The Serpent's Egg
by Dead Can Dance

From Freddie55 TOP 100 COMMENTER 12/19/2009 04:25 | #7734 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

I was listening to Gregorian chants in the early 80s and somehow I missed out on Dead Can Dance in the late 80s. It's my loss. I find this album more engaging than Within the Realm of a Dying Sun. Lisa Gerrard proves here that she can be both ethereal and heavy. Brendan Perry's voice is good but relatively less captivating than Gerrrard's. The whole album is lovely beyond description.

More than ever "The Serpent's Egg" derives its solemn and religious atmosphere from the Western Middle Ages, or at least: the Middle Ages as the contemporary listener imagines: societies that develop reluctantly and falteringly because they are firmly dominated by the official and omnipresent religion. The added value of the religious institutions at that time was the worship of a god whose identity and form were derived from man himself. That is why I situate the music of this album in the Gothic cathedrals. Great houses of worship that, due to their barely comprehensible spatiality, color and sculpture, respected and gave hope to the poor medieval man. Of course DCD has also borrowed from other sources, but it shows great mastery that the references are not explicit, but rather a result of creative assimilation. After all, there was hardly any role for women in the Middle Ages, and therefore not for female lead vocals either. But DCD sounds apocalyptic again, although that is not really compatible with the Australian origin of the two most important musicians of the band. A number of songs (and Chant of the Paladin is the best example of this) create a trance and a hypnotic drive that is also produced by old religious hymns. The songwriting is deliberately minimal as that is how the trance is generated. The track that in my opinion most strongly illustrates the musical mastery and originality of the band is "Echolalia". The only thing that I find a bit unfortunate is the short duration of the track. As before, it becomes clear how well the voices of Perry and Gerard complement each other. This kind of magic really appeals to me. It is also miles away from the popular music that ruled in 1988 and drove a fantastic band like DCD to the margins. It must also be said that DCD was unique and still is. There is no competition, but hardly any imitation. For me, that proves in the first instance how original, authentic and unique this band is. You will hardly find musical geniuses with a broad and historical perspective on musical sources of inspiration in the world of mainstream music. You also rarely find them in the alternative circuits though. "Orbis de Ignis" is also a polyphonic song that is bathed in a pronounced, ethereal sound image. Again the implementation is flawless. Groups such as DCD can only be cherished. DCD is a unique band with a unique musical vision and so terms such as "Neoclassical" or "Darkwave" are barely able to label the music. In a number of songs ("Kingdom of the Blind") the musical accompaniment is repetitive and a bit too monotonous. Sometimes there is not even guidance. In the a-cappella “Song of Sophia” Lisa Gerrard determines everything: the beautiful timbre of her voice, the accurate vocals and the melancholy that is so typical of several DCD albums. That certainly also applies to "The Host of Seraphim" although I dare to admit that that song has everything to bring me down, its beauty is strongly affected by the melancholy, a feeling of deep sadness, immeasurable desperation and definitive loss. The music and the various, unbelievably beautifully interpreted vocal lines (Lisa G uses the complete vocal range) suck the listener to the depth and bury him in a crescendo of strings. On "Mother Tongue" the structure of the song is surprising. Here is the melody line that Gerrard sings a repetitive force. "Ullyses" is a wonderful ending to the album. A mystical and tribal waltz that needs a repetitive melody line to leave the listener with hope and modest but honest entertainment. It is not clear whether the song is about the Greek hero from the book "Iliad" by Homer. In any case, I have absolutely no idea who John Francis Dooley is. But that's okay. After all, the lyrics have a positive message. I would like to complete here by pointing out the fantastic, mysterious and mysterious title of the album and the very beautiful cover. Those who are willing to look beyond the obvious can see at a glance that the cover does not refer to impersonal, soulless ambient but fits with the extraterrestrial beauty of the unique music.

Moody but dull when listened at the Gym. Requires repeat listening and evenings... (Edited)

It is a very lovely album. The vocals make it all worthwhile.

Truely an awsome album.