"Into the Labyrinth" is the sixth studio album by Australian band Dead Can Dance, released on September 13, 1993, by 4AD. This album represents a significant shift from their earlier work, prominently featuring ethnic music influences, which would continue to shape their sound in subsequent releases. It was their first album produced entirely by the band without guest musicians and marked their major-label debut in the US, thanks to a distribution deal between 4AD and Warner Bros. Records.
The album includes the single "The Ubiquitous Mr. Lovegrove" and achieved considerable commercial success, selling over 500,000 copies worldwide. Into the Labyrinth is noted for its rich, eclectic sound and has been influential in defining the band's evolving musical direction.
"Into the Labyrinth" represents a significant departure from Dead Can Dance's previous album, Aion (1990). By the time of this release, band members Brendan Perry and Lisa Gerrard were living separately—Perry in Ireland and Gerrard in Australia. Despite the distance, Gerrard traveled to Perry’s studio, Quivvy Church in County Cavan, to collaborate on the album. They spent three months merging their individual compositions and recording together. Notably, this album marks the first time Perry and Gerrard played all the instruments themselves, without guest musicians.
The album features a mix of English lyrics on certain tracks (2–4, 8, and 11) and Gerrard's unique wordless vocal technique, which resembles glossolalia, on others (1, 5–7, 9–10). Tracks 3 and 10 are performed a cappella.
In the UK, the album was released both as a standard CD and as a limited edition double vinyl LP, which included additional tracks "Bird" and "Spirit" from the A Passage in Time compilation.
The title Into the Labyrinth evokes the Greek myth of Theseus and the Minotaur, providing a thematic thread throughout the album. The concept of the Labyrinth is reflected in song titles such as "Ariadne," "Towards the Within," "The Spider's Stratagem," and "Emmeleia," each contributing to the album’s cohesive, mythologically inspired narrative.
