This latest incarnation of Dead Can Dance finds the bloom peeling off of the rose. It is the band's first tour since 2005 in honor of their first new music in 16 years, Anastasis, but something was awry this time around.
And it wasn’t because this was their first show of a seven month tour, evidenced by a number of briefly humanizing glitches. It was more that the shtick seems tired and postured. Together, Lisa Gerrard’s Miss Havisham/exquisite corpse persona and Brendan Perry’s obnoxiously artful (or artificial) introspection lack the legitimacy and enchantment they once held in the 1980s and '90s. The aura seemed to require effort this go-around, where previously it organically emanated from the stage.
Much like Breaking Bad's protagonist Walter White, whom he partially resembles, Perry is driven to pack as many words as possible in a sentence/lyric, especially on the new songs. The result is tight and constricting, verging on desperate.
When he toured as a solo act last year, Perry was less needy, perhaps due to the lack of competition which Gerrard poses against. I liked him better then. His version of “Song to the Siren” was more of an homage to Tim Buckley and This Mortal Coil last year, where tonight it was an encore piece all about him.
This element overshadowed the setlist as well. It was either arrogance or product placement that six of the first seven songs were from Anastasis, which was released yesterday, August 14, but which was already available at the merch table in various formats. The entire album was performed over the night, a monopolizing eight of the 19 or so songs played.
Article comments
1 - mostmusicreviewers are duchbags
Lame review. They were amazing.
2 - Jimmy
Funny comment! Are you jealous because most music reviewers can spell "douchebag"? If you feel that way, why are you reading music reviews?
3 - Andrew
We read in the hope of finding something interesting and learning some of the fait divers of the event, not to learn of the reviewers lack of attention span, their shallow interior world, and their defensive superiority which manifests in pedantic critique of other people's orthography.
4 - Zingzing
Dead can dance do walk a fine line between pretentiousness and art. If they've got you, it doesn't matter how pretentious they are, but if they lose you, it just becomes unbearable.
Andrew, you make a good point, but you wrap it up in a turd.
5 - anthony b
anabasis, savean, miss havisham, fait divers, interior world, orthography???
everyone associated with this review - band, reviewer, and commentator - lives up their ass and huffs their own farts.
6 - Currykev
Having seen DCD and Lisa over the last few years, and in Barcelona just 2 days ago, I am in agreement with the reviewer. Lisa has become the star that shines, while Brendan seemed to be the kid that wants. I found myslef wishing I was at a Ms Gerrard gig not a DCD one.
7 - Martin G
Saw them in Royal Albert Hall in London yesterday, and in Moscow a few weekends before that, both performances blew my mind and I could not disagree more with this review. Anastasis is a fantastic album, and both Brendan's and Lisa's voices are exactly like on the albums.
8 - Graham C
(whispers) I have to say that last night's show in London was a little bit rubbish. Cracks galore and a performance of 'The Host Of Seraphim' which was simply not very good. Mercifully I also saw them in Hamburg; a far better show all round.
9 - Graham C
Actually, the Hamburg performance was completely amazing.
10 - Seamus
Just saw the Dublin gig, and compared with so much crap live bands out there DCD were amazing. I saw none of the cracks, or the pretension referenced above (although Now we are Free started a bit flat, but ended strongly). What I saw was a performance with not one but two vocalists on top of their game. I can't easily remember too many live performances I've ever seen with such vocal talent. Host of the Seraphim was a standout, as was Song to the Siren. I am also surprised that there are complaints that they played the entire new album. They are touring with a new album .... I think playing new songs is a standard for a band touring after a new release. And yet the new songs fared well alongside old classics. How many bands can say that after such a hiatus? For me, the gig was a musical highlight..but I can imagine that not every gig will be equally good...
11 - Ian Lafferty
The point of the tour was to promote a new recording. The new songs melded perfectly with the old stuff. If you want a trip down "Memory Lane" go see The Rolling Stones.
12 - joanne lawrence
Was this reviewer even at a performance?? I couldn't disagree anymore strongly!!! I travelled from England to Dublin in order to be privileged in hearing one of my all time favourite bands live. I wasn't disappointed, I was awestruck, rendered speechless and frequently moved to tears by the sheer passion and ability of the musicians on stage. Lisa Gerard and Brendan Perry are both mesmerising, talented and deeply focussed on their music. I would happily travel half way across the world to relive the experience.
13 - Dawn Pittman
Thanks for this review. I saw the show in London and left disappointed.
Everything I read in advance of the concert had raved about this tour, so it was a relief to see that someone was as let down as I was. I wanted to be moved to tears as I had been at previous DCD shows.
Lisa was better than Brendan, but she was not as good as she has been in the past, especially when I saw her with Klaus Schultz.
I too feel that Brendan as a solo act is less precious and vastly more entertaining.
I realize they are promoting the new album, but it didn’t need to monopolize the setlist as it did.
Playing fewer tracks from it to make room for a couple of better known ones (instead of the playing the whole thing) would not have pandered nostalgia ala the Rolling Stones, but rather showcased a uniquely rich and diverse discography.