Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – Push The Sky Away

i am not that big nick cave fan, but i have a big respect for him as an artist and performer on stage.
i love some of his songs, but a lot not so much.
push the sky is the only album i bought, it is for me his best, better said the one i like the most.
the titletrack is simply wonderful and jubilee street is my favourite nick cave song and reason for buy the album.
the live version of j.street from distant sky is amazing and is worth to see live performances of push the sky away, where a lot of fans are on stage too. the version in sydney with the orchestra is great and touching.
nick cave is a true artist for me and push the sky is worth to check out and a good start point to explore his huge body of work.

His best record since "From Her To Eternity". An absolute top-100-albums-of-all-time classic. Brilliant songs and superb production and mastering also. Great range of sounds for jaded ears.

Can he equal or sur "Jubilee Street" in the future?

I'll be back to find out.

I love this album. Silent 180g vinyl 'and' an MP3 . perfect.

Review from The Sound Project - 19/02/2013

Nick Cave and co return with one of the most reflective and captivating albums of their almost 30-year existence.

The first thing anyone familiar with Nick Cave will notice on this record is the distinct lack of the dark noir which has become his trademark over the years. Here things are stripped back, at times almost to the bare bones, yet the essence of the band is still as evident as ever.

Ten year's ago many were beginning to pen the demise of the Bad Seeds after the release of the somewhat disted 'Nocturama' album. This itself being the knock on effect of the album of ballads, 'No More Shall We Part', which preceded its release in 2001.

On reflection, though, both records show that Nick Cave is not happy playing it safe. Much in the same vein that Polly Harvey is happy to change things around to avoid making the same record twice, every now and again there will be a moment where a below-usual-standard record is made. But surely sticking your neck out is what sets you apart from the crowd?

Push the Sky Away is an album of real beauty, delicate, thought provoking and reflective. It's no coincidence that guitars are not playing a key role on this record, this is the first album the group have release since the departure of Mick Harvey, one of the band's original who departed the Seeds back in 2009. So here it's down to the other elements of the multi-talented Bad Seeds to fill that void. And fill it they do.

Album opener 'We No Who U R', is laced with steady grooves upon a synth back drop on top of what sounds like a drum machine(!) It's a classy opener with typical Cave lyrics: 'We know who you are; and we know where you live; and we know there's no need to forgive'.

The stripped back approach to the record even sees Cave's piano take a step back, although not completely. Lyrically, though, this is as good as anything Cave have previously done, as highlighted in the album's centre-piece Jubilee Street, a tribute to a murdered prostitute. It's also one of the vocal performances of the LP, Cave's voice increasing in tempo in line with the drama of the song before reaching a crescendo, then disappearing back into the darkness.

The album has a real water feel, which Cave himself its must be due to his writing the songs in his Brighton home looking out at the sea. Water's Edge and Mermaids both sit within this vibe - the latter, a love song, with gorgeous vibes and idiosyncratic Cave lyrics: 'I believe in God; I believe in mermaids; I believe in seventy-two virgins; On a chain, why no why not'.

'We Real Cool' drifts in with bassy vibrations before sliding off into a ballad, adorned with pianos before reaching a string laden finale. It's real classy stuff. The title-track sees yet more glorious musicianship from the Bad Seeds with wonderful harmonised vocals to boot.

On first listen 'Push the Sky Away' definitely sounds like a departure from the sound we expect from the Bad Seeds, but it's on subsequent listens that you realise this is very much a Bad Seeds album, they're just somewhat muted, stalking in the background. I expect this record to divide fans, much in the same way 'No More Shall We Part' did, and I doubt that it'll attract many new followers, but for those of us who are ready for the Bad Seeds' evolution 'Push the Sky Away' is the start of something great.

Key Track: Jubilee Street

very nice box set. I would say it was worth the wait. I was a little skeptical of the handmade notebook but was very pleased with the quality. The vinyl sounds great and after many listens, this album is starting to be one of my favorites from the back half of his career.

It seems the deluxe signed box is 400 copies according to the Nick Cave site. I think they must have put it up by a 100 because I thought it was 300 too.

The Super Deluxe Box Set have just arrived !
-CD album and vinyl album [180gm heavyweight vinyl]
-DVD with specially created visuals by artists Iain Forsyth & Jane Pollard
-2 x exclusive 7″ vinyls containing non album bonus tracks
-Exclusive 120-page replica of Nick Cave’s handwritten, hand stamped and hand glued notebooks
-Numbered certificate of authenticity signed by Nick Cave (original signature limited to first 300 orders)
-Exclusive liner notes
-Digital of track We No Who U R, delivered to you on 3 Dec 2012.