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With a single dessert and just two glasses of wine our bill was kept in check - but the effort of doing so was not much fun
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London,
Evening Standard rating
Reader rating
Description: The veterans of student-rock return to play their Ocean Rain album in full, backed up by an orchestra.
Phone: 0207589 8212
Website: www.royalalberthall.com
Trains: Tube: High Street Kensington 
, Tube / Bus: 9, 10, 52, 360 
Extra info: Pub, Food
It’s a special album that stands up to a track by track recital. Echo and The Bunnymen’s 1984 classic Ocean Rain is certainly that, as last night’s performance proved.
Frontman Ian McCulloch would agree. The loudmouthed Liverpudlian was making bold claims about his band back when Noel Gallagher was still in nappies.
With an orchestra behind him and long coat over his shoulders, it was McCulloch’s time to shine. On the eerie The Killing Moon, his sonorous baritone echoed The Doors’ Jim Morrison, while on the tender Ocean Rain he showed there was heart and soul to match the significant swagger.
Elsewhere, Silver showcased the articulate guitar work of Will Sergeant — the only other surviving member from the original line-up.
The Albert Hall provided the right theatrical backdrop. You felt that a well-groomed orchestra may not have gone down so well at Eric’s, the Liverpool club where the group’s post-punk psychedelia first caught public attention.
The black-and-white photos that flashed either side of the stage were a reminder of this history. Picturing the band back in their heyday, they gave the show a dusty air of nostalgia.
Last night, though, these echoes were worth a second listen.
Details are correct at the time of publication - please check with venue before booking.
I've seen them twice in NY and can't wait to see them again next week at Radio City Music Hall in Manhattan. Have been a fan since the beginning and proud of it. Echo... are forever original, uniquely beautiful and dark - One of the many musical gifts from the North, indeed.
- Kat, NYC, USA
