Nick Cave Reconciles with Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Flea After Years of Funky Remarks

Nick Cave, the legendary Australian rock icon, has officially dialed down the heat from his infamous 2004 quip about the Red Hot Chili Peppers. The moment became one of music history’s most quoted burns, when Cave famously dismissed the Los Angeles funk-metal band’s music as “garbage” — an unforgettable line that has since followed him around like a bad smell at every music press event.

In his latest Red Hand Files newsletter, Cave admits that his fiery remark was “an offhand and somewhat uncharitable” jab made in his younger, more irritable days. He confesses, with his usual self-reflective wisdom, that the comment was not meant with malice but rather as part of his mischievous, “societal irritant” phase — a phase that saw him deliberately ruffling feathers. But here’s the twist — that scathing quote didn’t just live on in Cave’s infamy. It sparked an unexpected bond with Flea, the Chili Peppers’ legendary bassist.

Cave describes Flea’s reaction to the remark as “profoundly generous.” The bassist, hurt by the comment, nonetheless extended an olive branch by writing Cave an open-hearted love letter about how much he admired Cave’s work, regardless of their musical differences. Cave recalls being “genuinely moved” by the gesture, realizing that Flea was “a human being of an entirely different calibre.”

From that point forward, their connection grew. The two didn’t become close friends, but their mutual respect for one another’s artistry was undeniable. Cave reflects on the many times he crossed paths with Flea, particularly in Los Angeles and at various music festivals, where Flea’s presence was “genuine and oddly affecting.”

Fast forward a few years to 2022, when Flea joined Cave and Warren Ellis on stage in Los Angeles for a special performance. But their collaboration didn’t end there. Flea, always a man of artistic generosity, also played a pivotal role in organizing a children’s choir for Cave’s Bad Seeds at Coachella. “Watching Warren and Flea perform together with such heart and mutual regard was a glorious sight,” Cave reminisces.

But the most recent chapter in this ongoing musical relationship came when Flea reached out to Cave with an offer. Flea was working on a “trumpet record” and wanted Cave to contribute vocals to a track. Cave, ever the perfectionist, calls the song “arguably the greatest lyric ever written.” He admits that he never would’ve dared sing it had Flea not asked him to. After recording his part, Cave describes the collaboration as a “cosmic dance,” a transcendent moment of reconciliation and artistic synergy.

And just when you think this story can’t get any more bizarrely beautiful, Cave shares an incredible tale about Flea from artist Thomas Houseago. While hiking in Yosemite, Flea and his group were confronted by a bear. In a move that can only be described as truly Flea-like, the bassist stepped forward, spoke to the bear with reverence, and asked for permission to pass. In a twist that only adds to Flea’s growing mythos, the bear stepped aside, allowing the group to continue their journey without incident.