Additional personnel: Ceri James (piano, Wurlitzer piano, Fender Rhodes piano, Hammond B-3 organ, keyboards); Alex "Kong" Germains (bass, background vocals); Vincent Jamieson (drums, congas, shaker, tambourine).

Producers: Ian McCulloch, Will Sergeant, Pete Coleman.

Recorded at Elevator Studios, Liverpool, England and Bryn Derwyn Studios, Snowdonia, North Wales.

Personnel: Ian McCulloch (vocals, guitar); Will Sergeant (guitar, electric guitar, electric 12-string guitar, 12-string guitar); Ceri James (piano, electric piano, Fender Rhodes piano, programming).

Audio Mixer: Peter Coleman.

Recording information: Bryn Derwyn Studios, Snowdonia; Elevator Studios, Liverpool.

Photographer: Andrew Swainson.

While Echo & the Bunnymen rarely reached the heights of their 1980s glory days on later releases, albums like 2001's FLOWERS prove they still had plenty of creative juice nine albums into their career. Moody, melodic tunes like "King of Kings" and "Make Me Shine" may lack the angst of OCEAN RAIN-era Echo & the Bunnymen, but the songcraft is as as sharp as ever, if not more. The music still swirls with tinges of `60s psychedelia, but there's a clarity to Will Sargeant's guitar lines and Ian McCulloch's singing that is deeply appealing. FLOWERS proves that though this band may have mellowed, they have also deepened in flavor.

Still clinging to the post-punk snarl that made them cult favorites during the '80s, Echo and the Bunnymen's Ian McCulloch and Will Sergeant maintain a stunning inventiveness as they enter into the third decade of the band. They're older, but an ignited passion remains central. What Are You Going to Do With Your Life? was more or less a lackluster Ian McCulloch effort, but the mediocrity of that album was twisted into a clear beauty for Echo's ninth album, Flowers. After contractual battles with London Records, a deal with SpinArt contributed to the redefined structure of the band, and Flowers solidified McCulloch's and Sergeant's brotherly musical jaunt, reaching a respectable status. McCulloch isn't an angst-ridden punk -- he's aged with class -- and Sergeant's typically moody guitar work has mellowed. The alluring rawness of the band is intact, and songs such as "King of Kings" and "Hide & Seek" are playful cuts with reminiscent production work of 1983's musical prize, Ocean Rain. "It's Alright" rolls with layered guitars, and McCulloch experiments vocally for a rough-edged spiral of psychedelics and '60s pop flair. "Everybody Knows" and "An Eternity Turns" get back to basics, circa Crocodiles, and they are the most consistent set of songs on the new album. Ian McCulloch is at his finest with a lyrical clarity that is typically dark, intelligent and swaggering. Sergeant's rippling accompaniment is rightfully complimentary to define that Echo and the Bunnymen have stayed in tune to what makes them an effective unit. Flowers doesn't possess the initial fiery power of the band's first four albums, but the underlying concept that brought McCulloch and Sergeant together in 1978 is what matters, and this album holds true to such a bond. ~ MacKenzie Wilson