Echo & The Bunnymen

Certain Songs #379: Echo & The Bunnymen – “Angels & Devils”

November 27, 2015 by Jim Connelly

B-side, 1984

Like a lot of their peers, Echo & The Bunnymen were simultaneously a singles band and an albums band. Which meant that they also were committed to putting out albums that were cohesive statements, and even a great song that didn’t fit one of those statements wouldn’t make it.

And it meant — at least until the reissue era — that they have a few lost songs in their catalog, especially b-sides like 1984’s “Angels and Devils,” which showed up on the “Silver” single.
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Certain Songs #378: Echo & The Bunnymen – “My Kingdom”

November 26, 2015 by Jim Connelly

Album: Ocean Rain
Year: 1984

Before “The Killing Moon” revealed itself to be an all-time classic, my favorite song was “My Kingdom.” An outlier on Ocean Rain, “My Kingdom” eschewed the strings that dominated the rest of the album.

Instead, it started with a cheesy-sounding keyboard, skittering drums and a mellow acoustic guitar lick. Completely inauspicious. But that’s just a fake-out, because the chorus of “My Kingdom” is as rousing as anything in their catalog.

Certain Songs #377: Echo & The Bunnymen – “The Killing Moon”

November 25, 2015 by Jim Connelly

Album: Ocean Rain
Year: 1984

I’m trying to remember: when did it first become obvious that “The Killing Moon” wasn’t just Echo & The Bunnymen’s greatest song, but an absolutely enduring classic that will forever be counted among the greatest rock songs of not just the 1980s, but all-time?

I think it took some time. I think it was too big to grok in 1984.

Certain Songs #376: Echo & The Bunnymen – “Do It Clean (Royal Albert Hall 07-18-1983)”

November 24, 2015 by Jim Connelly

Album: Echo & The Bunnymen EP
Year: 1983

I was able to see Echo & The Bunnymen live during their original incarnation in the mid-1980s, and live, they were a much different band.

Whereas their albums were usually clean and precise, in concert, they were much looser, stretching songs out, with Will Sergeant improvising riffs and Ian McCullough not only playing with his words, but often throwing other people’s words in as well.

Certain Songs #375: Echo & The Bunnymen – “Gods Will Be Gods”

November 23, 2015 by Jim Connelly

Album: Porcupine
Year: 1983

Along with the obvious singles like “The Cutter,” “Heads Will Roll” and “Back of Love,” Porcupine was full of long trance songs that found a — well, “groove” is probably a bit too strong of a word — pathway, and then rode along that pathway for a good long time.

My favorite of those songs is “Gods Will Be Gods,” which faded in from infinity in full flight with a big-ass kickdrum and a rumbling bass, followed by about a million guitars layered on top of each other, and Ian McCullough singing — well, to be honest, I have no fucking idea what he was singing.

Certain Songs #374: Echo & The Bunnymen – “The Back of Love”

November 22, 2015 by Jim Connelly

Album: Porcupine
Year: 1983.

After a second album, Heaven Up Here, that I underrated for years because I thought it was too dour by a half — turns out that was its strength — Echo & The Bunnymen’s third album, Porcupine, was more to my 1983 taste.

With songs that were one half psychedelic, one half trance, and one half pop, Porcupine caught the Bunnymen right before their ambition to be the biggest band in the world outpaced their ability to actually be the biggest band in the world.

Certain Songs #373: Echo & The Bunnymen – “All That Jazz”

November 21, 2015 by Jim Connelly

Album: Crocodiles
Year: 1980

Let’s talk about the drum roll hook. It’s one of my favorite devices in all of pop music, and has probably fallen into a bit of disuse these days.

For me, though, a perfectly-executed drum roll on a chorus — think Dave Grohl’s fills during “Come as You Are” or DJ Bonebrake’s stop time fills during “White Girl” — can elevate a song from great to classic.

And in the case of “All That Jazz,” Pete de Freitas’ exquisitely precise snare rolls after the chorus is practically the reason for the entire song.

Certain Songs #372: Echo & The Bunnymen – “Rescue”

November 20, 2015 by Jim Connelly

Album: Crocodiles
Year: 1980

In the fall of 1980, I was kind of adrift. I’d graduated from high school, just about to turn 18, but I really had no idea what I wanted to do with my life. So, as a stalling tactic, I went to Fresno City College, where I could dip a toe in higher education while waiting for life to shove me in one direction or another.

So my days were spent doing data entry at my dad’s office or going to City (where I mostly remember hanging out in the quad area or playing ping-pong) and my evenings were spent drinking beer out in that neighbood with the streets but no houses, going to shows with Tim and singing with the band I’d joined just after graduating from high school.

21 Musical Moments To Die For

December 19, 2008 by Jim Connelly

You can talk about genres, artists, albums, or even songs, but sometimes what keeps us coming back to music is the discovery of the transcendent musical moment. For me, “the moment” is the part of the song that fully and utterly engages me; the reason that I keep coming back to it.

I’m not necessarily talking about hooks here, because the purpose of a hook is the draw you into a song. I’m really talking more about traps: the part of a song that that keeps you there.

The is the fifth in a series. The first one had 25, the second one had 24, the third one had 23, the fourth one had 22.

Also: there is a slight — but not total – Christmas theme going on with this one. More of an arc, really. And a couple of mini-arcs, too!

Every single moment I’ve listed below kills me single every time I hear it.

Oh, and this isn’t in any kind of order, despite the numbering.