Den australiske sångaren/pianisten/låtskrivaren Nick Cave och hans grupp The Bad Seeds sticker ut i popvärlden med sin musik och existentiella texter. Hela förpackningen av dessa två CD-skivor är något av ett konstverk. Linneklädd kassett m vackra pastellfärgade bilder och ett separat häfte med alla texter.

"When Blixa Bargeld left Nick Cave's Bad Seeds, who would have predicted his departure would result in one of the finest offerings in the band's catalog? Abbatoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus is a double CD or, rather, two completely different albums packaged in one very handsome box with a stylish lyric booklet and subtly colored pastel sleeves....Abbatoir Blues, the first disc in the set (packaged in pink, of course), is a rock & roll record. Yeah, the same guy who released the Boatman's Call, No More Shall We Part, and Nocturama albums has turned in a pathos-drenched, volume-cranked rocker, full of crunch, punishment -- and taste....The chorus -- members of the London Community Gospel Choir -- is prevalent on both records; the Bad Seeds' arrangement utilizes them wisely as counterpoint and mirror for Cave's own baritone...
...The Lyre of Orpheus, by contrast, is a much quieter, more elegant affair. It is more consciously restrained, its attention to craft and theatrical flair more prevalent. But that doesn't make it any less satisfying. It is a bit of a shock after Abbatoir Blues, but it isn't meant for playing immediately afterward; it is a separate listening experience....This set is an aesthetic watermark for Cave, a true high point in a long career that is ever looking forward." (Thom Jurek, allmusic.com)