Nick Cave released two new albums on the same day, in the same package, recently, and when I put it on, my stereo caught fire.<\/p>\n
Well, no, not literally. But as rock and roll goes, this is as furiously concentrated and intense as anything you\u2019ll hear all year. In fact, in the way he breaks new ground as an artist \u2026 the way he bellows like a preacher in the throes of divine inspiration \u2026 the way he digs down into the muck of sin and clambers up the mountain for a meeting with God \u2026 the way he comes down from that mountain in a way that SOUNDS like his face is all aglow \u2026 the way he artfully weaves Scripture through lyrics that echo ancient mythology and modern pop culture references \u2026 Nick Cave achieves a remarkable thing: He\u2019s makes TWO albums that deliver on the promise of the best U2 albums. He out-U2\u2019s U2!<\/p>\n
Listening to Cave\u2019s albums back-to-back with the new U2 record, it\u2019s easy to hear which album is the greater achievement. On U2\u2019s album, there are moments of true inspiration \u2026 those times, as Bono likes to say, \u201cwhen God walked in the room.\u201d Cave\u2019s records make it sound like God showed up early and stayed all day.<\/p>\n