Latest Release
- DEC 9, 2022
- 33 Songs
- Songs to Learn and Sing · 1985
- Echo & the Bunnymen (Bonus Tracks Edition) · 1987
- Porcupine · 1983
- Songs to Learn and Sing · 1985
- Ocean Rain (Deluxe Version) · 1984
- Ocean Rain (Deluxe Version) · 1984
- Stranger Things (Soundtrack from the Netflix Original Series) · 1980
- Porcupine · 1982
- Porcupine · 1983
- Crocodiles · 1980
Essential Albums
- By the time of their fourth album, 1984’s Ocean Rain, Echo and the Bunnymen had begrudgingly accepted that they were part of a musical wave that might never achieve mainstream UK and US acceptance. Their blend of retro-60s psychedelic pop and ‘80s new wave aggression fared far better in England where the group’s distinct Englishness was easier to assimilate in an era when the U.S. was celebrating the heartland rock of John Cougar Mellencamp and Bruce Springsteen. But that didn’t stop the group from trying to make the most challenging and accessible music of its career. The band advertised Ocean Rain as “the greatest album ever made.” While that’s a serious bit of overhype, the album does contain several group highlights. The otherworldly shimmer and singer Ian McCulloch’s British Jim Morrison come-on for “The Killing Moon” makes it a serious candidate for the band’s finest track. “Silver” and “Nocturnal Me” explore the moody temperament that made the band natural favorites among emotionally high-strung adolescents.
- Though singer/guitarist Ian McCulloch is often considered the band’s leader, anyone who listens to Echo & The Bunnymen's early albums can hear just how much of a collective they truly were. Songs are credited to all four members, with each instrument contributing key ingredients to their majestic sound. Will Sergeant’s lead guitar work churns alongside the tumultuous rhythm section to create pure tension. “With a Hip,” “Over the Wall,” and “Turquoise Days” excel at a modern psychedelic-punk sound that positively bleeds with angst.
- 1980
- 2014
Music Videos
- 2014
- 2014
- 2014
- 2014
Artist Playlists
- Liverpool's greatest post-punkers.
- Sonically ornate and darkly romantic indie rock comes in many guises.
Live Albums
More To Hear
- Explore the influence of the post-punk band from Liverpool.
About Echo & The Bunnymen
One of the most thrilling bands to emerge in the British post-punk era, Echo & The Bunnymen drew from '60s rock and psychedelia to power their brooding, nervy, and exhilarating songs. Formed in 1978 in Liverpool by singer Ian McCulloch, guitarist Will Sergeant, and bassist Les Pattinson, the group swiftly made its ambitions clear, with the fevered sound of early singles like 1980's "Rescue" soon replaced by music of a grander scale. On albums such as 1984's Ocean Rain, Echo & The Bunnymen applied post-punk fervor to arrangements and instrumentation that evoked the dark intensity of The Doors and The Velvet Underground as well as Scott Walker's orchestral grandeur. Despite the success of hits like 1985's "Bring On the Dancing Horses" and 1987's "Lips Like Sugar," rocky dynamics within the group led to a split in 1988, followed by drummer Pete de Freitas' death in a motorcycle crash a year later. But the core trio's reformation in the mid-’90s resulted in later peaks such as 1997's shimmering Evergreen and 2014's forceful Meteorites.
- ORIGIN
- Liverpool, England
- FORMED
- 1978
- GENRE
- Alternative