Review of Echo & The Bunnymen

Echo & The Bunnymen have always been one of the cooler bands associated with the 80’s, resisting ‘cheesy’ songs and somehow blending underground, punk, psychedelia, rock and pop with an air of mystique and elegance.

The song that led me to discover them in the first place was their cover of The Doors’ ‘People are Strange’ from the epic ‘Lost Boys’ Soundtrack. I was therefore looking forward to hearing this performed live at the Wolverhampton Wulfrun Hall, but unfortunately it wasn’t part of their set-list!

That minor disappointment aside though, Echo & The Bunnymen still gave out a fantastic performance. If anything, Ian McCulloch’s more rugged vocals suit their style of music even better now and he still has kept great pitch and power.

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Performing to a packed out venue of extremely happy fans, and wearing his dark glasses throughout, Ian McCulloch remained one cool dude! The skillful lighting also maintained that air of mystery. Conversation between songs was kept minimal, so the fans could enjoy more of the music.

The band were musically perfect, and as a big Doors fan, I really appreciated the subtle similarities and influences Echo & The Bunnymen have taken from The Doors, as well as the homage paid to them in a revamped version of ‘Roadhouse Blues’. A slightly amusing nod was also given to Lou Reed’s ‘Walk on the Wild Side’ as part of the encore.

Die hard fans in the crowd sang along to every lyric, whilst hits like ‘Seven Seas’, ‘Rescue’, and ‘The Cutter’ created an even better atmosphere. I was expecting ‘Killing Moon’ to be part of the encore, but was pleasantly surprised that it was played before this.

‘Lips Like Sugar’ was actually the track the crowd had been waiting for, with many people chanting a request for it throughout the show, myself included!

We were not left disappointed and I would say the audience reaction was the best of the night when it was played as part of the encore!

If you, like me, are a fan of raw, live rock bands, I would definitely recommend Echo & The Bunnymen.

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