Customer Reviews
Aonther highly appealing offering
For as brief and seemingly light the album feels compositionally, Serpent's Egg still rests somewhere near the top of this immersive act's most sensual disc's on the whole. A short, repetitious, minimal, but often spectacular album refines further some of the haunting world-goth music this legendary duo helped pioneer. The crisp, diverse instrumentation, transportive vocals, and ethereal production all merge effortlessly to bring another modern mystical classic to their unique and impressive catalog.
Some great music here, but a mixed bag
While this disc contains some of their most brilliant tracks, I don't find that it holds together well as an integrated album when compared to some of their other efforts, and would actually rate it 3. On their fourth studio album, the Dead Can Dance duo of Brendan Perry and Lisa Gerrard transitioned away from the classical sound of their previous masterpiece, Within the Realm of a Dying Sun, and towards a more diverse set of influences, including eastern European and medieval music. 5 stars if I could.
The two standout tracks here are the ones that open and close the album. The Host of the Seraphim is probably the most stunning music Lisa Gerrard has ever recorded, particularly the achingly beautiful rise and fall of the final chorus, which brings me both goose bumps and tears with every listening. Brendan's Ullyses is dazzling in its creativity, and features a rare of example of him singing glossolalia (the kind of wordless non-language that makes up nearly all of Lisa's singing) in the introduction, segueing into a weirdly speeded up waltz evocative of a demented merry-go-round. Both of these tracks fit well in the gothic semi-orchestral style of their earlier work.
The rest of the tracks are more of a mixed bag both with regard to style and quality. Brendan's Severance and Lisa's The Writing On My Father's Hand are lovely, and feature the medieval influences that would come to full flower on their next album, Aion, while Lisa's stark a capella Song of Sophia features more of an Eastern European sound. Mother Tongue begins with a passage of infectious, lively drumming, then downshifts into a more dreamy combination of drumming and chanting by Lisa. Orbis de Ignis is another medieval track, but a bit dull, while the sonorous Chant of the Paladin is eerie at first, but eventually becomes monotonous by the end of its nearly four minutes. Brendan's In the Kingdom of The Blind is typical stylistically of his songs of this period, and is often included on best of compilations, but I actually find it somewhat grating, unmusical and forced in its climax.
So, overall not necessarily their most cohesive album -- and at barely 36 minutes, one of their shortest -- but worth getting for the handful of standout tracks alone. .
Some of the most superb music of the last century
I rushed out and bought this disk, and entered a whole new world of unparalleled beauty and taste. I first heard the amazing tune "Ullyses" from this disk on the Seattle college music FM station KCMU/KEXP in about 1988, and instantly was fascinated with Dead Can Dance. Middle eastern, british folk, and so many other influences applied with brilliant taste and audacity. As I understand it, Lisa Gerrard's lyrics are in a language of her own creation, designed to be evocative, but owing no particular reference to modern languages, and perhaps evoking a language which predates any modern language. Can you name an artist of such courage who, is also a pop-star? This is a triumph of high art! "The writing on my fathers hand" is exquisite with its delicate string tones and Lisa's evocative singing. Mother Tongue, with its drum tones is delicious. But "Ullyses" is my favorite, with Brendan Perry's rich and full vocal, a classic tale of the triumph of the human spirit in the face of global war. Arise "John Francis Dooley, wipe the sleep from your eyes, and embrace the light"! What else could a sensitive listener ask from a CD, great sound, great art, profound spiritual depth? This is one of the best disks I've encountered in all my 48 years. An associated disk is "This Mortal Coil/It'll end in tears" which features Lisa Gerard on several cuts, also highly recommended.
. You can see a complete list of all Dead Can Dance discography, or go back to the Dead Can Dance tabs
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