Dead Can Dance
(4AD)
Original vinyl pressings of Dead Can Dance’s catalog on 4AD have, for years, fetched top dollar on various auction sites, due primarily to the fact that the CD versions of all of the group’s albums have suffered mightily in the sonics department. With the exception of DCD’s last two studio albums, Into the Labyrinth and Spiritchaser, there was always something peculiarly thin and uninviting about the digital replications of these albums, and even those later works failed to capture the warm, organic expansiveness of Dead Can Dance’s sound. Now, a few years after painstakingly remastering the catalog of the Cocteau Twins, 4AD has finally released a series of high-fidelity reproductions of their other flagship group.
Simply put, the difference in audio quality on these new discs is unmistakably amazing. Remastered by the audiophiles at Mobile Fidelity Sound Labs (without, apparently, the input of either DCD members Lisa Gerrard and Brendan Perry), all nine of the group’s albums are now available in hybrid SACD format, which allows both surround-sound playback in SACD-capable machines, as well as high-resolution sound from regular CD players. The new editions are issued in LP replica sleeves that capture – in reduced scale – the impact of the original striking artwork. (Regular CD versions are due later in August.)
Listening chronologically – from the early, synth-based melodrama of their self-titled debut to the multi-culti world-beat constructs of later masterpieces like Aion and The Serpent’s Egg – a few things become clear. First, the continual insistence by Perry and Gerrard that DCD was not a “goth” group is borne out by actually listening to what was driving the duo musically.
While a certain dark drama is prevalent in many of their songs, the same could be said about Leonard Cohen, who is a likely candidate for Perry’s biggest musical reference. Second, despite the confluence of world and medieval music influences in their sound, Dead Can Dance wrote songs. While Gerrard’s career as a soundtrack-scorer has cemented her reputation as an effective ambient mood-setter, it was Perry’s rather strict devotion to structure and melody that made DCD’s albums so engaging and even catchy. These excellent remasters encourage far more focused listening than their more unpleasant CD predecessors, allowing the listener to become fully engaged in these rich soundscapes. However, even a casual play reveals sonic elements that were previously unheard – even on vinyl – giving these iconic works the presentation they’ve deserved for some time.
Now, if they’d just get around to This Mortal Coil. JASON FERGUSON
