Nick Cave can always be relied upon to cut through the bullshit. If there was any such thing as a manual to navigate the onslaught of constant “FFS!” that is the world in 2025, then it would be likely to be found within The Red Hand Files, the section of the Australian singer-songwriter and Bad Seed leader’s website where he answers fan queries. His replies have covered everything from what he did on holiday to how his grief over his son Arthur’s death 10 years ago has morphed over time. He talks on the small questions, the big questions and the biggest questions.
A few days ago, Alistair from Australia asked Cave, “I’ve had several disagreements with friends about where you stand on things. Where do you… stand?” and Cave answered with typical wisdom.
“I acknowledge that this may be, to you and your friends, an unhelpful admission, but I’m not entirely sure where I stand on anything these days,” he began.
Cave has no problem in sharing the fact that he’s not sure which direction his political stance is currently facing in his response.
“I am neither on the left nor on the right, finding both sides, as they mainly present themselves, indefensible and unrecognisable,” he continued. “I am essentially a liberal-leaning, spiritual conservative with a small ‘c’, which, to me, isn’t a political stance, rather it is a matter of temperament. I have a devotional nature, and I see the world as broken but beautiful, believing that it is our urgent and moral duty to repair it where we can and not to cause further harm, or worse, wilfully usher in its destruction.”
Later in his reply, after explaining that he is “comfortable with doubt” and “constitutionally resistant to moral certainty, herd mentality and dogma,” Cave states that he has little concern about where people stand. “I’ve met some of the finest individuals from across the political spectrum,” he says. “In fact, I take pride and immense pleasure in having friends with divergent views. My life is significantly more interesting and colourful with them in it.”
He signs off his note in rousing form. “I am beginning to understand where I do stand, Alistair,” he writes. “I stand with the world, in its goodness and beauty.”
And with that, another considered missive from the maverick sage of rock’n’roll concludes. Cave And The Bad Seeds recently announced their only UK show of 2026, to take place at Preston Park in Brighton, where Cave lived for years. The show is sold out.
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