As we wait for Nick Cave's and Warren Ellis' "The Proposition" film and soundtrack (which will be released in a month but I'll be reviewing on these pages mid next week - stay tuned!), let's get into the mood for that by talking about another Bad Seeds' co-founding member: Mick Harvey, also co-founder of The Birthday Party and member of The Boys Next Door (with Cave also) and Crime And the City Solution, steps into the spotlight for what basically is his debut solo album "One Man's Treasure". Altough Harvey doesn't seam to be the least bit uncomfortable swinging by his own tunes, he chose to pay tribute to some great songwriters such as Tim Buckley, Johnny Cash, Nina Simone, Cave himself, Lee Hazelwood and the late Jeffrey Lee Pierce of the Fun Club, whose songs Harvey felt connected to and wanted to sing himself. Harvey, who is a talented multi-instrumentalist and producer, recorded the basic tracks at his home studio and only later added strings and drums in a real studio in Melbourne, where he also made quick two-hour per song mixes to keep the raw and spontaneous vibe intact. His voice, certainly influenced by years of collaboration with Cave and Blixa, might remind you of Syd Barret, or even (sometimes) Bowie, as well as other great immortal voices of less recent times, while the intense, minimal, passionate and intimate music on this record will caress your heart with overtones of urban Australian alternative country and the best American songwriting tradition. Harvey's extended score-writing expertise also shows through his very own way of portraying images in sound, and in this album acquires an almost Barry Adamson-like quality, when you consider the way the scenarios evoked by these instruments are perceived and translated into tangible atmospheres. Mostly acoustic-based, Harvey softly electrfies most tunes with precisely the vicarious beauty that you'd expect from (and for) this type of compositions and, while effortlessly maneuvering between acoustic and electric instruments' sound palettes, he joins in on the sonic dance of shades and colors with sweet whispering uttered crudeness and leaves you wanting for more and wondering where he gets that primitive energy and that soothing quality that he puts out there and offers in the form of touching, outreaching and far-reaching melodies. Superior.