Spleen and Ideal

Spleen and Ideal

by Dead Can Dance
Spleen and Ideal

Spleen and Ideal

by Dead Can Dance

Vinyl LP(Long Playing Record)

$25.99 
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Overview

With this amazing album, Dead Can Dance fully took the plunge into the heady mix of musical traditions that would come to define its sound and style for the remainder of its career. The straightforward goth affectations are exchanged for a sonic palette and range of imagination. Calling it "haunting" and "atmospheric" barely scratches even the initial surface of the album's power. The common identification of the duo with a consciously medieval European sound starts here -- quite understandable, when one considers the mystic titles of songs, references to Latin, choirs, and other touches that make the album sound like it was recorded in an immense cathedral. Opening number "De Profundis" sets this mood so thoroughly, with bells and drones and more supporting another bravura performance from Gerrard, while the immediately following "Ascension" builds on this initial effort with further style and grace. It's limiting to think of either album or band strictly in terms of simple revivalism of old music. While the elements being drawn on are certainly of an older range, the results owe as much to the technologies of arrangement and production and a consciously cinematic feeling as much as they do antique pasts. Similarly, the feeling is not simply European but worldwide, with Gerrard's glossolalia intentionally reaching beyond easy understanding. Perry's vocal efforts are no less compelling, his own high point occurring with the vast-sounding "Enigma of the Absolute," as a steady, massive drum pound echoes behind a similarly treated guitar/harpsichord combination, tinged with a striking string arrangement. The overall feeling is of an ancient religious service suddenly brought to life in a truly modern way, with stunning results. ~ Ned Raggett

Product Details

Release Date: 07/08/2016
Label: 4Ad
UPC: 0652637362312
Rank: 36630

Tracks

  1. De Profundis (Out of the Depths of Sorrow)
  2. Ascension
  3. Circumradiant Dawn
  4. The Cardinal Sin
  5. Mesmerism
  6. Enigma of the Absolute
  7. Advent
  8. Avatar
  9. Indoctrination (A Design for Living)

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Dead Can Dance   Primary Artist
Andrew Hutton   Vocals,Soprano,Soprano (Vocal)
Simon Hogg   Trombone,Trombone
Tony Ayres   Timpani,Timpani
Brendan Perry   Vocals,Various Instruments,Voices,Multi Instruments
Martin McGarrick   Cello,Cello
Lisa Gerrard   Vocals,Various Instruments,Voices,Multi Instruments
Martin McCarrick   Cello
Gus Ferguson   Cello
Richard Avison   Trombone
James Pinker   Timpani
Carolyn Costin   Violin

Technical Credits

John A. Rivers   Audio Production,Audio Engineer,Engineer,Producer,Remastering
Jonathan Dee   Audio Engineer,Engineer
Dead Can Dance   Audio Production,Composer,Producer
Lisa Gerrard   Instrumentation
Brendan Perry   Design,Art Direction,Instrumentation
Colin Gray   Photography
Shawn R. Britton   Mastering Supervisor
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