Gregory R. Cristman

Echo & the Bunnymen played two nights at Irving Plaza (night 1 pics, night 2 setlist), performing on 'Letterman' this week

August 18, 2014

Gregory R. Cristman

Echo & the Bunnymen @ Irving Plaza 8/16/2014

During Echo & the Bunnymen’s 90-minute set Friday night at the Orpheum Theatre, singer Ian McCulloch evoked the spirits of Jim Morrison, James Brown, Lou Reed, Nat King Cole and Wilson Pickett by including snippets of their famous songs in the middle of the Bunnymen’s own classics.

Some might argue that the ’80s stalwarts don’t deserve a place next to such esteemed company, but McCulloch wouldn’t be one of them. The Bunnymen frontman, once dubbed “Mac the Mouth” by the British press, is his own biggest fan known for spouting off such pronouncements as calling the band’s “The Killing Moon” “the greatest song ever written” and saying that in the Bunnymen’s prime, “It felt like we were the best band in the world.”

At times Friday night the Bunnymen came close to McCulloch’s lofty aspirations. Performing as a sextet with guitarist Will Sergeant as the only other original member, the band played a set of their greatest hits and obscurities, but true to McCulloch’s supreme confidence, they opened not with a familiar song, but the title track from their new album, Meteorites. With McCulloch’s aching and longing vocals and Sergeant’s tasteful guitar figures, it didn’t sound unlike past Bunnymen classics. But the crowd didn’t fully light up until the band ripped into “Rescue,” from their 1980 debut Crocodiles, and followed that up with “Villiers Terrance” from the same set. – [The Hollywood Reporter]

Echo & the Bunnymen are currently touring their new album, Meteorites, and hit NYC for two shows at Irving Plaza on Saturday (8/16) and Sunday (8/17). (The review above is from their LA show.) Despite a new album to plug, setlists for both shows were pretty much an ’80s hitfest, with classics like “Rescue,” “Never Stop,” “All My Colours,” “Over the Wall,” “The Killing Moon” and “Lips Like Sugar.” The band is touring as a six-piece with frontman Ian McCulloch and guitarist Will Sergeant being the only two original members. Pictures from Saturday’s sold-out show are in this post. We don’t have the exact setlist for Saturday (anyone know it?), but Sunday’s setlist is in the post as well.

The band will also be on The Late Show with David Letterman this Thursday (8/21) to perform Meteorites‘ “Holy Moses.” Pictures from Saturday’s Irving Plaza show, opener Mikky Ekko included, below…

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Mikky Ekko

Echo & The Bunnymen

Echo and the Bunnymen @ Irving Plaza – 8/17/14 Setlist: (via)
Meteorites
Rescue / Broke My Neck
Do It Clean
Never Stop
People Are Strange (The Doors cover)
Seven Seas
Bedbugs and Ballyhoo
Holy Moses
All My Colours (Zimbo)
Over the Wall
Constantinople
All That Jazz
Bring On the Dancing Horses
Villiers Terrace / Roadhouse Blues / The Jean Genie / ???
The Killing Moon
The Cutter