Ghosteen

Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds present Ghosteen, their new two-part album. This marks their seventeenth studio album, succeeding 2016’s Skeleton Tree.

The album was recorded in 2018 and early 2019 at Woodshed in Malibu, Nightbird in Los Angeles, Retreat in Brighton, and Candybomber in Berlin. It was mixed by Nick Cave, Warren Ellis, Lance Powell, and Andrew Dominik at Conway in Los Angeles.

Ghosteen showcases Cave in a restrained and introspective state, blending half singing with half speaking over a mix of piano and slow drifting electronics. Despite sounding vulnerable, he maintains a sense of resilience. The lyrics are filled with mentions of love, complemented by soft, supportive backing vocals.

The high synth sounds in "Galleon Ship" open the song wide, while Cave surprises with falsetto late in "Sun Forest." This double LP features one album of conventional length songs and a second part with one short song and two longer tracks of 12 and 14 minutes each. The latter are more complex and grand in nature, offering a deeply absorbing listening experience.