Nick Cave Announces Spoken Word Album Seven Psalms

Nick Cave has unfurled his plans to release a new album of spoken word originals titled Seven Psalms, made with longtime collaborator Warren Ellis.

The eight-track studio offering will arrive June 17th via both 10-inch vinyl and streaming, and features original psalms by the Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds frontman such as opener “How Long Have I Waited?,” “I Have Wandered All My Unending Days,” “Splendour, Glorious Splendor,” and “I Come Alone and To You,” as well as closing track “Psalm Instrumental.”

“While in lockdown I wrote a number of psalms, or small, sacred songs — one a day for a week,” the artist said in a statement about the new LP. “The seven psalms are presented as one long meditation — on faith, rage, love, grief, mercy, sex, and praise. A veiled, contemplative offering borne of an uncertain time. I hope you like it.”

In a brief trailer for the album, Cave also gives a preview of his poetry. “Such things should never happen, but we die/ The swallow finds an oak to nest her young,” he says over reverential instrumentation. “Defenseless between the Earth and the sky/ Uncounted beneath the vast, indifferent sun.”

Stream the trailer for Seven Psalms and check out the album’s hymnal-inspired cover art and complete tracklist below.

Last month, Cave and Ellis debuted a new version of “Ghosteen Speaks” from their upcoming documentary These Things Are True, which is set to premiere in theaters for one night only on May 11th and documents the making of both 2019’s Ghosteen and 2021’s Carnage.

Seven Psalms Artwork:

Seven Psalms Tracklist:
01. How Long Have I Waited?
02. Have Mercy on Me
03. I Have Trembled My Way Deep
04. I Have Wandered All My Unending Days
05. Splendour, Glorious Splendour
06. Such Things Should Never Happen
07. I Come Alone and To You
08. Psalm Instrumental