Nick Cave is set to release a new memoir focused on his life following the death of his 15-year-old son, Arthur, in 2015.
Entitled Faith, Hope and Carnage, the book is the result of 40 hours of interviews with the Bad Seeds’ frontman’s friend, Observer journalist Sean O’Hagan. “This is the first interview I’ve given in years,” Cave said in a statement. “It’s over 40 hours long. That should do me for the duration, I think.”
With Cave calling the discussions “a strange, anchoring pleasure…. through these uncertain times,” the book is said to be “a meditation on big ideas including faith, art, music, grief, and much more.” These are topics the musician has written about frequently over the last six years on his The Red Hand Files blog and mailing list, and both of the Bad Seeds’ latest albums, Skeleton Tree and Ghosteen, touched on the loss of Arthur. The book also shares part of its title with Cave’s recent album with Warren Ellis, Carnage.
According to O’Hagan, Faith, Hope and Carnage comprises “intimate and often surprising conversations in which Nick Cave talks honestly about his life, his music and the dramatic transformation of both, wrought by personal tragedy.” With the project “prompted by lockdown,” the book is “arranged around a series of themes – including songwriting, grief, creativity, collaboration, catastrophe, defiance and mortality,” providing “deep insight into the singular mind of one of the most original and challenging artists of our time, as well as exploring the complex dynamic between faith and doubt that underpins his work.”
Set to be published by FSG in North America and Canongate everywhere else, Cave’s new memoir is expected out in the fall of 2022.
Meanwhile, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds are gearing up for the release of their new B-Sides & Rarities Part II collection, which has been previewed with the previously unreleased “Earthlings” and “Vortex.” The band is currently touring the UK, with a full European leg coming next year. Tickets are available via Ticketmaster.