Ark

Brendan Perry | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 23, 2011)
• Original Release Date: 2011
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: The End Records
• ASIN: B004V9J53O
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #43,116 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

My latest album Ark has been a truly independent effort on my part, in which I have written, performed, recorded and produced all of the compositions therein.
My working process for this album is more akin to that of an artisan who oversees the entire creative process from start to finish.
Ark comprises eight original compositions in total that explore the recurring themes of identity, alienation, war, political corruption and the threat that we as a species now pose to our environment.
Despite the dystopian themes that pervade these eight compositions, there are also expressions of great hope and optimism for a better world to be found within the subtext of the songs.
For an Ark as well as being a refuge from the world's harsher realities is also a vehicle for regeneration and renewal.
Ark is not really a concept album in the traditional sense of the term, but rather a series of sustained observations and commentaries on the human condition.
Like most of my previous work I had no preconceived notion of what the songs subject matter would be other than to follow my gut instinct, refining and distilling the music and my thoughts as they came to me.
One cannot underestimate the influence that living and working in relative isolation has had on the making of this album. A lot of my spare time is spent on the internet with friends or watching documentaries and current affairs programs.
It strikes me that one of the great paradoxes of modern living is that we often feel that we are connected and at the very centre of communications despite the fact that we are often both physically detached and remote from one another.
Unlike my previous album Eye of the Hunter, which makes extensive use of live guitars, bass and drums, practically all the instrumentation on Ark is derived from sample libraries and synthesizers.
This was a conscious creative decision on my part as I wanted to imbue the music with the ambience of a neutral electronic soundscape which would in turn mirror a world that is becoming increasingly more dependent upon machines to perform tasks for us.
With regard to the sample libraries themselves, I have made especial use of strings, horns and choir to complement the synthetic soundscapes and which in themselves form a kind of musical motif that underscores the compositions as a whole.
Ark is more reminiscent of the music I have written for Dead Can Dance than my previous solo work and contains two tracks, Babylon and Crescent, that were originally composed for the Dead Can Dance reunion tour of 2005.
The Bogus Man, This Boy and Babylon form a central trilogy within the album that explores themes of political corruption and the armed conflicts arising from both religious and neo-colonial exploitation to this present day.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Master Genius behind Dead Can Dance is back!!!, June 15, 2010

By 

Douglas Hatten (Independence, MO) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Ark (Audio CD)

If you know the name Brendan Perry from somewhere, it is likely as one half of the male / female duo called Dead Can Dance from the 1990's. Sometimes labeled World Music in stores, no one else sounded like them. Many fans found it difficult to describe to other people what the band's music was like. People just had to hear it for themselves. I hardly know anyone who gave them a listen who wasn't instantly hooked. I have described them as the sound of ancient and mysterious cultures, music, and instruments brought back to life from the ancient past, and then mixed in a new modern way that makes it both timeless and relevant for today. Compelling and capable of lifting the spirit, the vocals from Brendan Perry and Lisa Gerrard were every bit as powerful and compelling as the incredible music they composed.

Since going separate ways, Lisa has done quite a bit of work as the now familiar and haunting voice we sometimes hear in various movie soundtracks, including Gladiator. Brendan put out a solo album called "Eye of the Hunter" some years ago. It was a beautiful album, though certainly a departure from what people were used to from the master song writer of Dead Can Dance.

Brendan is back again, this time with a new contract with Cooking Vinyl records to do even more albums in the very near future.

The newest album, Ark, gives us an absolutely amazing soundscape more reminiscent of his work in Dead Can Dance, but with some pleasant new surprises along the way. Playing this album will sweep the listener up into other worlds, while still maintaining firm roots in planet earth. The album is at times dark, sometimes exotic, sometimes pessimistic, yet remaining hopeful. While many of the songs provide significant commentary regarding world events, this album is anything but cold politics. It is also very much a personal and emotional album that draws us into the struggle of humanity.

It would be very easy for me to think of this as a new Dead Can Dance album, minus Lisa. However, if it were another Dead Can Dance album, I think it would probably be one of the strongest to date. As a fan of Dead Can Dance from the 1990's, this album is very fulfilling. It takes much of the familiar sound of Dead Can Dance, but adds to it, making the music even more dynamic with a more modern sound. Ark uses powerful drums, synthesizer and guitar work, combined with other more antique instruments (like the dulcimer) to create a unique and moving atmosphere you simply don't hear on pop radio.

Ark is what popular music should be like if pop music were more original, and if its lyrics were reflective of contemplative intelligence and the soul searching quest for truth and knowledge. This album certainly has a global soundtrack to support the album's global themes, whether they are politics, war, religion, environmental concerns, or the human condition.

I highly recommend Ark for anyone who has grown weary of the standard pop fare, and is searching for something new that will move and inspire the soul to greater heights.

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Album from a truly great artist, June 25, 2010

By 

D. Anderson "ezra620" (Colorado Springs, CO, USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Ark (Audio CD)

I've been a big fan of Dead Can Dance for twenty (!) years. So naturally, I was quite excited to get hold of Brendan Perry's Solo album ARK. Let me say that I was a little concerned beforehand, when it was suggested by others, and the artist himself, that it would be a more "electronic" recording. From the very first listen though, the opening track "Babylon" blew me away. This album has been expertly recorded. Beautiful crisp highs, fully pronounced lows, the synth lines and awesome arrangements that we have come to expect from Brendan are all there. I LOVE this sound. The ebbing bass throughout my personally favorite track, "The Devil and The Deep Blue Sea" is captivating. Brendan's vocals and lyrics are perfectly crafted. The music on this album takes me away and makes me think of other things that I normally don't think so much about, just like the music from Dead Can Dance does. I don't know how to explain that, but last night I played this album whilst on the back deck of my home, drinking a lovely pale ale and watching the moon slowly cross the night sky. This music makes me want to do that. Just like DCD does. Enough said.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A NICE COMEBACK, June 12, 2010

By 

A. ANNIS "apos" (Athens, GREECE) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Ark (Audio CD)

Long awaited, has it been more than a decade already since "Eye Of The Hunter"? In "Ark", Brendan Perry proves all his high level abilities as a composer, musician AND a singer (what a voice!). One man show, yes (he plays and performs almost everything himself) still there is no lack of musicality, inspiration and trance. Less acoustic and more rythym with beautiful and charismatic arrangements - Brendan Perry is a great song writer. (Who can forget the beautifully haunting "Don't Fade Away" - a live only recorded song from the late Dead Can Dance era). He talks about Love and everything that a human being should question, wonder and worry about nowadays, regarding Loneliness, (In)humanity, Isolation, Ignorance, but also politics and universal chaos we have come to (or forced to) live in and find our own way. Straight and simple lyrics with strong melodic lines in melancholy tunes; Brendan is a seeker, a sirious thinker and a poet in his own unique way. Of course this release makes you wanna go back and listen once again to all his previous works (apart Dead Dead Cance, unfortunately not to many). Would like to see how 'Ark' would work in a live concert (hopefully on a forthcoming DVD). Can't really make a pick but, 'Wintersun', 'Utopia' and 'The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea" are really outstanding tracks which carry you away. This album worths a lot of listening and surely grows on the listener. Highly Recommended.