In July, Nick Cave got in on the livestream performance craze, doing so by performing a full-length solo piano show at London’s Alexandra Palace. Now the musician has announced that he will be releasing the performance as a live album, and a video version of it will be available to watch in theaters beginning November 5. The album comes out shortly after, on November 20. Ahead of all that, Cave has shared a video of him performing “Galleon Ship.”
Cave told the story behind the performance, saying how playing his songs in this new way gave them a different life to him:
“The film ‘Idiot Prayer’ evolved from my ‘Conversations With…’ events. I loved playing deconstructed versions of my songs at these shows, distilling them to their essential forms. I felt I was rediscovering the songs all over again, and started to think about going into a studio and recording these reimagined versions at some stage – whenever I could find the time.
Then the pandemic came – the world went into lockdown, and fell into an eerie, self reflective silence. It was within this silence that began to think about the idea of not only recording the songs, but also filming them.
We worked with the team at Alexandra Palace – a venue I have played and love – on securing a date to film just as soon as they were allowed to re-open the building to us.
On 19th June 2020, surrounded by Covid officers with tape measures and thermometers, masked-up gaffers and camera operators, nervous looking technicians and buckets of hand gel, we created something very strange and very beautiful that spoke into this uncertain time, but was in no way bowed by it.
This is the album taken from that film. It is a prayer into the void – alone at Alexandra Palace – a souvenir from a strange and precarious moment in history. I hope you enjoy it.”
Watch the “Galleon Ship” video above.
Idiot Prayer: Nick Cave Alone At Alexandra Palace is out 11/20 via Bad Seed Ltd. Pre-order it here.