Photo Credit: Fritz
Words: Ellie Brown

Post-punk legends and Liverpool icons Echo & the Bunnymen introduce their first album of original material since 2014, Apples for Isaac. Hits like ‘The Killing Moon’ solidified the band’s reputation as one of the most influential British bands of the 1980s and their albums Crocodiles, Heaven Up Here, and Ocean Rain ensured they left a mark on the post-punk, psychedelic rock music scene. Despite being in the music industry for so long, Apples for Isaac proves the Bunnymen still have more left to give. 

Ian McCulloch’s maturing voice has transformed from a tenor croon to a raspy weathered baritone, delivering a vocal performance that’s no less powerful than the bands earlier work. This shift is clear in tracks like ‘Can’t Be Sold’, where his deep, gravelly voice creates a dark, brooding intimacy, and ‘I’ll Be Your Sunshine’ where his romantic sweeping voice accompanies soft string arrangements. 

Underpinning the album is a remarkable rhythm section from the late Clem Burke, the legendary drummer for Blondie, who was ‘integral to the making’ of Apples for Isaac. His crisp snares and motorik beats shine through, giving the album a vibrant and youthful energy. The only constant member of the Bunnymen, Will Sergeant, delivers his signature bright and atmospheric guitar work, that practically sings alongside McCulloch. 

The first single from the album, ‘Brussels Is Haunted’, introduces the album’s central motifs of mortality, reflection, and nostalgia. ‘The Light That Surrounds You’ is built on a steady motorik drum beat with sparkling guitar textures that balances between poetic and probing lyrics that speak into you. 

Apples for Isaac opens with fuzzy guitar grooves and a dynamic rhythm section that shapes ‘Take Me By The Hand’. The layered production is grounded by simple and truthful lyrics that place importance on human connection. 

While the album deals with heavy themes of aging and mortality, in ‘Hijacked’ and ‘Lab Rats Ran’, provide youthful vigor and energy. ‘Hijacked’ anchors the album’s title by its catchy refrain: ‘We got hijacked/We got hijacked (Apples for Isaac)’. The punchy fanfares in ‘Lab Rats Ran’ add a bright sound to the gravel of McCulloch’s voice and the otherwise dark and heavy guitar layers. 

The band trades this post-punk energy for a slower, more emotive tone in tracks like ‘An Unstoppable Force’, which for me is the standout track. It slows the tempo of earlier tracks and is a quiet whisper that could slip through the cracks of an album with such focus on it’s kinetic drums and layered steady 12-string guitars. Beautiful orchestratic strings and poignant piano notes ensure that is not forgotten though, and they emphasise such emotional lyrics with a semantic field of storytelling and reflection. 

Rather than relying on past glory, Apples for Isaac stands on its own and feels like something so new yet familiar from Echo & the Bunnymen. The album is underpinned by the theme of nostalgia and reflection but also by new beginnings. The Bunnymen refuse to fall into the comfortable label of a legacy act, as they prove they still have so much more left to say.