Echo & The Bunnymen’s live EP Shine So Hard has been reissued by Rhino.
The recording was captured at their legendary one-off show at Pavilion Gardens, Buxton on January 17th, 1981. The concert took place a few months before recording their second album Heaven Up Here and featured songs from that record as well as Echo's debut album Crocodiles. Four songs from the concert – “Crocodiles,” “Zimbo,” “All That Jazz,” and “Over The Wall” – were chosen for inclusion on the EP, which went on to be released April 10th, 1981.
The Shine So Hard EP has been newly pressed on camouflage colored vinyl and is limited to 1500 copies. Camo-vinyl was chosen due to the theme of the show which stemmed from Echo’s obsession with camo and army fatigues at the time. Head here to obtain a reissue of Shine So Hard while they last.
Performance footage of the four songs from the EP is featured in the 30 minute companion film Shine So Hard along with other footage of the band, including Pete de Frietas reading The Catcher In The Rye. The fascinating abstract film, directed by John Smith, was released in August of 1981 and was shown in theaters in England and later released on VHS. A digital version restored by Nacho Restoration premiered on You Tube last year and is available to view below.