The Fountain (album)

The Fountain is the eleventh studio album by British band Echo & the Bunnymen. It was released on 12 October 2009 and produced by John McLaughlin, Ian McCulloch and Simon Perry. The first single from the album, "Think I Need It Too", was released on 28 September 2009.

The Fountain
Studio album by
Echo & the Bunnymen
Released12 October 2009 (UK)
10 November 2009 (USA)
RecordedParr Street Studios, Liverpool; The Mixing Rooms, Glasgow; Archangel Studios, New York
GenreAlternative rock
Length36:52
LabelOcean Rain
ProducerIan McCulloch, John McLaughlin, Simon Perry
Echo & the Bunnymen chronology
Siberia
(2005)		 The Fountain
(2009)		 Meteorites
(2014)
Singles from The Fountain
  1. "Think I Need It Too"
    Released: October 2009
  2. "Life of a Thousand Crimes"
    Released: January 2010

Reception
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic58/100[1]
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[2]
The Guardian[3]
The Independent(favourable)[4]
Mojo[5]
NME[6]
The Observer(mixed)[7]
Q[8]
The Times[9]
Uncut[10]
The Word(unfavourable)[11]

The album was mostly received to mixed reviews.[1] Reviewing The Fountain for the British music magazine Mojo, Johnny Sharp described the album as "mid-tempo, middle of the road, middle-aged pop-rock". Sharp went on to say that the only character was to be found in the "pun-laden lyrics" of "Shroud of Turin".[5] Writing in The Word, Andrew Collins said that despite there being a "languid grace" to whatever the pair do, [lead singer, Ian] McCulloch's voice "sounds shot" and [guitarist, Will] Sergeant's guitar sounded like a "diluted copy of somebody copying him".[11] Stephen Troussé for Uncut described the album as "dismayingly anonymous".[10] Troussé went on to describe McLaughlin's production as "hyper-compressed, anodyne-sheen".

In The Guardian, Dave Simpson gave the album four stars. He described the album as, "Their most accessible offering in a long time sees Ian McCulloch at his most lyrically playful and cocksure, hovering between confessional [...] and mischievous, and firing off one-liners as if it were the band's 80s heyday. Will Sergeant's guitar-playing is at its scintillating best [...] Their poppiest tunes since 'Bring on the Dancing Horses' could win the Scouse veterans a new generation of fans."[3] Writing in the music magazine Q, Garry Mulholland described McCulloch and Sergeant's sound as "remarkably perky" and "rejuvenated by an injection of youth from new rhythm section Simon Perry and David Thomas and pop producer John McLaughlin."[8]

The Fountain reached No. 63 on the UK Albums Chart.[12]

Track listing

All tracks written by Ian McCulloch, John McLaughlin, Simon Perry, David Thomas, and Will Sergeant, except where noted.

  1. "Think I Need It Too" – 3:41
  2. "Forgotten Fields" – 3:46
  3. "Do You Know Who I Am?" – 2:52
  4. "Shroud of Turin" (McCulloch, Sergeant) – 4:10
  5. "Life of a Thousand Crimes" (McCulloch, Sergeant) – 3:22
  6. "The Fountain" (McCulloch) – 4:01
  7. "Everlasting Neverendless" – 3:08
  8. "Proxy" (McCulloch) – 3:15
  9. "Drivetime" – 4:11
  10. "The Idolness of Gods" (McCulloch) – 4:26

Personnel
  • Ian McCulloch – vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards, percussion, producer, mixing ("The Fountain")
  • Will Sergeant – guitar, vocals, bass, piano, keyboards, drums, percussion
  • John McLaughlin – producer
  • Simon Perry – producer ("Think I Need It Too", "Forgotten Fields", "Do You Know Who I Am?", "Life of a Thousand Crimes", "Everlasting Neverendless", and "Drivetime")
  • David Thomas – mixing (except "The Fountain")
  • Andrea Wright – additional production, mixing ("The Fountain")
  • Paul Fleming – keyboards, synthesizers, piano, drum programming
  • Gordy Goudie – guitar, vocals, bass, e-bow on "The Fountain", lap steel on "The Idolness of Gods"
  • Nick Kilroe – drums, percussion, loops on "Everlasting Neverendless"

References
  1. "The Fountain by Echo & the Bunnymen". Retrieved 3 October 2016.
  2. Allen, J. "The Fountain > Review". Allmusic. Rovi. Retrieved on 11 November 2009.
  3. Simpson, David (9 October 2009). "Echo and the Bunnymen: The Fountain". The Guardian. (London: Guardian Media Group). Retrieved on 9 October 2009.
  4. Richman, Simmy (11 October 2009). "Album: Echo & the Bunnymen, The Fountain (Ocean Rain)". The Independent (London). Retrieved on 11 October 2009.
  5. Sharp, Johnny. "Echo & The Bunnymen: The Fountain". Mojo (192: November 2009). p. 91. ISSN 1351-0193.
  6. "Echo & the Bunnymen: The Fountain". NME (17 October 2009). p. 40. ISSN 0028-6362
  7. Fox, Killian (11 October 2009). "Echo and the Bunnymen: The Fountain". Review supplement in The Observer (London: Guardian Media Group). p. 16.
  8. Mulholland, Garry. "Echo & the Bunnymen: The Fountain". Q (280: November 2009). p. 104. ISSN 0955-4955.
  9. Potton, Ed (10 October 2009). "Echo and the Bunnymen: The Fountain". The Times (London: News Corporation). Retrieved on 12 October 2009.
  10. Troussé, Stephen. "Echo and the Bunnymen: The Fountain". Uncut (150: November 2009). p. 84. ISSN 1368-0722
  11. Collins, Andrew. "Return of the Mac". The Word (81: November 2009). London: Developmental Hell. p94.
  12. "Top 100 Albums Chart::Chart Week Ending Date 24 October 2009". The Official Charts Company. Retrieved on 19 October 2009.
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