Dead Can Dance

  • Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
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  • Alternative
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  • 1981
    started
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About Dead Can Dance


Dead Can Dance combine elements of European folk music -- particularly music from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance -- with ambient pop and worldbeat flourishes. Their songs are of lost beauty, regret and sorrow, inspiration and nobility, and of the everlasting human goal of attaining a meaningful existence.

Over the course of their career, Dead Can Dance have featured a multitude of members, but two musicians have remained at the core of the band -- guitarist Brendan Perry and vocalist Lisa Gerrard. Perry had previously been the lead vocalist and bassist for the Australian-based punk band the Scavengers, a group that was never able to land a recording contract. In 1979, the band changed its name to the Marching Girls, but still wasn't able to sign a contract. The following year, Perry left the group and began experimenting with electronic music, particularly tape loops and rhythms. In 1981, Perry formed Dead Can Dance with Lisa Gerrard, Paul Erikson, and Simon Monroe. By 1982, Perry and Gerrard decided to relocate to London; Erikson and Monroe decided to stay in Australia.

Within a year, Dead Can Dance had signed a record deal with 4AD. In the spring of 1984, they released their eponymous debut album, comprised of songs the pair had written in the previous four years. By the end of the year, the group had contributed two tracks to It'll End in Tears, the first album by This Mortal Coil, and had released an EP called Garden of the Arcane Delights. In 1985, Dead Can Dance released their second album, Spleen and Ideal. The album helped build their European cult following, peaking at number two on the U.K. indie charts.

For the next two years, Dead Can Dance were relatively quiet, releasing only two new songs in 1986, both which appeared on the 4AD compilation Lonely Is an Eyesore. Within the Realm of a Dying Sun, the group's third album, appeared in 1986. In 1988, the band released its fourth album, The Serpent's Egg, and wrote the score for the Agustí Villaronga film El Niño de la Luna, which also featured Lisa Gerrard in her acting debut.

Aion, Dead Can Dance's fifth album, was released in 1990. Also in 1990, the group toured America for the first time, earning rave reviews. The following year, the group was involved in various festivals and theatrical productions. In 1991, the compilation A Passage in Time was released on Rykodisc, making it the first American release of Dead Can Dance music. Early in 1993, the group provided the score to Baraka and contributed songs to Sahara Blue. In the fall of 1993, they released Into the Labyrinth, which became their first proper studio album to receive an American release. Into the Labyrinth was a cult success throughout the U.S. and Europe. It was followed by another American and European tour, which was documented on the 1994 album and film Toward the Within. In 1995, Lisa Gerrard released her debut solo album, The Mirror Pool.

In the summer of 1996, Dead Can Dance released Spiritchaser and embarked on an international tour. The duo officially disbanded in 1999; Gerrard continued working as a solo artist and composed music for films such as Heat, The Insider, and Gladiator. Perry also established a solo career, issuing Eye of the Hunter in 2000. In 2001, Rhino released the band's first comprehensive box set, Dead Can Dance 1981-1998. Rumors of their reunion also began to swirl around this time; however, Gerrard's solo career remained steadfast. Her work with composer Patrick Cassidy, Immortal Memory, followed in 2004. Several months later, Gerrard and Perry made it official and reunited for a world tour. Dates in North America and Europe followed in 2005, while Rhino once more recognized the duo with a greatest-hits collection. Memento: The Very Best of Dead Can Dance appeared in October 2005. The band embarked on a world tour in August 2012 in support of the release of a brand-new studio album, Anastasis. The tour was documented on the 2013 release In Concert. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine & Vladimir Bogdanov, Rovi

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Photos

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  • 4AD/Warner Bros.
    Dead Can Dance
    4AD/Warner Bros.

News

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    www.pitchfork.com
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Tour Dates

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  • May 22 Wednesday
    Barcelona, Spain Parc del Fòrum
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  • May 26 Sunday
    Madrid, Spain Teatro Circo Price
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  • May 28 Tuesday
    Lisbon, Portugal Lisbon Coliseum
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  • May 30 Thursday
    Porto, Portugal Optimus Primavera Sound Festival
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  • May 30 Thursday
    Porto, Portugal Optimus Primavera Sound Festival
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  • Jun 2 Sunday
    Florence, Italy Teatro Romano Di Fiesole
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  • Jun 3 Monday
    Zürich, Switzerland Kongresshaus Zürich
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  • Jun 5 Wednesday
    Rome, Italy Auditorium Conciliazione
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  • Jun 6 Thursday
    Padua, Italy Gran Teatro Geox
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  • Jun 8 Saturday
    Ljubljana, Slovenia Križanke
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  • Jun 9 Sunday
    Vienna, Austria Wiener Stadthalle
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  • Jun 11 Tuesday
    Wrocław, Poland Hala Stulecia
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  • Jun 12 Wednesday
    Sopot, Poland Opera Leśna
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  • Jun 14 Friday
    Zabrze, Poland Dom Muzyki i Tańca
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  • Jun 16 Sunday
    Dresden, Germany Freilichtbühne Großer Garten Junge Garde
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  • Jun 17 Monday
    Berlin, Germany Zitadelle Spandau
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  • Jun 19 Wednesday
    Hamburg, Germany Stadtpark
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  • Jun 21 Friday
    Gelsenkirchen, Germany Amphitheater
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  • Jun 22 Saturday
    Brussels, Belgium Vorst Nationaal
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  • Jun 24 Monday
    Amsterdam, Netherlands Heineken Music Hall
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  • Jun 25 Tuesday
    Frankfurt, Germany Jahrhunderthalle
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  • Jun 27 Thursday
    Lyon, France Théâtres Romains De Fourvière
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  • Jun 27 Thursday
    Lyon, France Théâtres Romains De Fourvière
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  • Jun 27 Thursday
    Lyon, France Théâtre Antique
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  • Jun 29 Saturday
    Roskilde, Denmark Festivalpladsen
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  • Jun 29 Saturday
    Nîmes, France Arènes de Nîmes
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  • Jun 29 Saturday
    Nîmes, France Arènes de Nîmes
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  • Jun 30 Sunday
    Paris, France Zénith
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  • Jul 2 Tuesday
    London, UK Roundhouse
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  • Jul 3 Wednesday
    Luxembourg, Luxembourg Abbaye De Neumünster
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  • Jul 5 Friday
    Hérouville Saint-Clair, France Château De Beauregard
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  • Jul 7 Sunday
    Athens, Greece Unknown venue
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  • Jul 7 Sunday
    Athens, Greece TerraVibe Park
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  • Jul 9 Tuesday
    Athens, Greece Rockwave Festival
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  • Nov 27 Wednesday
    Monterrey, Mexico Auditorio Banamex
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Discography

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  • In Concert (2013)
    Dead Can Dance
    In Concert (2013)
    PIAS
  • Anastasis (2012)
    Dead Can Dance
    Anastasis (2012)
    Play It Again Sam
  • Spiritchaser (1996)
    Dead Can Dance
    Spiritchaser (1996)
    4AD
  • Toward the Within (1994)
    Dead Can Dance
    Toward the Within (1994)
    4AD
  • Into the Labyrinth (1993)
    Dead Can Dance
    Into the Labyrinth (1993)
    4AD
  • Aion (1990)
    Dead Can Dance
    Aion (1990)
    4AD
  • The Serpent's Egg (1988)
    Dead Can Dance
    The Serpent's Egg (1988)
    4AD
  • Within the Realm of a Dying Sun (1987)
    Dead Can Dance
    Within the Realm of a Dying Sun (1987)
    4AD
  • Spleen and Ideal (1985)
    Dead Can Dance
    Spleen and Ideal (1985)
    4AD
  • Dead Can Dance/Garden of the Arcane Delights (1984)
    Dead Can Dance
    Dead Can Dance/Garden of the Arcane Delights (1984)
    4AD
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