An intimate and quietly mesmerising livestream event revelled in the range of Cave’s rich back catalogue

Afew weeks ago, in the vast, empty expanse of the West Hall in London’s Alexandra Palace, Nick Cave sat alone at a piano and sang 21 songs from across his extensive back catalogue. Live-streamed globally last Thursday, Idiot Prayer: Nick Cave Alone at Alexandra Palace, a film of that performance, is the most elaborately creative response yet to the constrictions of the lockdown.

In April, the onset of the pandemic cost Cave and the Bad Seeds the European and American legs of their world tour, which was rumoured to have been a spectacular production that would include a full gospel choir. Compared to, say, Laura Marling’s recent show on the stage of an empty Union Chapel in London, Cave’s solo performance was an extravagantly grand event that called on the services of the renowned Irish cinematographer Robbie Ryan (The Favourite, Marriage Story, American Honey), a full film crew and an extensive production team. His wife, Susie, was creative director. Continue reading →