Rating: 
Summary: echo & the bunnymen live- subdued yet powerful
Review: "echo & the bunnymen: live in liverpool" is a well produced film that impressively captures the passion of a bunnymen live performance. throughout the course of the DVD, longtime fans will note that ian mcculloch's voice has undergone a significant transformation from the powerful timbre he exhibited circa the 1980's to a less refined, nearly dylan-esque quality that is undoubtedly the result of heavy smoking. however, mcculloch's limited vocal range occasionally hints at the sheer brilliance of yesteryear during such songs as "the cutter" and "bring on the dancing horses." newer material transfers well to the concert setting and perhaps provides a more accurate understanding of the band's current capabilities...eschewing the bombast of 80's synth-rock and adopting wearier, wiser sound that is at times more reminiscent of tom petty and the heartbreakers than it is of echo & the bunnymen's contemporaries.visual effects are somewhat profuse throughout the DVD. most notably, archive footage of the band is often superimposed onto the live performance. the results are mixed...while the imagery is interesting and sentimental, it occasionally detracts from the actual performance. audio quality is satisfactory. "echo & the bunnymen: live in liverpool" is an extremely worthwhile investment for those who are familiar with the band and new fans alike. this DVD is a document of the continuing evolution of a brilliant band.
Rating:
Summary: echo & the bunnymen live- subdued yet powerful
Review: "echo & the bunnymen: live in liverpool" is a well produced film that impressively captures the passion of a bunnymen live performance. throughout the course of the DVD, longtime fans will note that ian mcculloch's voice has undergone a significant transformation from the powerful timbre he exhibited circa the 1980's to a less refined, nearly dylan-esque quality that is undoubtedly the result of heavy smoking. however, mcculloch's limited vocal range occasionally hints at the sheer brilliance of yesteryear during such songs as "the cutter" and "bring on the dancing horses." newer material transfers well to the concert setting and perhaps provides a more accurate understanding of the band's current capabilities...eschewing the bombast of 80's synth-rock and adopting wearier, wiser sound that is at times more reminiscent of tom petty and the heartbreakers than it is of echo & the bunnymen's contemporaries. visual effects are somewhat profuse throughout the DVD. most notably, archive footage of the band is often superimposed onto the live performance. the results are mixed...while the imagery is interesting and sentimental, it occasionally detracts from the actual performance. audio quality is satisfactory. "echo & the bunnymen: live in liverpool" is an extremely worthwhile investment for those who are familiar with the band and new fans alike. this DVD is a document of the continuing evolution of a brilliant band.
Rating:
Summary: A Long Time In Coming
Review: Having been a Bunnymen fan for over 20 years, and after seeing them live three times, I was eager to secure this live DVD. I am now enjoying the DVD for almost two weeks; I am very glad that I was not swayed by the various reviews that slag the quick editing / imagery. I enjoy this DVD the more I play it. I especially like the mix of songs that were chosen for this production. Hearing some older and lesser known songs such as Villiers Terrace and Zimbo / All My Colours rounds out an excellent playlist. The projection of old band related images onto the backstage does not distract from the production. Rather, I enjoy seeing the images of the band in younger days. The main focus of the camera remains Ian and Will; their performances become stronger and the show progresses.
Rating:
Summary: When did Ian morph into Neil Diamond
Review: I agree with the consensus that appears to have been reached regarding this disc: the performance is excellent, the editing and effects are distracting. I do have one comment to add. I believed that I detected an uncomfortable fact when I saw E&THBM about half a year ago, and this dvd confirms my suspicion. Ian McCullogh (sp?) sounds uncannily like Neil Diamond these days. Age and about a million cigarettes will do that, I suppose. He could probably make a very nice living touring casinos as a tribute act. Having said that, I like the change in his voice - it has a pleasant rasp to it, and he's now forced to sing in a lower register which I prefer personally. I always thought Ian tended to shriek at the upper end of his register too much on his old records.
Rating:
Summary: A must for all Echo fans
Review: I have to agree with some previous reviews. The last thing the music of the Bunnymen needs is 'atmosphere'. I didn't like all the fancy visuals and editing at all. The overlapping images were completely unecessary. And at other times there were rapid fire cuts so fast it made my head spin. Still, a worthwhile concert document. The sound is INCREDIBLE. I viewed this without an elaborate 5 speaker system so I envy those that do. Great song selection as well - highlights "Killing Moon", "Rescue", "Back of Love" and "Nothing Lasts Forever". However, it would have been cool to have "Show of Strength" included.
Rating: 
Summary: Good performance, shoddy post-production.
Review: I wouldn't necessarily call this DVD unwatchable, but it does leave a lot to be desired. As most everyone else has mentioned, the editing is quite rapid-fire and that can be distracting. But I wasn't bothered by the editing nearly as much as I was bothered by the totally tacky overlay effects. They make this film look like it was made in 1981, rather than 2001. They took archival footage of the band from the early days and mixed it in with the performance footage. It looks awful. And it's unfortunately true, Ian Mac's voice doesn't sound so stellar these days. But all in all, it's a nice concert. A nice setlist and good performances of each song. I think it's fine for those of us, like myself, who have never seen the Bunnymen live and want a taste of what it's like. But it's nothing you'll be popping into the old DVD player frequently. For bonus features, we have more archival footage set to live versions of "Crocodiles" and "Zimbo (All My Colours)", as well as the music videos for "It's Alright" and "Make Me Shine".
Rating:
Summary: Good performance, shoddy post-production.
Review: I wouldn't necessarily call this DVD unwatchable, but it does leave a lot to be desired. As most everyone else has mentioned, the editing is quite rapid-fire and that can be distracting. But I wasn't bothered by the editing nearly as much as I was bothered by the totally tacky overlay effects. They make this film look like it was made in 1981, rather than 2001. They took archival footage of the band from the early days and mixed it in with the performance footage. It looks awful. And it's unfortunately true, Ian Mac's voice doesn't sound so stellar these days. But all in all, it's a nice concert. A nice setlist and good performances of each song. I think it's fine for those of us, like myself, who have never seen the Bunnymen live and want a taste of what it's like. But it's nothing you'll be popping into the old DVD player frequently. For bonus features, we have more archival footage set to live versions of "Crocodiles" and "Zimbo (All My Colours)", as well as the music videos for "It's Alright" and "Make Me Shine".
Rating:
Summary: Poor visually but at least the music is top-notch.
Review: I'll admit that Ian McCulloch's voice sounds strained in his later years but he's still hitting it. Besides, if you smoked as many cigarettes as he does, how would you sound?
The performance is is full of fast camera editing along with fog and lights but I think that may have been to make up for the lack of movement on the part of the band. McCulloch spends the majority hugging the mic and smoking. But in the end, who really cares?
I recommend this DVD to fans of Echo, even for the music alone.
Rating:
Summary: Overall pretty pleased...we've waited long enough
Review: Ian is a bit subdued, but he hits his notes which is better than the old days where he was a bit loaded live. Will gets some nice tones out of his guitar as well. The performances, while tight, lack just a bit of rawness, but the sound is full. Flashing some graphics up occasionally didn't bother me because they were clips from the band in earlier times. Plus, you need something to break up the group just standing there. The surround mixes aren't bad, but very different between DTS and DD. DTS has more bottom end. My key complaint on the DTS mix is that both Will and Ian are coming through the center channel. When you bump up the center to hear Ian a little better, Will's volume comes up too, which is unnecessary because he's already dominant in the mix. Great track list, however. I have listened to this DVD a lot because I really like their music of which there is plenty. It's also good music to listen to when you're doing things around the house instead of just sitting there watching the whole time. Well worth it for ETBM fans.
Rating:
Summary: Overall pretty pleased...we've waited long enough
Review: Ian is a bit subdued, but he hits his notes which is better than the old days where he was a bit loaded live. Will gets some nice tones out of his guitar as well. The performances, while tight, lack just a bit of rawness, but the sound is full. Flashing some graphics up occasionally didn't bother me because they were clips from the band in earlier times. Plus, you need something to break up the group just standing there. The surround mixes aren't bad, but very different between DTS and DD. DTS has more bottom end. My key complaint on the DTS mix is that both Will and Ian are coming through the center channel. When you bump up the center to hear Ian a little better, Will's volume comes up too, which is unnecessary because he's already dominant in the mix. Great track list, however. I have listened to this DVD a lot because I really like their music of which there is plenty. It's also good music to listen to when you're doing things around the house instead of just sitting there watching the whole time. Well worth it for ETBM fans.
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