Nick Cave draws 45,000 to exclusive Brighton concert with Kylie Minogue
The Australian rocker’s UK-exclusive performance highlights the enduring economic draw of legacy acts in the European live entertainment market.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds performed to a sold-out crowd of 45,000 at Preston Park in Brighton on Friday, marking a UK-exclusive event to close the campaign for their 2024 album ‘Wild God’. The headline set featured a surprise appearance by Kylie Minogue, who joined the band for a rendition of their 1995 single ‘Where The Wild Roses Grow’.
Events of this scale demonstrate the continued commercial dominance of heritage acts in the European live music economy. Promoters increasingly rely on established artists with deep catalogues and cross-generational appeal to guarantee high ticket yields and secure local municipal partnerships for large-capacity regional shows.
The billing also illustrated the industry strategy of pairing legacy headliners with emerging talent to broaden demographic reach and secure future market share. Support act English Teacher played to their largest audience to date, performing tracks from their Mercury Prize-winning album alongside new material.
Psychedelic rock group The Flaming Lips delivered a heavily theatrical penultimate set. Frontman Wayne Coyne utilized large-scale stage props and acknowledged long-term attendees, highlighting the premium modern consumers place on highly experiential live events over standard performances.
Cave opened his set with ‘Get Ready For Love’ and acknowledged the overwhelming scale of the local turnout. The performance balanced recent material with fan favourites, including ‘Jubilee Street’, which the frontman noted was named after a local street near a newly erected Five Guys giant hamburger joint.
The band also engaged in localized promotion earlier in the day, playing a surprise stripped-back set on the roof of Brighton’s Resident Records. Looking ahead to future commercial output, Cave confirmed in May that the group is actively developing a follow-up record to ‘Wild God’.
Studio sessions for the upcoming album will involve core members Warren Ellis, Martyn P. Casey, Thomas Wydler and Jim Sclavunos. The frontman is simultaneously expanding his portfolio across different media, having recorded a new version of ‘Red Right Hand’ for Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man. He also appeared on Flea’s 2026 solo debut album alongside Radiohead’s Thom Yorke.
