Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds
Henry's Dream

THE REVIEW

Reviewing this album means going back, obviously, 12 years, but also reliving the emotions and flavors of a beautiful period in my life where this album accompanied me for a long time; these and other sensations are the minimum that an album should convey to any of us before saying that a record is beautiful, great, or unique.
Emotions aside, "henry's dream" is a great album, certainly not the best (or rather, not the one that earned Cave and his companions the most), but a great album that stands apart from both previous and future ones, produced by David Briggs (famous for his work with Neil Young) and dedicated to the birth of his son "Henry." It is a concentrate of pure rock with a damned flavor, played as it should be without too many useless frills, encompassing an array of melodic ballads with well-written and well-executed songs, thus confirming the great professionalism of the Bad Seeds, who along with Cave's touch, gave birth to songs ranging from love to the basest desires up to death, all told with the formula of a legend and sung with a big, hoarse, and unique voice.
The album begins with a brilliant and perfect "Papa won't leave you, Henry," then moves to "I had a dream," a song of dreamy charm, where a beautiful Hammond prevails. The third track is "Straight to you," a very melodic song perfect for whistling along as Cave engages in a full-blown declaration of love. The fourth track is "Brother my cup is empty," beautiful, a symbol of the ink king's repertoire with a relentless yet almost nursery rhyme-like rhythm. We come to the fifth track, "Christina the Astonishing," the most evocative song on the album, featuring a dominant Hammond plus some additional chorus, with Nick narrating the sad legend of Christina the Astonishing, where delirium and magic reign supreme. "When I first came to town" is a beautiful ballad that somewhat revisits the style of "Straight to you." And here we are at "John Finn's Wife," yet another legend where Nick recounts the events of John Finn and his wife, with the former meeting his end, supported by excellent violins that crescendo into delirious and passionate tension. The finale is pure excitement; the title itself is a great introduction to what our ears will hear, "Jack the Ripper," which I think is the most beautiful song on the album, with Nick's voice at the limits of perfection supported by splendid choruses from Blixa and company. I recommend this album to anyone who doesn't know Cave and doesn't know where to start getting to know him, but also to those who already know him and have never listened to these splendid 9 tracks.