Nick Cave is officially back on home soil – and if Fremantle is anything to go by, his Wild God tour with the Bad Seeds is going to be an emotional, spiritual, cathartic, occasionally unhinged pilgrimage for everyone lucky enough to snag a ticket.
Kicking off the Australian and Aotearoa leg of their massive world tour at Fremantle Park on Saturday (17 January), Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds delivered a sprawling, 23-song open-air sermon to a rapt WA crowd.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – ‘Wide Lovely Eyes’
True to the name of the tour, a solid chunk of the set pulled from their 18th album Wild God, with eight tracks making the cut alongside an absolutely filthy spread of classics from across their career, including O Children, Jubilee Street, From Her To Eternity, Red Right Hand, The Weeping Song and – yes – ‘Into My Arms’, performed solo on piano during the encore (brb, BAWLING).
There were also a couple of curveballs for the diehards. The highlight? Wide Lovely Eyes, which hadn’t been played live since 2013 – a deep cut that will have had Bad Seeds obsessives losing their minds in the grass.
Cave’s connection to Australia always hits different. When the tour was announced last year, he promised it would be “wild, big and beautiful,” and honestly? That checks out. After years away with different projects (including his duo work with Warren Ellis and solo shows with Radiohead’s Colin Greenwood), seeing Cave back with the full Bad Seeds machine feels like the rightful return of heavy emotional artillery.
And while Fremantle set the tone, expect a few tweaks, swaps and surprise deep cuts as the tour rolls on – that’s just how Cave operates.
Next up, the band head to Adelaide tomorrow (20 January) before a run through Sydney (23 & 24 Jan), Brisbane (27 Jan), Melbourne (30 Jan, 31 Jan & 1 Feb) and finally Auckland (5 & 6 Feb).
Peep the full Freo setlist spoilers and remaining dates down below.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – Fremantle Park, 17 January Setlist
Main set:
- Frogs
- Wild God
- Song of the Lake
- O Children
- Jubilee Street
- From Her to Eternity
- Long Dark Night
- Cinnamon Horses
- Tupelo
- Conversion
- Bright Horses
- Joy
- I Need You
- Carnage (Nick Cave & Warren Ellis cover)
- Final Rescue Attempt
- Red Right Hand
- The Mercy Seat
- White Elephant (Nick Cave & Warren Ellis cover)
Encore:
- Wide Lovely Eyes (first time since 2013)
- Papa Won’t Leave You, Henry
- The Weeping Song
- Skeleton Tree
- Into My Arms (Nick Cave solo on piano)
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds Wild God Tour
- Tuesday, January 20th – AEC Arena, Adelaide SA
- Friday, January 23rd and Saturday, January 24th – The Domain, Sydney NSW
- Tuesday, Janaury 27th – Victoria Park, Brisbane QLD
- Friday, January 30th, Saturday, January 31st and Sunday, February 1st – Alexandra Gardens, Melbourne VIC
Tickets on sale now at NickCave.com
Further Reading
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds Announce 2026 ‘Wild God’ Australian Tour
Nick Cave, One-Time RHCP Hater, Announces Upcoming Collab With Flea
Nick Cave Opens Up About the Tragic Death Of Two Sons On ABC’s Australian Story
