"The pleasure of pain endured to purify our misfit ways and magnify our crystal days."
Ocean Rain stands as Echo & the Bunnymen's undisputed masterpiece and is one of the most distinctive albums of the 1980's. Four years after Crocodiles, McCulloch & co. had moved beyond the familiar trappings of Post-Punk toward the more lush, orchestrated sound that makes Ocean Rain so singular. I remember thinking, after I heard it for the first time, that it sounded like it was recorded at the bottom of the ocean in an empty submarine. Plucked orchestral strings and a heavy dose of reverb provide a strange aquatic foundation for McCulloch's brooding vocals and the rest of the band is in typical fine form. Never again would the Bunnymen sound this inventive. Their next (and final) album wouldn't appear until three years later, and when it did, they had traded these memorable Post-Punk sea shanties for odes to the Doors and a Jangle-Pop fetish. Ocean Rain is as essential as it gets.
Ocean Rain (2003 Remastered Edition)
1. Silver (3:20)
2. Nocturnal Me (4:57)
3. Crystal Days (2:24)
4. The Yo-Yo Man (3:10)
5. Thorn of Crowns (4:55)
6. The Killing Moon (5:47)
7. Seven Seas (3:20)
8. My Kingdom (4:05)
9. Ocean Rain (5:24)
-Bonus Tracks-
10. Angels and Devils (4:24)
11. All You Need Is Love (Life at Brian's Sessions) (6:44)
12. The Killing Moon (Life at Brian's Sessions) (3:27)
13. Stars Are Stars (Life at Brian's Sessions) (3:07)
14. Villiers Terrace (Life at Brian's Sessions) (6:00)
15. Silver (Life at Brian's Sessions) (3:22)
16. My Kingdom (Live, "A Crystal Day" 12, May 1984) (4:01)
17. Ocean Rain (Live, "A Crystal Day" 12, May 1984) (5:18)
Thank you very much. I always liked the more popular EATB stuff but it's high time I dug in a little deeper and got to know them better. Thanks for helping me do that in FLAC.
ReplyDeleteHi Kris, no problem! Keep coming back; I'll be posting the other Bunnymen albums and some rare stuff, including a 1983 bootleg live show and McCulloch's first solo album, in the future. Let me know if there's something you'd like to see posted in FLAC.
ReplyDeleteGoddamn what a beautiful record. My 14 year old self listened to this constantly when it came out. I have this remastered cd. The extra tracks are far from essential, but anyone who hasn't heard this album better get on it.
ReplyDeleteBTW, the director's cut of Donnie Darko SUCKS because it doesn't have Killing Moon over the title credits.
yoyodyne, this is my favorite Bunnymen record, and I agree; I was hugely disappointed when I saw that director's cut at the movies. I guess sometimes things are better left alone
ReplyDeleteAn other all-time favorite - I haven't had the extra tracks, thanks so much!
ReplyDelete(rl) matiné, you're welcome!
ReplyDeleteI haven't got to give Echo & The Bunnymen much of a chance in the past; but since you say this is their best album, I figure this is the best place to start =) Thank you for sharing =)
ReplyDelete--JDT