Storytime with Nick Cave

I hope you don't mind if I take a break from regular programming to bring you a bit of Nick Cave. I suppose I can make it style-related if I mention how sharp his suits always are and how his appearance in Vicar St. last night was no different. Though sadly shorn of his 70s-porn-star moustache (allegedly at the hand of his wife), he cut a dashing figure, as usual.

The blurry picture above was taken with my camera phone from the very back wall, hence the slight lack of quality. I can't really get down with the people who spend the whole gig taking pictures (especially if they leave the flash on and especially when they're seated 30ft or more from the stage...), but I thought I'd try it out to see for myself during a particularly divine performance of The Ship Song. And now I know... no more taking pictures with my camera phone during gigs for me.

Anyway, if you put your face up close to the screen and squint hard enough, you might make out Nick himself at the piano on the left, the Rasputin-like figure of Warren Ellis (who took to his minimalist drum-kit - one snare and a set of cymbals - with a vengeance on a rousing version of Dig, Lazarus, Dig!) and the unassuming Martin Casey in the middle.

The gig was to promote Nick's recently published novel, The Death of Bunny Munro and was billed as "an evening of reading, music and conversation", so what was with all the rude people filing out en masse each time Nick began to read an extract from the book? The bar wasn't even open during the performance, so no excuses there. Even if they had no interest in the book and were only there for the music (or the slightly dull "conversation", enlivened only by Nick's response to the girl who questioned whether he endorsed the main character's misogyny: "I'm f*cking insulted you have to ask that! Have you read the book? No?"), it still wouldn't have killed them to sit through the reading and not disturb everyone else who was interested.

Audience issues apart, great show