The band has featured international personnel throughout its career and presently consists of Cave, violinist and multi-instrumentalist Warren Ellis, bassist Martyn P. Casey (all from Australia), guitarist George Vjestica (United Kingdom), keyboardist/percussionist Toby Dammit (United States) and drummers Thomas Wydler (Switzerland) and Jim Sclavunos (United States). The band has released sixteen studio albums and completed numerous international tours, and has been considered "one of the most original and celebrated bands of the post-punk and alternative rock eras in the '80s and onward".
The band was founded in 1983 following the demise of Cave and Harvey's former group the Birthday Party, the members of which met at a boarding school in Victoria. By the release of their fifth studio album Tender Prey in 1988, they shifted from post-punk towards an experimental alternative rock sound, later incorporating various influences throughout their career. For example, the 2008 album Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!! and the side-project Grinderman were strongly influenced by garage rock. Synthesizers and minimal guitar work feature prominently on Push the Sky Away (2013), recorded after Harvey's departure from the band in 2009.
The project that would later evolve into Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds began following the demise of The Birthday Party in August 1983. Both Cave and Harvey were members of the Birthday Party, along with guitarist Rowland S. Howard and bassist Tracy Pew. During the recording sessions of the Birthday Party's scheduled EPs Mutiny/The Bad Seed, internal disputes developed in the band. The difference in Cave and Howard's approach to songwriting was a major factor, as Cave explained in an interview with On The Street: "the main reason why The Birthday Party broke up was that the sort of songs that I was writing and the sort of songs that Rowland was writing were just totally at odds with each other." Following the departure of Harvey, they officially disbanded. Cave also said that "it probably would have gone on longer, but Mick has the ability to judge things much more clearly than the rest of us."[8]
Cave and guitarist Kid Congo Powers during the band's 1986 tour.
An embryonic version of what would later become Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds was formed in the Birthday Party's then-home of London in September 1983, with Cave, Harvey (acting primarily as drummer), Einstürzende Neubauten guitarist Bargeld, Magazine bassist Barry Adamson, and Jim G. Thirlwell. The band was initially formed as a backing band for Cave's intended solo project Man Or Myth?, which had been approved by the record label Mute Records. During September and October 1983, they recorded material with producer Flood,[9] although the sessions were cut short due to Cave's touring with the Immaculate Consumptive, another project formed with Thirlwell, Lydia Lunch and Marc Almond.[10] In December 1983 Cave returned to Melbourne, Australia, where he formed a temporary line-up of his backing band, due to Bargeld's absence, that included Pew and guitarist Hugo Race. The band performed their first live show at Seaview in St. Kilda on 31 December 1983.
Following a short Australian tour, and during a period when they were without management, Cave and his band returned to London. Cave, Harvey, Bargeld, Race and Adamson formed the project's first consistent line-up, while Cave's longtime girlfriend Anita Lane was credited as a lyricist on the band's debut album.[citation needed] The group, which up to this time had been nameless, adopted the moniker Nick Cave and the Cavemen, which they used for the first six months of their career. However, they were later renamed Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds in May 1984, in reference to the final Birthday Party EP The Bad Seed.[citation needed] They began recording sessions for their debut album in March 1984 at London's Trident Studios and these sessions, together with the abandoned Man Or Myth? sessions from September–October 1983 that were recorded at The Garden studios, formed the album From Her to Eternity, released on Mute Records in 1984.
Hard On For Love
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It is for she that the cherry bleeds
That the moon is steeped in milk and blood
That I steal like a robber
From her altar of love
Oh, money lender
Oh, cloven gender
And it's as hot as hell in here
Coming at her as I am from above
Hard on for love, hard on for love
Hard on for love, hard on for love
Well, I swear I seen that girl before
Well, she looks like she walked straight outta the book of Leviticus
But they can stone me with stones I don't care
Just as long as I can get to kiss
Those gypsy lips, gypsy lips
My aim is to hit this Miss
And I'm movin' in, I'm movin' in
Coming at her like Lazarus from above
Hard on for love, hard on for love
Hard on for love, hard on for love
The Lord is my shepherd, and I shall not want
The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want
But he leadeth me like a lamb to the lips
Of the mouth, of the valley, of the shadow of death
I am his rod and his staff
Yeah, I am his scepter and shaft
And she is heaven and hell
At whose gates I ain't been delivered
I'm gunna give them gates a shove
Hard on for love, hard on for love
Hard on for love, hard on for love
And her breasts rise and fall
Her breasts rise and fall
Her breasts rise and fall
Her breasts rise and fall
Her breasts rise and fall
Her breasts rise and fall
Her breasts rise and fall
Her breasts rise and fall
And just when I'm about to get my hands on her
Just when I'm about to get my hands on her
Just when I'm about to get my hands on her
Just when I'm about to get my hands on her
Oh, you are beautiful, oh dove
Hard on for love, hard on for love
Hard on for love, hard on for love
Hard on for love, hard on for love
Hard on for love, hard on for love
Oh, just when I'm about to get my hands on her
Just when I'm about to get my hands on her
Just when I'm about to get my hands on her
Just when I'm about to get my hands on her
Her breasts rise and fall
Her breasts rise and fall
Her breasts rise and fall
Her breasts rise and fall
Her breasts rise and fall
Her breasts rise and fall
Her breasts rise and fall
Her breasts rise and fall
Hard on for love, hard on for love
Hard on for love, hard on for love
Well, just when I'm about to get my hands on her
When I'm about to get my hands on her
Just when I'm about to get my hands on her
Just when I'm about to get my hands on her
Just when I'm about to get my hands on her
Just when I'm about to get my hands on her
The lyrics of "Hard On for Love" by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds are rich in imagery and metaphor. The song seems to tell the story of a man's obsession with a woman, whom he desires to the point of madness. The first verse begins with the line "It is for she that the cherry bleeds," which suggests a sexual act, with the cherry representing the woman's virginity or purity. The moon being steeped in milk and blood could symbolize the woman's menstrual cycle, or perhaps a sacrificial ritual.
The second verse describes the man's lust for the woman, using biblical imagery. He likens himself to Lazarus rising from the dead, and the woman to heaven and hell. He also makes reference to the famous "Valley of the Shadow of Death" from Psalm 23, which could be interpreted as the woman's vagina. The repeated refrain of "hard on for love" reinforces the idea of the man's physical desire for the woman.
Overall, the lyrics of "Hard On for Love" are intense and passionate, exploring themes of desire, obsession, and religious imagery.
Line by Line Meaning
Hey, hey
Acknowledgement of attention, greeting or beginning of song
It is for she that the cherry bleeds
Her beauty commands attention and admiration
That the moon is steeped in milk and blood
The universe is entranced by her as she causes the moon to appear otherworldly
That I steal like a robber
His desire for her is driven by a force beyond his control
From her altar of love
He is compelled to take from her everything love has to offer
Oh, money lender
Refers to the devil, acknowledging his evil intentions
Oh, cloven gender
Refers to the devil or the singer himself, highlighting an inner conflict between good and evil
I am the fiend hid in her skirts
He is the devil hiding in her love
And it's as hot as hell in here
His desire for her is so strong that it feels like hellfire burning within him
Coming at her as I am from above
He approaches her from a higher plane of desire
Hard on for love, hard on for love
Repeating the title phrase, reinforcing the strong desire he has for her
Well, I swear I seen that girl before
He recognizes her and has been drawn to her beauty before
Well, she looks like she walked straight outta the book of Leviticus
Her beauty is angelic, reminiscent of biblical descriptions
But they can stone me with stones I don't care
He is willing to face punishment for his desire for her
Just as long as I can get to kiss
He is willing to risk everything for a chance to be with her
Those gypsy lips, gypsy lips
Her lips enchant him and hold a mystic quality
My aim is to hit this Miss
His ultimate goal is to have her in every way
And I'm movin' in, I'm movin' in
He is confidently making his way towards her
Coming at her like Lazarus from above
He approaches her with the power of resurrection and rebirth
The Lord is my shepherd, and I shall not want
Reference to Psalm 23, acknowledging a higher power guiding him
But he leadeth me like a lamb to the lips
The higher power leads him to her lips
Of the mouth, of the valley, of the shadow of death
Reference to Psalm 23, acknowledging the journey towards love is a perilous one
I am his rod and his staff
He is both protected and controlled by the higher power
Yeah, I am his scepter and shaft
He is the chosen one, trusted to carry out the higher power's will
And she is heaven and hell
She embodies both the joy of heaven and the pain of hell for him
At whose gates I ain't been delivered
He hasn't had the opportunity to be with her yet, but he'll do whatever it takes to make it happen
I'm gunna give them gates a shove
He will push past any obstacle to be with her
And her breasts rise and fall
Her physical presence overwhelms him
Her breasts rise and fall
Repeating the line for emphasis
Her breasts rise and fall
Repeating the line for emphasis
Her breasts rise and fall
Repeating the line for emphasis
Her breasts rise and fall
Repeating the line for emphasis
Her breasts rise and fall
Repeating the line for emphasis
Her breasts rise and fall
Repeating the line for emphasis
Her breasts rise and fall
Repeating the line for emphasis
And just when I'm about to get my hands on her
He's so close to being with her physically
Oh, you are beautiful, oh dove
She is so beautiful and pure, like a dove
Well, just when I'm about to get my hands on her
Repeating the line, increasing the desire and urgency
When I'm about to get my hands on her
Continuing the repeated line
Just when I'm about to get my hands on her
Continuing the repeated line
Just when I'm about to get my hands on her
Continuing the repeated line
Just when I'm about to get my hands on her
Continuing the repeated line
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Nicholas Cave
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind