, but he does. “The Curse of Millhaven” starts out innocently enough, but it’s soon revealed that Loretta is a green eyed lunatic who has been killing and committing arson for years in the small fictional town of Millhaven. Perhaps the two most gruesome songs are a reinterpretation of the traditional folk song, “Stagger Lee” and the fourteen minute epic, “O’Malley’s Bar” about a man who goes into a bar and explains in detail the systematic murder of his fellow townsfolk. While Murder Ballads may not be for everyone, the stories and characters created by Nick Cave and company demand the attention of the listener with rich imagery and buckets of blood.  

Songs:
The Kindness of Strangers
Death Is Not the End
Henry Lee
Where the Wild Roses Grow
The Curse of Millhaven
Stagger Lee
Song of Joy