Coachella Reviews etc.

[In The Margins]

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/music_b ... -no-1.html

Through the sweaty haze of the night breeze I could just make out the strains of a song that I grew up loving, "Lips Like Sugar." Echo and the Bunnymen were onstage hosting a retrospective love-in.

Through the copious amounts of smoke that shot into the air from machines beside the stage, Ian McCulloch and the boys looked just how I remembered them from when I was a depressed tween who relished dying her hair purple and piercing her own navel with a sewing needle. So real was the mirage of youth that I did all I could to avoid looking at the giant screen next to the stage that showed the band up-close and revealed their actual age -- and by proxy -- my own.

"This is the greatest song ever written," said McCulloch before launching into a keyboard-heavy version of "The Killing Moon." A great song, true, but McCulloch could have skipped the pretentious hyperbole and simply relied on the good will of the aging and sentimental Friday night crowd.

[In The Margins]

http://blogs.inlandsocal.com/music/2010 ... ue-ec.html

A few hundred yards away, Them Crooked Vultures were playing their hobbyist brand of crowd-pleasing rock.

On the Outdoor Stage, an uncompromising, focused group of not-lads-any-more were demonstrating their devotion to the moody, swirling sound that emerged from the post-punk era.

Echo and the Bunnymen -- at least we think it was them, amid all the thick smoke and deep-blue lighting -- have stuck with their sound and worldview, despite a rocky past, shifting members and more than a little hardship.

But, arguably, their take on rock, with its amped-down, self-questioning aura, during an era when two years of recession have many of us assessing our values.

The crowd was muted, but perhaps that's the be expected out here in the great outdoors, where the fans have ridden the musical roller coaster from pop divette Alana Grace, raucous rockers deer tick and a big, sweaty gap created by the cancellation of The Cribs. And, oh yes, the star turn by She and Him, featuring a Zoey Deschanel and her pal the real musician. And it's getting cool and windy out here.

The Bunnymen's dense, rich sound, somewhere between a Philip Glass score and a hit from an 1980s teen flick, stands up well. They played plenty of new material, so this wasn't just a nostalgia trip. Ian McCulloch's voice has held up well, too.

Overall, their set inspired a little nostalgia, but all proved this act is in it for the long run.

[In The Margins]

http://www.monstersandcritics.com/music ... men?page=2

But I have to say, Echo and the Bunnymen put on a pretty great show. Chandeliers hung from the ceiling and the lead singer almost never moved, but it was still neat. In the middle of certain songs they would shift into a cover song: Roadhouse Blues, The Midnight Hour, Take a Walk on the Wild Side.

Then they would seamlessly shift back into the song they were playing before. In fact, the most interesting part of the show was the lead singer - sunglasses on at night, mumbling incoherently between songs. Occasionally, though, I could understand what he was saying.

At one point he said, “Pity Gary Numan couldn’t make it. I thought he could just fly himself under the volcanic ash. Or take one of his cars.” Before “Lips Like Sugar Kisses,” he said, “Knock Knock…[who’s there?]…Yorrick…[Yorrick who?]…Yorrick Hunt.”

And after playing “Take a Walk on the Wild Side,” he told a story about Lou Reed making him order a $1000 fish dinner at a restaurant. He also kept demanding that the concert techs keep the show dark.

At one point he said it was because the next song was “the greatest song ever written,” subsequently breaking into “Killing Moon.” “Cutter,” he said, “is the second or third greatest song in the world.”

[In The Margins]

(nice photo with this one)

http://soundcheck.freedomblogging.com/2 ... ght/23981/

the high-powered set delivered by Passion Pit on the Outdoor Theatre stage on Friday night, it appeared that someone took a gigantic broom and swept everybody away. Indeed, at 8 p.m., it seemed that Echo and the Bunnymen might well be performing in front of a sparse crowd despite the ideal time frame.

However, Ian McCulloch (pictured above) and his band mates had no cause for concern. By the time the ‘80s hit makers took the stage just after 8:30 p.m., a large crowd was on hand to hear the outfit play many of its greatest songs in the magical setting at Coachella that seems to make even classic rockers sound like they have plenty to prove.

The biggest cheers came for Echo & the Bunnymen’s fantastic “The Killing Moon” and “The Cutter,” however the band scored early and hard with “Do It Clean” (an older song that was a hit for the band in England) and “Nothing Lasts Forever” (a medley that included bits of Lou Reed’s “Walk on the Wild Side” also came in that song). McCulloch sounded strong and his voice hit all the notes like it was 1985 again.

Although many artists come to Coachella to define and validate their status as an up-and-comer, Echo & the Bunnymen’s 50-minute set offered up a chance to see this band – as well as its songs – still matter.

Mission accomplished.

[zabird]

I'm glad they got a crowd, but dunno about the voice bit. Has he been working on his voice as well as his figure? Damn, wish I were going to the show in SF to see

[zabird]

http://buzzbands.la/2010/04/17/coachella-echo-and-the-bunnymen-those-songs/#more-11765

Who: Echo & the Bunnymen on the Outdoor Stage.
In 3 Or Fewer Words: Cottontails and crocodiles.
I’ll Remember This Forever Because: A cool desert breeze danced across heads of weekend vampires laying in wait, whisking vaporous fog off stage; one might’ve thought Echo and the Bunnymen rode a cloud as they sugar-kissed the Coachella Valley skies with haunting echolations of broken teen hearts from yesteryear. (Those hearts are considerably older now.) They played “mostly the hits” (as they are known to do) with earlier, toothier material sounding strongest. And somewhere between singer Ian McCulloch constantly bemoaning the stagelight programming and guitarist Will Sergeant’s equipment failures, the Bunnymen proved this: There is no substitute for superior songcraft. They closed with “Killing Moon: and “The Cutter,” and this writer doubts two better songs were played at the fest all day. McCulloch himself informed the crowd that the former is the “greatest song ever written,” the later “second or third.” You got a better idea? “A Punk” or “Horchata” is not an acceptable response.
What I’d Tell My Friend Who Was at Grizzly Bear: Pretty harmonies alone do not a finely crafted song make.
—Ben McShane (Classical Geek Theatre). Photo: Scott Dudelson.

[In The Margins]

Nice photo, zabird!

Maybe McCrank could find a bootleg of the Coachella performance so we could hear the "voice" in action....

[zabird]

Nice photo, zabird!

Maybe McCrank could find a bootleg of the Coachella performance so we could hear the "voice" in action....

Or clips will show up on the youtube in the next few days.

Nice pic indeed. Tho Mac must've been sweating in that heavy jacket and hoodie.

[morty]

Great reviews.

What a pleasant change.

Ian hitting the high notes and still informing all that killing moon is the best song in the world.

Ian looks good in that live photo much better than those tweet shots.

I hope he keeps it up through the rest of the tour.

[black francis]

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/music_blog/2010/04/coachella-2010-echo-the-bunneymen-want-to-be-no-1.html

"This is the greatest song ever written," said McCulloch before launching into a keyboard-heavy version of "The Killing Moon." A great song, true, but McCulloch could have skipped the pretentious hyperbole and simply relied on the good will of the aging and sentimental Friday night crowd.

It's not hyperbole.

That they single out Lips Like Sugar as the song they love tells us all we need to know.

"I remembered them from when I was a depressed tween who relished dying her hair purple and piercing her own navel with a sewing needle."

I'm calling bullshit on that one.

[black francis]

Jesus Christ Mac. It's the fucking desert!

[zabird]

It's not hyperbole.

That they single out Lips Like Sugar as the song they love tells us all we need to know.

"I remembered them from when I was a depressed tween who relished dying her hair purple and piercing her own navel with a sewing needle."

I'm calling bullshit on that one.

I know the person who wrote that ... she was a huge Cure fan in her youth too, and said similar things when she blogged about them playing Coachella a few years ago.

[withahip]

All in all positive reviews. Especially for a band playing a standard set of the oldies.

Good news it seems.

[zabird]

All in all positive reviews. Especially for a band playing a standard set of the oldies.

Good news it seems.

maybe they transcended -- sorta -- in the desert. the timing and place and all that. or maybe the arrival of dusty may (mae?) has made mac see the light.

[withahip]

Or maybe every one at the festival was stoned.