It seems like every other week that Cleopatra releases another wasted tribute disc, and after a while it gets sickening to see the tributees have their songs mutilated by a bunch of new- school clones, but The Carnival Within is a happy divergence from the trashy copycat discs that litter the Cleopatra catalog. Indeed, a few of the renditions of some favorite Dead Can Dance tracks are so well done, they sound almost more like Dead Can Dance than the actual band.

Take, for instance, that the album starts off with a wonderful version of "The Carnival Is Over" as performed by Leaether Strip. It's difficult to imagine that such a band could pull of a Dead Can Dance cover without butchering the subtleties of the music, but they do-- and they rival the original's emotion by substituting new sounds and angrier vocals. The same goes for the cover of "Ulysses" by Surface 10, one of the discs better tracks-- its music is startlingly chilling and features vocals by Athan Maroulis of Spahn Ranch, another contribution that seems out of place in the track listing but works well aurally.

Not all the tracks are a complete surprise. Hearing "Mesmerism" played by Rhea's Obsession seems an obvious inclusion as the band is often compared to Dead Can Dance in reviews. And although the compilation includes a few tracks that can't be found on traditional Dead Can Dance albums, it does include two covers of "The Ubiquitous Mr. Lovegrove," which reveal themselves as little more than sad disappointments.

So while Cleopatra's cover compilations are doing very little to give the tribute album a good name, it's good to know that once in a while something of value comes of it. When do we get to hear Sepultura playing Barry Manilow?

-Skaht Hansen