Within the Realm of a Dying Sun

1987 studio album by Dead Can Dance

Studio album by

Dead Can Dance

Released

27 July 1987

Recorded

April–May 1987

Studio

Woodbine (Warwickshire, England)

Genre

Neoclassical dark wave
gothic rock^[1]

Length

38:43

Label

4AD

Producer

Brendan Perry
Lisa Gerrard
John A. Rivers

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
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[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.

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

Vocals from "Dawn of the Iconoclast" were sampled by The Future Sound of London for their 1991 single "Papua New Guinea".
American pop singer Fergie later also sampled "Dawn of the Iconoclast" for her song "Hungry" featuring Rick Ross, featured on her 2017 album, Double Dutchess. The song interpolated the chant with hip-hop beats and vocals from both artists.
"Summoning Of The Muse" was sampled by fellow 4AD alumni A.R. Kane for the interlude track "Off Into Space" from their album "i" (1989).
"Xavier" has been covered by British gothic metal band Paradise Lost. This cover is available on the Limited Edition of their 2002 album Symbol of Life.
The opening section of "Anywhere Out of the World" was also used repeatedly as haunting background music in the BBC Horizon episode #30.7 "Hunt For The Doomsday Asteroid" in February 1994, originally broadcast ahead of the predicted impact of Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 with the planet Jupiter in July that same year.

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.	Title	Length
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

Country	Date
Australia	27 July 1987
United States	8 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

References

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