Wednesday, September 28, 2005

Dead Can Dance, indeed

On Sunday, Sept. 25, I was fortunate to see another great show. Dead Can Dance, the Australia-based duo that crafted music that truly defied all genres in the 1980s and 1990s, came to the Hollywood Bowl as part of their first tour since 1994 or something.

Amazing. Performing with the LA Philharmonic, singer-guitarist Brendan Perry and vocalist Lisa Gerrard sounded perfect and performed a mix of Celtic, Renaissance-tinged folk, goth and Middle Eastern-flavored music to lasting and emotional impact. The concert was like being immersed in a sonic dream. Any of the songs performed, including well-known selections such as "How Fortunate the Man With None" and the sparse reworking of the traditional "The Wind That Shakes the Barley," would have been a highlight at any show. But across the more than two hours on Sunday that the concert stretched, it would be impossible to find an artistic element that didn't work.

Lisa Gerrard has a voice that recalls an opera diva, but with the otherworldly sound of a singer one might hear in a Irish pub. And Brendan Perry's far-reaching baritone also hit its marks whether singing alone or with Lisa. A simply wonderful experience.

Now, if only Cocteau Twins might return for another run.

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