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.
We No Who U R
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We go down with the dew in the morning light
The tree don't know what the little bird brings
We go down with the dew in the morning
And we breathe it in
There is no need to forgive
Breathe it in
The trees will stand like pleading hands
We go down with the dew in the morning light
The trees all stand like pleading hands
We go down with the dew in the morning
And we breathe it in
There is no need to forgive
Breathe it in
There is no need to forgive
The trees will burn with blackened hands
We returned with the light of the evening
The trees will burn, blackened hands
Nowhere to rest, no where to land
And we know who you are
And we know where you live
And we know there's no need to forgive
And we know who you are
And we know where you live
And we know there's no need to forgive
And we know who you are
And we know where you live
And we know there's no need to forgive
And we know who you are
And we know where you live
And we know there's no need to forgive again
"We No Who U R" is a haunting song by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds that is open to interpretation, but appears to be about humanity's impact on nature and the consequences we face as a result. The opening lines "The tree don't care what the little bird sings / We go down with the dew in the morning light" seem to suggest that nature goes about its business regardless of the thoughts and actions of humans. The following verse "The tree don't know what the little bird brings / We go down with the dew in the morning" has a similar sentiment, but may also represent the disregard we have for nature's fragility and the consequences that follow.
The repeated lines "And we know who you are / And we know where you live / And we know there's no need to forgive" have a foreboding tone and suggest that there are consequences for our actions that cannot be undone or forgiven. The lines "The trees will stand like pleading hands / We go down with the dew in the morning light" and "The trees will burn with blackened hands / Nowhere to rest, no where to land" are powerful analogies for the consequences humanity faces due to our impact on nature, and how we may ultimately face the same fate.
Overall, "We No Who U R" seems to be a sobering call to reflect on our relationship with nature and the impact we have on the planet. It is a reminder that our actions have consequences, and that we may ultimately face the same fate as the trees in the song.
Line by Line Meaning
The tree don't care what the little bird sings
Nature does not care about the noise that we make
We go down with the dew in the morning light
We are part of a cycle of life and nature that moves on, regardless of our existence
The tree don't know what the little bird brings
Nature does not take notice of the gifts that are given to it
And we breathe it in
We inhale the air around us
There is no need to forgive
There are no wrongs that need to be forgiven
The trees will stand like pleading hands
Nature will stand upright, appearing to beg for mercy
We go down with the dew in the morning light
We are part of nature's cycle, and as such are subject to its whims
The trees all stand like pleading hands
The pleading, upright appearance of nature is ubiquitous
The trees will burn with blackened hands
The damage that we inflict on nature will leave lasting scars
We returned with the light of the evening
We come back to assess the damage that we have done
The trees will burn, blackened hands
The scars that we leave will persist over time
Nowhere to rest, no where to land
We cannot escape the consequences of our actions
And we know who you are
We are aware of your identity
And we know where you live
We know where you reside
And we know there's no need to forgive
There is no forgiveness needed for the actions that have been taken
And we know who you are
We know who you are
And we know where you live
We know where you live
And we know there's no need to forgive
Forgiveness is not an option
And we know who you are
We know who you are
And we know where you live
We know where you live
And we know there's no need to forgive
We will not forgive your actions
And we know who you are
We are aware of your true nature
And we know where you live
We know your physical location
And we know there's no need to forgive again
We will not provide forgiveness a second time
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Mute Song Limited
Written by: Nicholas Cave, Warren Ellis
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@unchartedrocks1
My favorite song from Nick Cave has always been We Know Who U R & i hope someday a movie or tv show uses it will an emotional scene.
@a.pviivi8235
Emotions what feels from this song
@a.pviivi8235
Song gets in alive as I wrote. Things just found moment somehow
@clarecoleman6118
Oh, God,he just make the world a million times better by being in it. xx
@nickcaveofficial066
Thank you so much. I always feel happy when I get encouraging words and write up from my fans out there. I know you will be so surprise to get a reply from me after 9yrs of your comment, but that It is not a problem right now. Once again I am so much grateful. You can as well send me a mail at my email address above for further talks about my band and music.
@auroraiceland
Cave & Gaspar. Best collaboration in a long while.
@claudiawiehle3135
Nick Cave is still up there with Tom Waits & Leonard Cohen - this song epitomises his brilliant vocals, his incredible song writing ability (be it on his own or in partnership), and the haunting score. Magical
@ChipsDim
Add John Cale, Mark Lanergan, Blixa Bargeld, Thurston Moore, and many obscure European singers. The latter of whom will never make an appearance in the 'Anglo-Phile' world of 'rock popularity'.
@sensaiko
@Johnny Mondizia the True trumpets of the apocalypse
@ChipsDim
@Medinger ?