God is in the House
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
Mute
DVD
2003
Available at Amazon.
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If you've ever had the good fortune to see Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds live, you know what a pulse-pounding and somewhat disturbing experience it is. Even Cave's bandmates look confused as he writhes and contorts, throwing himself about the stage like a puppet whose master has had a bit too much of the absinthe. Moreover, at a time when performance and songwriting seem to be mutually exclusive, Cave excels at both, dragging the audience into his twisted world of sinners, saints and soliloquies. Truly, outside of a faithful, blood-soaked reading of Baudelaire poetry, there's no spectacle quite like it.
Much anticipated and long overdue, God is in the House is a more than welcome digital video addition to the boundless Cave canon. The bulk of the disc's material was recorded at Le Transbordeur in Lyon, France on June 8th 2001, as the band were in the midst of their world tour in support of No More Shall We Part. Predictably, their set is heavy on tracks from the aforementioned long-player; "As I Sat Sadly By Her Side" and "Fifteen Feet of Pure White Snow" are spine tingling ballads delivered with such conviction the Pope himself couldn't argue, while charring dirge "Oh My Lord" is morosely grandiloquent, and "Hallelujah" is a revelation wrapped in red velvet. Of course, what would a Bad Seeds show be without a clutch of the old favorites? "Red Right Hand" eddies along an unstable path to a delirious finale, "The Mercy Seat" is all electric hellfire and convoluted derision, and The Good Son's "The Weeping Song" features a stunning give-and-take between Cave and longtime associate, guitarist Blixa Bargeld. Greater than a sum of its admittedly stellar parts, the concert portion of the disc is beautiful, sorrowful and disastrous, as only a Nick Cave show could be.
While viewing God is in the House, you will understand why the late, great Johnny Cash chose Cave as a collaborator: the two share a penchant for the macabre end of the spiritual spectrum (see Cash's "Delia's Gone" and Cave's "Oh My Lord" for emphatic proof), and their fascination with murderers and thieves is a well-known facet of their respective generations' folklore. While there's little here to truly challenge the Man in Black's reputation as the greatest showman in the history of country music, the mawkish theatrics and gut wrenching sincerity of a Cave live performance ("Papa Won't Leave You, Henry" may make you cry) is enough to leave even the great man himself awestruck.
In addition to the full live show, God is in the House includes a documentary on the grueling No More Shall We Part recording sessions, as well as the haunting and surreally handsome videos for "As I Sat Sadly by Her Side", "Fifteen Feet of Pure White Snow" and "Love Letter". Simple but effective, the videos are, much like the man himself, grandiloquent without appearing ostentatious, exuding a frightening sensuality that taps into the most primal aspects of our sexuality. Granted, the inclusion of such material is obviously aimed squarely at rabid Cave enthusiasts, but they make an interesting codicil to the live material.
Years from now, drama students may be required to watch film of Cave as part of their curriculum, studying his every move and drinking in every nuance of the contorted expressions he so carelessly tosses off. As you watch him, you get the distinct impression that everything about him that we find so fascinating, he finds amusing, as if the audience is God's own little circus played out in dimly lit theatres every night for his amusement.
Though it's not quite a replacement for the full-blown Nick Cave live experience, God is in the House is a stunning portrait of one of the most enigmatic performers of our time, in the arena that suits him best.
-- Jason Jackowiak
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