Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds’ return to Australia and New Zealand is more than a long-awaited homecoming — it’s a reminder of how deeply the band’s DNA is intertwined with the local scenes that first shaped them.
While Cave has spent decades as a global figure, the story of the Bad Seeds still begins in Australia. Think small, scrappy rooms, slightly confrontational audiences, and a fiercely independent music culture that gave Cave and his collaborators permission to push the status quo and be loud, literary, and uncompromising.
Before the Bad Seeds became one of the most formidable live bands on the globe, Cave emerged from Melbourne’s late-’70s post-punk underground with The Boys Next Door and later The Birthday Party.
Both groups were forged in venues where breaking rules and experimenting were encouraged. That environment bred an intensity that still underpins the band today. Their shows feel slightly dangerous, communal, and cathartic, rather than politely polished.
Even as the band relocated overseas and evolved sonically, their local roots always stayed at the forefront.
The ‘Wild God Tour’, which kicks off this month, arrives after a period of renewed reverence for the Bad Seeds as a live force.
For Australian audiences, this tour offers something different again: a chance to witness a band shaped by local influence, returning with a body of work refined on the world’s biggest stages.
Love Music?
Get your daily dose of metal, rock, indie, pop, and everything else in between.
There’s a reason that international audiences across the UK, Europe, and North America have responded with near-mythic awe to the band’s recent performances, where they’ve been performing marathon-like sets which stretch across decades of material — a rare flex.
That sense of lineage is mirrored in the choice of support act. Aldous Harding, born in Lyttelton, New Zealand, brings her own brand of quiet intensity to the tour. Her music is rooted in tension and emotional control rather than bombast, fitting the Bad Seeds’ mood perfectly.
Her rise through Aotearoa’s independent music scene echoes the same core values that once shaped Cave’s early years. Her strong trust in individuality shines, and she isn’t afraid to embrace discomfort where others may buckle at the knees.
With a staunch refusal to water-down her identity for mass consumption, her presence on this tour reinforces the narrative associated with it, which celebrates well-travelled voices from the Southern Hemisphere who haven’t compromised their artistic identity.
The Bad Seeds’ power lies in their ability to balance scale with intimacy.
The upcoming Australian and New Zealand shows, which are staged outdoors in Melbourne, Sydney, Fremantle, Brisbane, Adelaide, and Wellington, lean into that duality. While each venue is an expansive space, Cave’s performances have always thrived on proximity and crowd connection. It’s a quality traceable back to the band’s early Australian shows, where audience and performer existed in close dialogue.
At the heart of the tour is Wild God, the 2024 album that reaffirmed the Bad Seeds’ relevance without leaning on nostalgia. Rather than revisiting the bands’ past glories, their 2024 album pushed forward with bold sonics and emotionally available lyrics.
For local fans, this tour is not simply about witnessing an internationally celebrated act — it’s about recognising the throughline from Australia’s unruly post-punk beginnings, o a band now capable of commanding massive outdoor audiences without losing intensity or purpose.
The Bad Seeds may be global icons, but their foundations remain unmistakably shaped by isolation, ambition, and a hunger to create something uncompromising, firmly on their own terms.
Tickets are available here.
Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds 2026 Australia and New Zealand Tour
Supported by Aldous Harding
Presented by Supersonic Australasia
Saturday, January 17th
Fremantle Park, Perth, WA
Presented by the City of Fremantle
Tuesday, January 20th
Adelaide Entertainment Centre, Adelaide, SA
Friday, January 23rd
The Domain Sydney, Sydney, NSW
Saturday, January 27th
RNA Showgrounds, Brisbane, QLD
Friday, January 30th
Alexandra Gardens, Melbourne, VIC
Saturday, January 31st (SOLD OUT)
Alexandra Gardens, Melbourne, VIC
Sunday, February 1st
Alexandra Gardens, Melbourne, VIC
Thursday, February 5th
TSB Arena, Wellington, Aotearoa
Friday, February 6th
TSB Arena, Wellington, Aotearoa
In association with Aotearoa New Zealand Festival of the Arts
Exclusive NZ shows
