A trilogy is a hard thing to pull off these days.
Let’s be honest, as much as we hate to admit it, there has never been a perfect trilogy. Some people will say that this is a falsehood, but anything you throw at me will be rebuked:
The Godfather Trilogy: The third movie lacks something and falls apart.
Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight Trilogy – Bane’s voice.
The Cornetto Trilogy: World’s End and the weak ending.
Star Wars Episodes 4-6: Return of the Jedi is ruined by Ewoks and George Lucas adding stuff over time.
Robert Rankin’s Brentford Trilogy: Too many books (up to 11 I think at my last count)
Frank Zappa with We’re Only In It For The Money/Lumpy Gravy/Civilization Phaze III: Lumpy Gravy is the Achilles heel. That said, it’s still better than most bands could ever dream to achieve.
X-Men films (original cast, Wolverine Stand-alone, and the First Class casts): The third acts just fell apart – apart from Wolverine, where they got better as they went along.
Each time, they lose something and it tends to be the third act, with rare exceptions. The only ones from the list above are Zappa and the Wolverine films. Both of these excel in the last moments as if the star burnt brightest in the end. It means, though, whenever I hear that something is a trilogy, I feel a sense of dread.
Recently, I felt that shudder when the word trilogy was used whilst describing Ghosteen.
Ghosteen is the seventeenth studio album released by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds.
As well as the third act of a group of albums which started with Push The Sky Away (2013) and precedes Skeleton Tree (2016). The trilogy represents a shift in direction for the band, with a minimal approach applied to their sound, taking away some of the noise that can be associated with songs such as “The Mercy Seat” and “Dig, Lazurus Dig”. But, if we’re truly honest, they were never the loudest of bands. They’ve always released ballads and songs of mournful longing; it’s an essential part of the Bad Seeds charm.
But something shifted with Push The Sky Away and there was a noticeable move away from the slight hiss of their music into a clear, almost reverential tone. Upon my first listen to that record, it was almost a reaction to the midlife crisis that was Grinderman (my personal favourite Nick Cave act). That band seemed to have taken their rock & roll spirit, spat it out and left the band to take a deep breath. Push the Sky Away is one of their best records, a beautiful album that breaks the heart.
Then, there is the second part of the trilogy – Skeleton Tree.
An album that feels like a grieving period, an open wound of the soul. This is the pinnacle of The Bad Seeds discography, no if’s or but’s on that one. Often (and I include myself in this) seen as a reaction to the untimely death of Nick Cave’s son, Arthur. But this is a misconception, as Skeleton Tree was actually composed before that tragic passing. There were only a few alterations after Arthur’s passing, so the grief attributed to it should be considered for other events.
However, the performance by Nick Cave and the rest of the band is heart-wrenching. They seemingly feel as if they’re dealing with untold grief. Somehow, either by fault or design, the music seems to embody that period, to be a physical presence of pain and loss.
When I first listened to Skeleton Tree, I was floored. It was too painful to listen to, I was in tears and it still hurts. Even knowing that it’s written from other experiences/stories, does not change the effect that Skeleton Tree had on me. I think I’ve only played it nine or ten times, but its impact was/is massive. But this does bring up a question – after such a high tide mark, where do they go from that point?
Well, the third act of the trilogy, Ghosteen, the final destination.
Written in contrast to their usual disciplined regime (Cave writing lyrics in an office), Ghosteen was created within at Nick Cave’s home (as confirmed here on the Ghosteen Wikipeida article), with no lyrics being composed between 2015 to early 2017. He also stated in his own online posts on The Red Hand Files that this change was required, in order to find an authentic way to deal with the trauma in his life. He wanted to be able to deal with the issues in front of him, but not to turn his back on the loss of his child. Noting that this experience was liberating to him, it then makes you wonder if this is going to be something that will become the new normal.
From the point of view of an outsider looking in, the change is subtle, not obvious to the naked eye. Cave has always been an enigmatic writer, some things are obvious, some things are left for interpretation by the audience and other times, the point is lost in mystery. But always, the man just keeps on writing. It was to his credit in my mind that he left time before picking up the pen, to let himself grieve and look into himself.
Musically, Ghosteen follows the pattern established on Skeleton Tree.
If this album were an apartment, it would have a pillow and a power socket. To call it sparse is being generous, to call it desolate would be giving it damningly faint praise. The feeling of loss, emptiness and bereavement that could only be understood after a loss of a loved one is central to this record. The Bad Seeds have enclosed around Cave, took those words and personified it. They’ve given it strips of cloth, fed it and guided it into the world. There is something beautiful about that, seeing the gang surround and support, to show a level of love that is often not appreciated.
Whilst this is something that warms the heart, you cannot let this override how the album sounds overall. Which is perhaps why this album is going to be contested in the future and why it will be one that is debated for years to come. For me, the shadow on the album is one that was always going to be there. Heartache and bereavement of the magnitude experienced in the Cave household is going to take its toll.
It’s not as if these guys were known for releasing sunshine music beforehand, they’ve always had a shade of sorrow to them. Beautifully crafted as Ghosteen sounds, the atmosphere of pain and sorrow is huge. Yet for all this, it still leaves me cold.
So, why am I being harsh on Ghosteen here?
Let’s be honest, to criticize this album, knowing the backdrop of the recording, is a somewhat a dick move. Even as I write this, I feel like I’m mocking someone’s path of healing. It must have been incredibly hard to even pick up the pen on this record, let alone release it upon the world, for it would have been foreseen that people will talk about it, with some not being kind in the least.
I am fully aware that my thoughts here go against the grain, something I naturally accept. But I cannot fabricate a falsehood, a response which isn’t there. That would be worse than saying that I cannot connect to this work, this dramatic piece of art.
Ghosteen is not a poor album, not by a long stretch.
But some sections I feel would have been jettisoned by the editor within. The man which Cave mentioned on the film 20,000 Days on Earth, seems to be on sabbatical. This is not the fault of Mr. Cave, the Bad Seeds or anyone. It’s not to do with events that followed the band in recent years.
It’s down to the way humans compare works of art, music, and consumption of these by the audience. For me, musically I find Push The Sky Away and Skeleton Tree are stronger works. This does not discredit the depths or performances on Ghosteen, but there is an inevitability about this one too. That it would not reach the heights of its twins.
I do feel like I’m being very mean to Ghosteen…
Comparing it to the NC&BS back catalog, it’s not even their worst release. Songs such as “Hollywood”, “Waiting For You” and “Leviathan” are beautiful, fragile moments that sing to the heart. But there is something lost, something precious that is hard to be replaced. Maybe it’s the level of frailty that is unsettling. It’s this gentle weeping, mournful sound, instead of the expected raging against God that makes this album what it is….. the lost soul of a trilogy.
But when you think of what went on beforehand, the amazing records that started this trilogy, maybe it was fated to be a gentle ending. I don’t think I could be as brave,, releasing an album in the set of circumstances. This is something that’s not in my emotional suitcase. The loss of a loved one is the hardest thing to emote, the most painful words to express. Especially, in the circumstance when there is no chance of a reunion on this mortal plane.
Sadly, Ghosteen is the Godfather III in this set.
I do not say this to offend, or to be edgy, it’s just the natural setting of this record. As the third act of a trilogy, Ghosteen is the final piece that cannot deliver upon the promises of Push the Sky Away and Skeleton Tree. As a stand-alone album, Ghosteeen is a desolate piece. It’s fronted by a man trying to pull himself back together, after the trauma of loss ripping through his personal life.
I cannot give it the praise that is falling at its feet from others. Yet I can also not say its without worth, or without a soul. All I can suggest is that people should still listen to this. For the work of Nick Cave is worth a thousand pop artists. I truly think this was not the original ending for this trilogy, but nevertheless, it’s where we’ve arrived.
