Dead Can Dance (album)
Encyclopedia
Dead Can Dance is the debut album recorded by Dead Can Dance
in 1984. This album differs greatly from later Dead Can Dance releases. The instrumentation consisted of guitars, bass and drums with added percussion and the very distinct sound of the Yang Chin
as played by Lisa Gerrard. This album has been at times described as post-punk
or goth rock. The musicians who performed on this album, as well as the EP, were Brendan Perry, Lisa Gerrard, Paul Erikson, James Pinker, Scott Rodger and Peter Ulrich. Erikson returned to Australia and was replaced by Rodger. The album was not released in North America for some time because 4AD wanted to have a proper label deal and not license the artists individually. Modern English And Cocteau Twins were the exceptions at that time. The band touring was limited to Europe and Scandinavia during this period because the album was not readily available. The early live show was incredibly dynamic and very soon a dedicated live following evolved.
In these early days, the band was run in a very democratic way. Something that would change as the years progressed.
The album was mixed twice as the band were not happy with the way it was sounding after the first pass, very much over processed. Being mixed by inexperienced recording artists didn't help too much either.
The album would now benefit from a proper mix so that the songs could actually live for the first time.
The beginning of "The Fatal Impact" is taken from the 1964 film Zulu
and was recorded off of a TV broadcast onto a cassette player. The Drum Machine used was built into the same cassette player. The percussion used was 3 upturned empty 5 gallon paint tins tied together. One of the main reasons this song was not performed live was due to the unorthodox instrumentation.
No merchandise was made at this time as the band didn't want to commercially exploit their artwork.
EP
and were included on the CD release of the album:
Dead Can Dance
Dead Can Dance are an ethereal neoclassical duo formed in Melbourne, Australia, in August 1981, by Lisa Gerrard and Brendan Perry. The band relocated to London in May 1982 and disbanded in 1998. Their 1996 album Spiritchaser reached No. 1 on the Billboard Top World Music Albums Chart...
in 1984. This album differs greatly from later Dead Can Dance releases. The instrumentation consisted of guitars, bass and drums with added percussion and the very distinct sound of the Yang Chin
Yangqin
The trapezoidal yangqin is a Chinese hammered dulcimer, originally from Middle East and Persia . It used to be written with the characters 洋琴 , but over time the first character changed to 揚 , which means "acclaimed". It is also spelled yang quin or yang ch'in...
as played by Lisa Gerrard. This album has been at times described as post-punk
Post-punk
Post-punk is a rock music movement with its roots in the late 1970s, following on the heels of the initial punk rock explosion of the mid-1970s. The genre retains its roots in the punk movement but is more introverted, complex and experimental...
or goth rock. The musicians who performed on this album, as well as the EP, were Brendan Perry, Lisa Gerrard, Paul Erikson, James Pinker, Scott Rodger and Peter Ulrich. Erikson returned to Australia and was replaced by Rodger. The album was not released in North America for some time because 4AD wanted to have a proper label deal and not license the artists individually. Modern English And Cocteau Twins were the exceptions at that time. The band touring was limited to Europe and Scandinavia during this period because the album was not readily available. The early live show was incredibly dynamic and very soon a dedicated live following evolved.
In these early days, the band was run in a very democratic way. Something that would change as the years progressed.
The album was mixed twice as the band were not happy with the way it was sounding after the first pass, very much over processed. Being mixed by inexperienced recording artists didn't help too much either.
The album would now benefit from a proper mix so that the songs could actually live for the first time.
The beginning of "The Fatal Impact" is taken from the 1964 film Zulu
Zulu (film)
Zulu is a 1964 historical war film depicting the Battle of Rorke's Drift between the British Army and the Zulus in January 1879, during the Anglo-Zulu War....
and was recorded off of a TV broadcast onto a cassette player. The Drum Machine used was built into the same cassette player. The percussion used was 3 upturned empty 5 gallon paint tins tied together. One of the main reasons this song was not performed live was due to the unorthodox instrumentation.
No merchandise was made at this time as the band didn't want to commercially exploit their artwork.
Track listing
- "The Fatal Impact" – 3:21
- "The Trial" – 3:42
- "Frontier" – 3:13
- "Fortune" – 3:47
- "Ocean" – 3:21
- "East of Eden" – 3:23
- "Threshold" – 3:51
- "A Passage in Time" – 4:03
- "Wild in the Woods" – 3:46
- "Musica Eternal" – 3:52
Garden of the Arcane Delights
The following tracks were originally released in 1984 as the Garden of the Arcane DelightsGarden of the Arcane Delights
Garden of the Arcane Delights was released by the group Dead Can Dance on 4AD. This was the only EP release by Dead Can Dance and it was originally released as a 12" record...
EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
and were included on the CD release of the album:
- "Carnival of Light" – 3:31
- "In Power We Entrust the Love Advocated" – 4:11
- "The Arcane" – 3:49
- "Flowers of the Sea" – 3:28
Release history
| Country | Date |
|---|---|
| Australia Australia Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area... |
|
| United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
External links
- Dead Can Dance at Dead-Can-Dance.com
- Dead Can Dance Lyrics at Dead-Can-Dance.com