NCATBS vs. BPB

Murder Ballads

I love Nick Cave, but this is not the album I would have picked for the Death Match. I would have chosen Tender Prey or Henry's Dream, and your guess is as good as mine why I didn't nominate either of these albums. As for Murder Ballads, it does contain all the best elements of Mr. Cave's craft- literate lyrics, manic energy and a consistently compelling pathos, a little gallows humor, and the backing of the Bad Seeds. However, I must admit that the subject matter here is a little too relentlessly gruesome and grim, even by Nick Cave standards.

On the other hand, I should point out that the onslaught of blood and guts and homicide on this album do not bother me as much as a lot of "gangsta rap"...Perhaps it is because Mr. Cave's stories often sound legendary or mythical ("Stagger Lee", "Henry Lee", "Where the Wild Roses Grow", "Crow Jane"), cartoonish and ridiculously obscene ("The Curse of Millhaven", "O'Malley's Bar"), or like the plot of a good thriller/ murder mystery movie ("Song of Joy", "The Kindness of Strangers"). Unlike "gangsta" music, they do not sound like stories of his own experience or portraits of the violent environment from which he has emerged. The violence often depicted in rap sounds more "real" and therefore much more disturbing to me. Does that make sense?

My favorite song on the album is definitely "Stagger Lee"...I saw Nick and the boys perform this live in downtown Detroit several years ago...It was showmanship at its finest: Nick sauntering fiendishly about the stage, the Seeds locking into that ominous groove, Blixa Bargeld shrieking in that blood-curdling way only German artists can do appropriately, and an additional verse added in which the devil himself pops up to challenge Stagger only to be shot dead by the annoyed Mr. Lee. Now that, my friends, is rock and roll.

Overall Album Rating: 4.2


Ease Down the Road

I like Will Oldham, enough to own this album even, although I probably would not have nominated it for the Death Match. If I had to choose a favorite of his, I would probably pick BPB Sings Greatest Palace Music because it's good to hear those old lo-fi Palace songs shined up a bit Nashville-style and because I found it on CD for $1.99 at a Media Play going out of business in Connecticut (I love a good music bargain).

That being said, I have a bit of an uneasy relationship with Mr. Oldham. While I really do enjoy most of his music, especially under the BPB moniker, I always feel like I never quite "get" him. (He reminds me of a weird aging hippie cousin, who can be fun at a family reunion and has some great stories to tell, but who also likes to toy with people and has trouble holding down a steady relationship perhaps in part because he has tried sex things I don't want to hear about. )

My favorite song on this album is "A King at Night" and my least favorite is "The Lion Lair". Nothing here offers the chills nor the thrills of Nick Cave. It is far more soft-spoken and pleasant sounding, if not a little bizarre at times. I think it is a perfect album to listen to while falling asleep for an afternoon nap. And that is not necessarily a bad thing to be.

Overall Album Rating: 3.9

Another close one, but Murder Ballads moves on.