Dead Can Dance Spiritchaser

Dead Can Dance's seventh album, Spiritchaser, presaged a 16-year hiatus. The Australian duo's signature blend of moody new-age textures, tribal percussion and ritualistic sounds reaches its apotheosis here: "Song of the Stars" and "Song of the Nile" are hypnotic jungle journeys, folding Algonquian Indian lyrics, fluid guitar licks and African drums into a strange trip, while "Indus"—with haunting Middle Eastern and medieval influences—recalls the gauzy goth of their early years.