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Siberia

by

Echo and the Bunnymen

 
Siberia

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Average: 4.0 (189 ratings)

Echo's silvery arpeggios and yearning vocals make our heart go pitty-pat.

  • We Say...

    Review by J. Edward Keyes

    On the 5th Volume of The Director's Label DVD series, Anton Corbjin relates a story of how an angry Goth border guard nearly shut down his entire video shoot when he realized that man with the meticulous haircut was not, in fact, Robert Smith, but Ian McCulloch. McCulloch and his band have been dealing with mistaken-identity fiascos like these for the length of their career, with classic grim weepers like "The Killing Moon" getting attributed to Simple Minds by well-meaning file-swappers and mix-tape makers. Casual music listeners generally have trouble separating the Bunnies from the Furs, and most of those who can tend to have a passionate preference for one or the other.

    The bright news for that camp is this: Siberia is an alarmingly good record, one that comes off with grace and poise and dignity. Twenty-five years into their career, the group is keenly aware of what it does well, and doesn't do much to muck up the master plan. Which means Will Seargeant once again spins sterling silver arpeggios while McCulloch broods about bad luck and missed opportunities. Stylistically, it falls near U2's recent "return to form records" but is neither as rote nor as obvious. Siberia picks quiet consistency over big crescendos, and so while musically there are no great revelations (the opening gallop of "Parthenon Drive" is a straight echo of Ocean Rain's "Silver"), there are no great embarrassments, either. The songs are modestly melodic, in debt to nothing but the group's back catalog (though it's hard to ignore the similarity between "All Because of You Days" and "Makin' Whoopie"). The years have weathered McCulloch's smooth croon, and he takes no pains to hide the cracks around its edges. Instead he uses his age as an asset, leaning heavy into knocked-out lyrics like "Is this how the end begins?" and letting his voice squeak and break to accentuate the negatives.

    What stands out most, though, is the way Sargeant's patented latticework guitar patterns anticipated the current rash of feel-bad rock bands — from Interpol to the Stills to Stellastar* to every other band who generally gets compared to Joy Division. Figures — even when it comes to citing sources, Echo plays second fiddle.

  • They Say...

    Review by MacKenzie Wilson, All Music Guide

    Since their 1997 comeback, Echo & the Bunnymen have made some genuine attempts to keep the momentum going. Evergreen and What Are You Going to Do with Your Life? were eager, bright, and still a little brash. Flowers was nice with its light canvas; however, most fans still preferred their earlier material. That's not to say an older Ian McCulloch and Will Sergeant don't make great music together. It's just that the recent material seemed too prosaic. Their sound is so distinctly their own with Sergeant's silvery, tight guitar work and McCulloch's fashionable, sweet-and-sour kind of vocal charm. Siberia, Echo's tenth studio album (including the sans-McCulloch disaster, Reverberation), is the album the two school friends have been trying to make since getting back together to record Evergreen. This 11-song set has every crass beat of Crocodiles and every sparkling thread of Heaven Up Here while the edgy pop moments of the underrated Porcupine are sprinkled throughout. And of course, Ocean Rain will not be forgotten. If anything, Siberia mirrors the passion of that 1984 classic most of all. Sergeant's playing has never sounded better, particularly on the playful self-reflections of "Parthenon Drive" and "Of a Life." McCulloch's lyrics are exactly on par, and vocally, he's sharper than ever. Call it an age thing, but Siberia makes total sense for where Echo & the Bunnymen stands 20 years on as a band. They couldn't have created this album before now. Songs such as the bittersweet musings of "Stormy Weather" and "All Because of You Days" capture Echo & the Bunnymen at their most confident. Album standout "Scissors in the Sand" finds the band's usual cool and cocky demeanor still intact. Really, Siberia is a beautiful album. All those years ago, Echo & the Bunnymen gave the world some "songs to learn and sing." With Siberia, they do it again.

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