I caught Nick Cave (and The Bad Seeds) for the first time in Melbourne in the summer of 2017. They played at the Sydney Myer music bowl amphitheatre in parklands 10 minutes walk south of Flinders Street Station. I haven’t been to this venue for years (Jimmy Cliff was the last) but it wasn’t too bad for a wheelie. Access was pretty easy, down a steepish concrete ramp. The accessible seats are at the back of the stalls. As usual, this means you’re a fair way from the stage and lots of people most likely stand up in front of you. If this happens, I recommend an elevating chair like mine, and a companion who doesn’t complain about having to stand up. Chair access is created by flipping to seat sideways, as you can see in the photo below. This creates enough space, but you can’t exactly snuggle up to your companion. Theoretically you could sit at the end of the row closer to the centre which would probably be more sensible but the Usher said that the sound desk often impinges on the space. There is also a vast grass area behind the seating. This area is quite a bit cheaper. I heard the ticket seller mutter that that was unavailable because of “safety issues”. Typical bullshit. You could be 90 years old and as slow as a turtle and still buy a ticket but then get knocked back for having an all-terrain high-speed power chair.
Nick was great, personable and theatrical, working the crowd at the front live an old-style showman. The Mercy Seat, Red Right Hand, From Her To Eternity. Lots of classics and a few from the latest albums. The encore included a bad-ass version of Stagger Lee.
The support band was The Necks, an instrumental trio. They create long evolving soundscapes. They were a brave and inspired choice.
