Echo and the Bunnymen

Do talk back
User avatar
Mike Boom
Posts: 4349
Joined: 02 Sep 2005, 03:49

Echo and the Bunnymen

Postby Mike Boom » 26 Apr 2022, 22:33

Crocodiles (1980)
Heaven Up Here (1981)
Porcupine (1983)
Ocean Rain (1984)
Echo & the Bunnymen (1987)
Reverberation (1990)
Evergreen (1997)
What Are You Going to Do with Your Life? (1999)
Flowers (2001)
Siberia (2005)
The Fountain (2009)
Meteorites (2014)

Wonderful and woefully underrated, seldom mentioned band, along with the Smiths the best band of the 80s in my book (and REM and XTC ...).

Favorite track/tracks ? Favorite album ?

User avatar
Charlie O.
Posts: 44849
Joined: 21 Jul 2003, 19:53
Location: In-A-Badda-La-Wadda, bay-beh

Re: Echo and the Bunnymen

Postby Charlie O. » 26 Apr 2022, 23:10

Crocodiles and Ocean Rain are tied for favorite. I admire the two in between more than i really enjoy them - but I admire them a lot. During this time I also collected as many of their singles and 12-inches as I could find, and they rarely if ever let me down - some robust b-sides, live tracks and remixes there.

I saw them in a smallish theater in the summer of 1985 (an unbilled Billy Bragg opened, along with local smartasses Velvet Monkeys filling in for The Fleshtones who cancelled at the last minute and who I had really been looking forward to seeing). They (the Bunnymen, that is) were absolutely stupendous, with Pete de Freitas (R.I.P.) making a particularly strong impression. They were set up with all of them in a line at the front, with Pete on the far left facing across the stage. Never seen anybody else do that.

The self-titled album was a major disappointment at the time; I don't much mind it now (I have co-workers who like it a lot), but I doubt I'll ever love it. Friends who saw them on the US leg of that tour reported that they didn't do anything from the new album, so I guess the band wasn't crazy about it either. I had no great hopes for the Mac-less Reverberation, so I wasn't disappointed. (I should listen to that again sometime, just to see if my first impression still stands.)

Overall I'm not fussed with the "reunion" albums, the exception being Flowers, which I thought was a really lovely surprise.

A collection of their John Peel Sessions came out recently; I like it a lot.
Image

User avatar
Matt Wilson
Psychedelic Cowpunk
Posts: 32516
Joined: 16 Jul 2003, 20:18
Location: Edge of a continent

Re: Echo and the Bunnymen

Postby Matt Wilson » 26 Apr 2022, 23:48

Great band, I even didn't mind the '87 self-titled album, and saw then perform at that time. Don't know about the "they're better than U2" claims, but I guess both bands are pretty easy to compare since they seemed to release LPs during the same years for most of the eighties.

User avatar
ChrisB
Can I Get To Widnes?
Posts: 12665
Joined: 03 Sep 2003, 20:07
Location: facing the computer
Contact:

Re: Echo and the Bunnymen

Postby ChrisB » 27 Apr 2022, 00:00

First four albums for me, although I always preferred Teardrop.

User avatar
Hightea
Posts: 4364
Joined: 16 Apr 2015, 02:18
Location: NY state

Re: Echo and the Bunnymen

Postby Hightea » 27 Apr 2022, 02:51

Ocean Rain slightly over the first three albums.
Actually like Reverberation a bit.

Never saw them back in the day but have seen them a few times since the 00's always a great show.
Image

User avatar
robertff
Posts: 12074
Joined: 20 Jul 2003, 06:59

Re: Echo and the Bunnymen

Postby robertff » 27 Apr 2022, 07:27

I like them, got quite a few of their albums (the earlier ones) but haven't heard them for some time. Always tend to play the comp. album if I play them at all these days, will have to dig them out and give them another listen. Thought that they brought something a little different to the table at the time and their covers photos/designs were usually pretty great.



.

User avatar
Nervous Ned
Posts: 1618
Joined: 22 Aug 2003, 11:19
Location: Close To The Veg

Re: Echo and the Bunnymen

Postby Nervous Ned » 27 Apr 2022, 16:05

Porcupine is stupendous. Truly one of the greatest albums ever made in my opinion. These days most people think it's rubbish ... go figure. Ocean Rain and Heaven Up Here are pretty close behind. I never warmed to the debut for some reason and the fifth is a real step down. It's not bad just ordinary.
Someone leant me Siberia or maybe Evergreen, not sure which Truly awful. It sounded like a collection of reheated U2 outtakes.
I have successfully avoided them since.

User avatar
Mike Boom
Posts: 4349
Joined: 02 Sep 2005, 03:49

Re: Echo and the Bunnymen

Postby Mike Boom » 27 Apr 2022, 19:55

The post reunion albums lack an edge, there is a definite smoothing out of the anything rough or spikey, but I like both Evergreen and Siberia, Nothing Lasts Forever and Stormy Weather are both classics. Don't know Flowers that well, need to listen to it some more. Ocean Rain is still probably my favorite, tho all the first four are undeniable. I see they are playing the Cruel World festival in Pasadena, quite the eighties line up for us old folks! (Mozzer, Devo, Blondie, Bahaus, The Beat, The Church, PIL ...)

User avatar
pcqgod
Posts: 19948
Joined: 11 Apr 2010, 07:23
Location: Ohio

Re: Echo and the Bunnymen

Postby pcqgod » 28 Apr 2022, 05:48

The 'Songs to Learn and Sing' compilation was enough for me. "Bring on the Dancing Horses" is one of my favorite singles of all time, though.
Where would rock 'n' roll be without feedback?


Return to “Yakety Yak”