Chris Martin Schools Nick Cave On Songwriting

Nick Cave applied songwriting advice from Coldplay's Chris Martin on the Ghosteen ballad Waiting For You.

Speaking to MOJO music, Cave revealed that Martin's feedback was the impetus for a stylistic change to the ballad Waiting For You. Upon Martin's request to hear the original version of the track "without the f****** canning factory?" the band switched it from an industrial/alt-rock ballad into a more traditional arrangement, which is the version that the world heard on Ghosteen.

Reflecting on the process, Cave stated "Chris is a very funny guy, with a perverse sense of humour, but he's also disarmingly forthright.
He tells his truth, as he sees it, as a matter of principle. Mostly, he loved the stuff, really loved it, but occasionally he made what were quite challenging suggestions that, if taken on board, would have radically altered the song, and so Waiting For You went from being "very loud, super-aggressive" to a "fragile, old-school ballad".

At the time Cave admits they "weren't pleased" with the advice, but concedes in retrospect in proved to be quite wise.

"We took away the industrial loop and what was left was a very beautiful, vulnerable song shimmering there on its own - a classic, old-school ballad, raw and fragile and unimpeded. So thank God for that!"

Nick Cave has also announced an audiobook of his new memoir Faith, Hope and Carnage.

Collated from 40 hours of interviews between Cave and journalist Sean O'Hagan, the audiobook of Faith, Hope and Carnage will feature Cave acting as narrator. Recorded in a way that creates the illusion of sitting in-between Cave and O'Hagan as they talk, the audiobook was co-directed and co-produced by Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard. Both were collaborators on Cave's film 20,000 Days on Earth.

The audiobook edition of Faith, Hope and Carnage features musical passages and sonic elements from Cave's records Carnage, Skeleton Tree, and Ghosteen that help provide an additional sense of connection to the conversations.

Faith, Hope and Carnage closes with a 12-minute additional conversation between Cave and O’Hagan about recording the audiobook.

In a statement, Forsyth and Pollard share their thoughts on working with Cave and O'Hagan on the project.

“Working with Nick over the years has had a fundamental impact on who we are, on how we are, for this audiobook we wanted to give you a direct experience—a seat at the table with Nick and Seán—two incandescent minds trying just to figure things out. Intimate, adventurous, faltering and fearless, these conversations will open your mind and heal your heart.”

Faith, Hope and Carnage focus on Cave's life following the 2015 death of his son Arthur who fell from a cliff near Brighton at age 15. Cave's son Jethro Lazenby died in May of this year at age 30.

Cave and Warren Ellis will be performing a run of Australian dates in support of Carnage in November and December.

Speaking at the time of the Carnage tour announcement Cave said “I can’t begin to tell you how happy Warren and I are to be finally returning to Australia to perform. The wait has been way too long. See you all soon for the Carnage experience!”