Music Review: Echo & The Bunnymen

There is a crackle of anticipation in the air for this concert that I haven’t seen for an 80s group playing in Nottingham before.

Picture: Ollie Millington / Redferns

Yes, Liverpool band Echo and The Bunnymen, possibly the greatest and most poetic indie/post-punk band of the era – and I do include The Cure in this listing by the way – had graced the city before and I had seen them at Rock City many (killing) moons ago, but my recollections of the performance are dim.

This time however, was different to those previous times because, to celebrate 40 years of their milestone album Ocean Rain, the group are performing the classic album in full with the Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. How will an album that perfected the mix of jagged rock n’ roll and dark, classical wonder translate live? We will soon find out.

First up though is the very cool alt-classical supporting act Erica Nockalls, with Jean Charles Versari on guitar. Wearing a fantastic bronze dress, and looking like the star of a classic pirate movie, Erica begins with the slow and epic ‘Build Me A Ship’ before the heavy drum machines and frantic feel of ‘Mouthful of Something’ really kicks off the evening well.

The performance comes into its own with the future-pop of ‘This Silent Dog’, Erica swigging from a champagne bottle with her cropped short blonde hair and swishy outfit is a great visual before the Bjork-esque heavy beats kick into gear, clanging guitars and hillbilly violin working a treat. Versari adds some lead vocals on the pulsating ‘Eiffel’s Eye’ after Nockalls thanks the Nottingham crowd for the warm reception, before ‘House of Erica’ which has a more mournful violin and an excellent vocal. Last track ‘Making Friends With An Alien’ – all whammy bar and jittering electronica – showcases the duo’s subtle and classy theatrics, touching fingers with an ET homage to finish off this near-perfect supporting set.

Before the Liverpool Philharmonic comes out, Messrs McCulloch, Sergeant and friends treat us to a 1-2-3 punch from their debut 1980 album Crocodiles. The pounding ‘Going Up’, the gothic rock of ‘All That Jazz’ and the classic 80s single ‘Rescue’ – which gave our city’s established venue Rescue Rooms its moniker – really hits the spot and gets this seated audience going.

Does any band from their era, apart from maybe Siouxsie and the Banshees, have such an impressive first four records? Probably not.

The Doorsy ‘Bedbugs and Ballyhoo’ – from the less impressive self-titled fifth album – drifts along nice and inoffensively before the moody ‘All My Colours (Zimbo)’ – from their most coherent record, the post-punk masterpiece Heaven Up Here – reaches a high watermark early on. The first set is completed by 90s comeback song ‘Nothing Ever Lasts Forever’ – which blends seamlessly into a Lou Reed tribute of ‘Walk on the Wildside’, the Velvet Underground being another key influence on the band’s lyrical and musical blueprint – and the brilliant single ‘Never Stop’ which gives us a taster of what’s to come with it’s frantic cello and funky psychedelia.

‘Bring on the Dancing Horses’ closes, a slice of mid-80s alt-rock/pop which was clearly aimed for the US market at a similar time to their collaboration with Joel Schumacher teen movie The Lost Boys. It, like this song, didn’t age too well, but is great nostalgia.

Then for the main event – complete with orchestra and a beautifully lit set and a projector screen above the stage featuring chandeliers and then a full moon – Ocean Rain in its entirety. The first song ‘Silver’ (my second favourite Bunnymen single, behind ‘The Promise’) was spoiled slightly by an overly loud Will Sergeant, as the orchestra didn’t seem to cut through well enough on the live mics. Not to take away from him though, he was utterly brilliant throughout this set, and the track is an epic either way.

The band and classical musicians finally joined hands technically and spiritually for the second track, ‘Nocturnal Me’ – “Take me internally / Forever Yours, Nocturnal Me” – and this showcased why there was such a buzz tonight at the Royal Concert Hall. ‘Nocturnal Me’ is a grandiose and spectacular example of a rock band at the peak of their experimental powers, and it sounds outstanding here. ‘Crystal Days’ mixes their early choppy sound on the verse with the orchestra elevating the chorus, before ‘The Yo Yo Man’ drops the set down (and up?) a notch: “Froze to the bone in my igloo home / Counting the days ’til the ice turns green”… Frantic violins cut through, and the Liverpool Philharmonic sounds great on the song’s beautiful breakdown.

Nottingham has often had a rivalry with Liverpool, largely due to the iconic football matches of the late ’70s/1980s, and maybe this show could’ve had a spice of that during Macca’s pre-song verbal intros…. except nobody can understand a word he’s saying, and it’s safe to say that whatever is on the tray of drinks on stage isn’t iced water! However, I did just about catch a reference to founder member, drummer Pete De Frietas, and oh what a classy, superb drummer he was. He’s sorely missed tonight, especially when listening to a muddy drum sound, which is possibly due to the instrument separation onstage. But anyway, Ian was referring to the shouty vocals that Pete did on the recording of the next track ‘Thorn of Crowns’ and how he himself couldn’t really replicate them… I think! What a superb, surreal, jerky slice of musicality the song is.

Then comes the song that everyone knows, Echo and The Bunnymen’s calling card, ‘The Killing Moon’, and it gets the Nottingham audience in rapture with subtle orchestral fills giving it a masterful live power. “So cruelly you kissed me / Your lips a magic world” …

Alongside the orchestra and regulars are an extra guitarist and female backing vocals, some that work, some that don’t, but on ‘Seven Seas’ the backing compliments McCulloch’s primal howl very well. ‘My Kingdom’ is a straight up rocker, even in this setting, but the title track and final song ‘Ocean Rain’ is soft and beautiful with the live violins giving it an extra dimension, building to an epic conclusion that was fitting of two classic sides of powerful 40 year old vinyl.

Encores tonight are ‘Lips Like Sugar’ and The Bunnymen’s biggest chart hit ‘The Cutter’ (sans orchestra), and they leave the crowd heading home happy. Not sure why the band feel the need to walk off between the songs to make it two encores, but I suppose it makes for an easier night work-wise!

All in all, Echo and The Bunnymen are truly deserving of the word legendary, and performances like this can only help cement that reputation. Let’s hope they are complimented by orchestral flourishes more often as this way is definitely how their classic work is meant to be heard.

Echo and The Bunnymen’s Ocean Rain European Tour continues in Mislata, Spain (24th Sept); Madrid, Spain (26th Sept) and Barcelona, Spain (29th Sept)

By Lee Herring.