Mission of Dead Souls is a recording of the final performance of Throbbing Gristle

Throbbing Gristle

Throbbing Gristle were an English industrial, avant-garde music and visual arts group that evolved from the performance art group COUM Transmissions...

 before their initial breakup. The concert took place in San Francisco on May 29, 1981.

The album was originally released as part of the Fetish box set, consisting of four old albums and this album that was exclusive to the box, but when Mute Records

Mute Records

Mute is an independent record label based in the UK. It was founded in 1978 by Daniel Miller and featured several prominent musical acts on its roster such as Goldfrapp, Depeche Mode, Yazoo, Erasure and Fad Gadget.-Beginnings:...

 picked up the Throbbing Gristle catalogue, this was one of the albums that was picked up, making this one of the most common Throbbing Gristle albums.

An official VHS

VHS

The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....

of this performance was recorded and released.

1. "Dead Souls" – 5:04
2. "Guts on the Floor" – 6:04
3. "Circle of Animals" – 5:26
4. "Looking for the OTO" – 5:05
5. "Vision and Voice" – 7:11
6. "Funeral Rites" – 5:20
7. "Spirits Flying" – 8:16
8. "Persuasion U.S.A." – 7:26
9. "The Process" – 0:39
10. "Discipline (Reprise)" – 3:01
11. "Distant Dreams (Part Two)" – 5:30
12. "Something Came Over Me" – 3:43
    • The last two songs are CD exclusive and were not included on 12" pressings.