Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Dig Lazarus Dig (Mute)

My guess is that by this time in his career (and your life) you are either for Cave or couldn't care less. If you are with him but have your critical radar alert you might not concur with the extreme approval some reviewers have given Dig Lazarus Dig.

After the very amusing Grinderman project -- which really was rack-it-up music -- this one finds Nick in that kind of Lou Reed/William Burroughs speak-sing territory uncoiling bent narratives shot through with typically odd and sometimes Biblical imagery.

Not too many surprises there, then.

The count of dark ballads (usually his forte) is reduced although Hold On To Yourself approaches that kind of territory. This is lyrical music with that passionate intensity we have come to expect, and works with repeat plays -- but in a few places there isn't that gripping urgency which has been a hallmark of his finest work.

That said there is a jolly jaunt here that the Bad Seeds bring which propels this forward in a dark, almost pop way. And Cave really places his aces in the last half.

This one might take time.