Dead Can Dance's final album
Spiritchaser was something of an unusual release - it's not as much of an anomaly as the first album, but one can hear the duo wanting to stretch a bit more, however subtly.
Perry and
Gerrard's personal and creative tensions didn't stop them from creating another fine album, though there's a strong sense the group had finally reached a logical end. Essentially,
Spiritchaser is a summing up rather than a push forward; it features all the usual elements of a
Dead Can Dance album instead of further explorations to see what else could be done.
Toward the Within contributors
Ronan O'Snodaigh and
Lance Hogan, as well as previous collaborator
Peter Ulrich, appear on some tracks here, most specifically on the opening
"Nierika" and
"Dedicace Outro." Both are laden with lots of percussion -- unsurprising when one realizes that five performers are creating the drumming! Outside of Turkish clarinet by
Renaud Pion on the
Beatles-sampling
"Indus," it's nothing but
Perry and
Gerrard throughout the album, with another combination and arrangement of multiple influences coming to bear. Both
Perry and
Gerrard are in fine voice throughout, their strong singing still the centerpiece of their work, but there's almost an air of predictability to their approaches at this point (perhaps explaining
Perry's greater experimentation on his solo debut years later). Interestingly, overtly rock elements like
Morricone-styled electric guitar appear at points amid the usual melange of various percussion instruments and arrangements. It works surprisingly well, indicating where the duo might have gone had they continued on.
Spiritchaser ends on a strong note, the gentle, mysterious
"Devorzhum," a
Gerrard-sung number that makes for a grand conclusion. ~ Ned Raggett
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