Nick Cave on making peace with the artists that have “disappointed” him
Nick Cave has recalled making peace with the artists that have “disappointed” him, explaining that he is willing to look beyond their personal decisions if the art they make is “authentic”.The Bad Seeds frontman discussed the topic in a new update on his blog, The Red Hand Files, after a fan got in touch with him to question him about his “religious turn” and asked if he ever feels like he is “letting down [his] queer and female fans”.Responding, Cave went on to share his own experience of being disappointed by artists he once admired and explained how he was able to look beyond their personal choices and enjoy their artwork for what it is.“When I think of the artists that I truly admire, those that I have stuck with over the years, at some point in their lengthy careers they have all disappointed me,” he began.“Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Nina Simone, Kanye, Van Morrison, Morrissey, Brian Eno, Leonard Cohen, Patti Smith – these are artists that, for me, form a kind of confederacy of excellence, but at one time or another they have each alienated, confounded or displeased me. They have often not travelled in the direction I would have hoped or wished for, instead following their own confounding paths (damn them!) to their own truths.“In the course of this I have sometimes been discomforted by things they have done, disagreed with things they have said, or not liked a particular record they have made.