On the evidence of this, the band"s first record, Dead Can Dance can clearly be seen as a "Goth" group in the vein of Bauhaus, et al. The band"s sound here is much more clearly based in the "contemporary"--Dead Can Dance uses traditional song structures, the group"s instrumentation is almost entirely synthesized, and co-vocalist Lisa Gerrard"s voice rarely gets into the truly ethereal, other-worldly realms that it would on later albums. Perhaps the most surprising single song on the album is "East of Eden." Built on a picked (and heavily echoed) guitar line and a rolling drum pattern, it is probably the only track in the DCD catalogue that can be described as relentlessly perky.Standouts include "The Fatal Impact," which boasts a crystal-clear guitar sound, a scaling base line, and tribal chanting; "Wild in the Woods," which is underscored by a threatening, droning guitar; and "Musica Eternal," a subtle track that clearly indicates the path that the band would eventually follow. The CD appends the group"s four-track GARDEN OF THE ARCANE DELIGHTS EP, which shows the first true steps down that path and features Gerrard using her voice startling effect, especially on "Flowers of the Sea."On their eponymous debut, released in 1982, they successfully harnessed a bewitching barrage of sounds, layering grinding guitars and even a dulcimer-like yang chin over a taut wash of percussion. Their range is staggering, as is their disciplined economy, with no song lasting more than four minutes or degenerating into formless cacophony. This version contains the four track EP "Garden Of The Arcane Delights."Track Listing:1 Fatal Impact, The2 Trial, The3 Frontier4 Fortune5 Ocean6 East Of Eden7 Threshold8 Passage In Time, A9 Wild In The Woods10 Musica Eternal11 Carnival Of Light12 In Power We Entrust The Love Advocated13 Arcane, The14 Flowers Of The Sea
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