Within the Realm of a Dying Sun

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Within the Realm of a Dying Sun
Dead Can Dance - Within the Realm of a Dying Sun album cover.png
Studio album by
Released27 July 1987
RecordedApril–May 1987
StudioWoodbine (Warwickshire, England)
Genre
Length38:43
Label 4AD
Producer
Dead Can Dance chronology
Spleen and Ideal
(1985)
Within the Realm of a Dying Sun
(1987)
The Serpent's Egg
(1988)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [2]

Within the Realm of a Dying Sun is the third studio album by Australian band Dead Can Dance. It was released on 27 July 1987 by 4AD.

Contents

Background

By this time, Dead Can Dance were predominantly a duo of Lisa Gerrard and Brendan Perry, along with Peter Ulrich, after the departure of Scott Rodger and James Pinker in 1987.[ citation needed ]

On the sound of the album, the group commented, "We realised we had been limiting our musical visions [before], relying around guitar, bass and drums. These instruments weren't adequate to express a lot of the things we were hearing". [3] On the making of the album, 4AD label owner Ivo Watts-Russell commented, "I think the relationship between them and [producer] John Rivers was at its peak with [Within the Realm of a Dying Sun]. It's probably my favourite record of theirs". [3]

Gerrard's vocals featured prominently on the second half of the album, and her singing style often had mellifluous, mystical overtones, especially on "Cantara".

The cover's photograph was taken in Paris, at the family grave of François-Vincent Raspail at Père-Lachaise cemetery. [4]

Legacy

Reception

British magazine Fact considered Within the Realm of a Dying Sun amongst the "20 Best Goth Records Ever Made" [5]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Lisa Gerrard and Brendan Perry

No.TitleLength
1."Anywhere Out of the World"5:08
2."Windfall"3:30
3."In the Wake of Adversity"4:14
4."Xavier"6:16
5."Dawn of the Iconoclast"2:06
6."Cantara"5:58
7."Summoning of the Muse"4:55
8."Persephone (The Gathering of Flowers)"6:36

Release history

CountryDate
Australia27 July 1987
United States8 February 1994

Personnel

Dead Can Dance

  • Lisa Gerrard – vocals (5,6,7,8), all other instruments, production
  • Brendan Perry – vocals (1,3,4), all other instruments, production, sleeve design

Additional personnel

  • Peter Ulrich – timpani, military snare
  • Ruth Watson – oboe
  • Gus Ferguson – cello
  • Tony Gamage – cello
  • John Singleton – trombone
  • Richard Avison – trombone
  • Andrew Claxton – bass trombone, tuba
  • Mark Gerrard – trumpet
  • Piero Gasparini – viola
  • Alison Harling – violin
  • Emlyn Singleton – violin

Technical personnel

  • John A. Rivers – production, engineering
  • Francisco Cabeza – engineering

Artwork

  • Bernard Oudin – sleeve photography

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References

  1. Sande, Kiran (2 November 2010). "20 best: Goth records ever made". Fact . p. 4. Retrieved 29 November 2020.
  2. Raggett, Ned. "Within the Realm of a Dying Sun – Dead Can Dance : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards : AllMusic". AllMusic . Retrieved 18 October 2013.
  3. 1 2 "deadcan-dance.com" . Retrieved 19 February 2013.
  4. The Goth Bible: A Compendium for the Darkly Inclined by Nancy Kilpatrick
  5. Sande, Kiran (2 November 2010). "20 best: Goth records ever made". Fact . p. 1. Retrieved 29 November 2020.