From: owner-seven-seas@smoe.org (seven-seas-digest) To: seven-seas-digest@smoe.org Subject: seven-seas-digest V7 #169 Reply-To: seven-seas@smoe.org Sender: owner-seven-seas@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-seven-seas@smoe.org Precedence: bulk seven-seas-digest Friday, October 23 2009 Volume 07 : Number 169 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 23 Oct 2009 09:52:49 -0700 From: Ronda Scott Subject: seven-seas Bunnymen in Oakland CA I've been on a long Bunny-break for all the same reasons you guys have been talking about over the last week or so, same set list over and over, shor set and sometimes lackluster performances. And I even considered skipping the Oakland show last night because I didn't walk to walk away disappointed. Anyway, they were fantastic. Sure, no surprises in the set. The usual Wild Side and Doors interludes and Lips to close the show, but Ian sang like he meant it. The whole way through. Voice and sound weren't perfect for the first couple of songs, but after that, they hit their stride and both Ocean Rain and the second set of the usual suspects sounded tremendous. My only complaint with that gig was the audience. Fucking twats watching the entire gig through their phone/camera. Oh and the assholes who try shooting video with their iPhone's glaring light at the back of your head 40 feet from stage. Yeah, it's a dark gig, ain't going to work even if you try each and every song. Good lord, stay home and watch videos on YouTube and save yourself the cash. Yeah, so I'm old and crabby. Great gig, Mac in top form, Will looking great, backing band working out OK and strings made it magical. Ronda ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ **************Bunnymen Online Presence******************** ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ http://www.bunnymenlist.com * http://www.bunnymen.info http://www.bunnymen.com * http://www.fotolog.net/sgtfuzz/ http://www.villiersterrace.com/ * http://www.angelfire.com/wy2/discog/ http://homepage.ntlworld.com/stevedoughty/index.html ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 23 Oct 2009 10:42:12 -0700 From: "Paige K. Parsons" Subject: seven-seas San jose Merc Review of last night's Fox show Couldn't have said it better myself. The Ocean Rain set was so disappointing. I was at RCMH, and the difference in the ocean rain portion of the performance was like night and day. The bunnymen never even introduced the conductor at this show, they were poorly lit and their sound was muddy and tag along. I had a photo pass (no thanks to Pete and Peasy, but that's another story) soI was able to hear the first three of Ocean Rain from right up front, the next two from the center of the balcony, and the rest from center floor, so I had a real chance to hear the sound throughout. I'll have pix up later today - the light was the worst of any show for any artist I've ever shot - and I've shot a lot. - Paige Review: Echo and the Bunnymen deliver wet Ocean Rain Posted by jharrington on October 23rd, 2009 at 2:59 am | Categorized as Concerts | Tagged as echo and the bunnymen, Fox Theater, Ocean Rain By Jim Harrington It was a tale of two sets. Echo and the Bunnymens first set on Thursday night at the Fox Theater in Oakland was a disappointment. The worse news is that was the set that most of the approximately 2,000 fans came to see  a complete performance of the bands most highly rated album, 1984s Ocean Rain, with orchestral accompaniment. Fortunately, the Liverpool alt- rock act made up for the weak first half by delivering a wholly enjoyable nightcap filled with other classic material. So, in the end, it all evened out, right? Not exactly. This was supposed to be a magical night  the chance to enjoy a splendid re- creation of one of the signature albums of the 80s. That was how it was sold to ticket-buyers, and, in that regard, it fell well short of its promise. Ocean Rain, the record, was a moody masterpiece, one that did employ soaring strings from an orchestra to help realize its vision. It was widely hailed as the bands finest moment in the studio, yet, as fans found out at the Fox, the live stage is a whole different ballgame. Kicking off the show with Silver, and continuing, in order, through all nine of the albums tracks, Echo and the Bunnymen performed like the weight of the world was resting on its shoulders. It was like the players were fully aware of the magnitude of the moment, and they let it crush them. Overall, the music was very rigid and cold, possibly an inescapable factor of a rock band trying to work with a conductor-led orchestra quickly assembled from local players at each stop on the tour. There were a few meaningful moments when the violins and cellos added depth to the music, but mainly the orchestra felt like an anchor dragging behind the boat. There was no joy to the performance, and the music seemed quite lifeless. When the set concluded, with the albums title track, the crowd responded appropriately  somewhat meek applause for a lukewarm performance. The fans seemed to realize that they had just witnessed something that was supposed to be important, yet also something that was but a shadow  an echo, if you will  of its former self. When the band returned for the second set, minus the orchestra, things improved greatly. For at that point, the concert transformed from being an artistic experiment to a raucous rock show  and, oh boy, Echo and the Bunnymen sure are comfortable in that realm. The sextet, led by vocalist Ian McCulloch and guitarist Will Sergeant, treated each song like it was the closing encore, performing with a kind of passion and conviction that justified all those Doors comparisons over the years. The group opened the set with a mad dash through the early single Rescue, from the 1980 debut Crocodiles, and then proceeded to its second album, 1981s Heaven Up Here, for a Herculean Show of Strength. Continuing on through the Crocodiles-cut Villiers Terrace and the fairly recent single Stormy Weather (from 2005s Siberia), McCulloch sounded vastly stronger than he did in the first set. He was clearly fired up, to the point where he chastised one fan for making too much noise during a song. Shut the (expletive) up, you (expletive) (expletive) head, he said in his thick Liverpool speak, which only occasionally resembled English. Sergeant, the engine behind all Echo shows, was also in much better form during this set. Without the orchestra onstage, the guitarist was able to stretch out and deliver his signature atmospheric leads that add so much to the material on the live stage. The group even took the opportunity to perform a couple of cuts (Think I Need It Too and Forgotten Fields) from its latest album, The Fountain, which was released earlier this month. Both tracks held their own amid the greatest hits and fan favorites. The show closed with a triumphant version of Lips Like Sugar, from the groups 1987 eponymous fifth studio set. If the band decides to perform another album in its entirety during its next tour, Echo and the Bunnymen would be a great choice  but, with due respect, please leave all the unnecessary strings behind. ____________________________________ Paige K. Parsons Principal Paige K. Parsons Photography, LLC www.parsons.org paige@parsons.org 650.520.4290 twitter: http://www.twitter.com/paigekparsons ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ **************Bunnymen Online Presence******************** ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ http://www.bunnymenlist.com * http://www.bunnymen.info http://www.bunnymen.com * http://www.fotolog.net/sgtfuzz/ http://www.villiersterrace.com/ * http://www.angelfire.com/wy2/discog/ http://homepage.ntlworld.com/stevedoughty/index.html ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ------------------------------ End of seven-seas-digest V7 #169 ********************************