Bunnymen on Letterman!!

[Mr. Brian]

And then I bought the cd and realized Empire State Halo was the only good song on it.

When I first heard Evergreen, I remember thinking it seemed like they were never gone and they just moved to the next logical step rather than going back to being an 80's band or do Grey Album Pt II, etc. I think as a whole Evergreen was a better album than the Grey Album and had a more mature sound. I thought it was great.

[withahip]

I thought it was a step back from Gray/Grey.

Lips Like Sugar, All My Life and Bedbugs were three good songs off that album. This had one.
And the songs were all structured the same - having lost some of the bizarre song patterns of early albums and also of what had set them apart.

The failure to do anything interesting rhythmically, whether it be with a new drummer or a drum machine on even one song signaled for me the band had pretty much lost anything that had made it special.

[Mr. Brian]

And the songs were all structured the same - having lost some of the bizarre song patterns of early albums and also of what had set them apart.

The failure to do anything interesting rhythmically, whether it be with a new drummer or a drum machine on even one song signaled for me the band had pretty much lost anything that had made it special.

Are you still holding out for that 14 years later?

[bunnygod1]

"what are you going to do with your life" is a better album than evergreen,obviously very mellow,more like a solo album and nothing like the early stuff,but then why would it be twenty years on?
flowers has no real stand out tracks on it.
Siberia is certainly better than evergreen as well,i wont mention the fountain for fear of being lynched

[fat cherry]

I'm kind of with mr brian. I thought evergreen was the album the grey one should have been. Greys go four good tracks i think, the game, the next two (they're that good i cant remember their names, but one has that 'weeeeeeeeee eeeeee eeeeee' organ bit inthe middle) and lips. Nothing faintly interesting rythmically going on anywhere, but according to will, wossname the producer sampled all the drums, so are they all programmed? Anyway in the interim the drummer snuffed it so you couldn't expect too much after that. Evergreens still a bit of a grower with me. Flowers seems to go downhill with everty listen.

[crystal89]

problem with flowers is that a lot of the tracks, on the live albums,
Live in Liverpool and Never Stop, are much better.
King of Kings is much more psychedelic
Buried Alive has much more edge
Supermellow Man has some widescreen epic feel
An Eternity Turns is as good a rocker as they've ever done.
Flowers is much better.
Not got any recordings of Hide and Seek, or Burn for me.

The production on the album is a bit rubbish to.

[withahip]

Are you still holding out for that 14 years later?

I love the first four so much - yes.

[Mr.Sparkle]

I thought it was a step back from Gray/Grey.

Lips Like Sugar, All My Life and Bedbugs were three good songs off that album. This had one.
And the songs were all structured the same - having lost some of the bizarre song patterns of early albums and also of what had set them apart.

The failure to do anything interesting rhythmically, whether it be with a new drummer or a drum machine on even one song signaled for me the band had pretty much lost anything that had made it special.

I have to agree. Evergreen set the template for all future albums. Same song structures, tempo, reflecting whatever is popular in Britain at the time - pretty generic overall.

The grey album is often criticized - and I can see why, but looking back at it now, after the new Bunnymen albums, and it sounds way more creative and interesting than the new stuff in a lot of ways. The big problem with that album was the production, not necessarily the songs themselves.

Just look at the album closer (All My Life) vs. the new albums closing songs and it's no contest, IMO.

[the ghost of guitarplayer]

I have come to think over the years that the grey album set the template for all future albums other than the McCulloch-less Bunnymen. More commercial, mainstream, what the kids might or might not want. Even if there is a decade apart, Evergreen retains that commercial sound but clearly more influenced by music at that time (Oasis mostly, but better), WAYGTDWYL? (generally bleedin' Nothing Lasts Forever over and over and over again), Flowers plodding guitar-driven "pop" tunes with a sprinkling of psychedelia , Siberia (bits and pieces of everything, but still mostly anything post-OR in song composition) and The Fountain (plodding pop tunes). Personally, I think most of the Bunnymen's output since the grey album has been like the poor man's Oasis or Coldplay, even at times the odd song has been better than anything those bands have put out. And Mac has become more desperate to mimic Coldplay's sound (and success, which ain't gonna happen for a 50-something band). I bet Mac's forthcoming solo album won't be much different. Lots of slow acoustic tracks and pop songs...

The grey album has a few more inventive tunes, but it's piss poor as well compared to the first four, which were inventive and unique.

[withahip]

X2 Agreed.

[Mr.Sparkle]

The grey album has a few more inventive tunes, but it's piss poor as well compared to the first four, which were inventive and unique.

I agree. I just think compared to a lot of the new stuff the Grey Album sounds surprisingly creative, which I guess is more of an indictment of the lack of creativity/lameness of a lot of the new material.

I guess we shouldn't really be surprised since most bands and musicians as they get older tend to lose their creative edge, etc.