Is More Songs to Learn and Sing a good place to start with Echo & the Bunnymen?

Yes, More Songs to Learn and Sing is recommended as a starting point for new Echo & the Bunnymen listeners. This career-spanning collection moves from taut post-punk urgency toward orchestral grandeur and later pop sheen. Released in 2006, More Songs to Learn and Sing revisits Echo & the Bunnymen’s 1980s breakthrough and extends the story beyond their 1985 compilation Songs to Learn and Sing. It also reaches into the band’s reunion era, including material from 1997’s Evergreen and 2005’s Siberia.

Who is More Songs to Learn and Sing for?

More Songs to Learn and Sing works well if you're into nostalgic melodies for reflection, dynamic energy shifts throughout and catchy anthems for sing-alongs.

How many songs are on More Songs to Learn and Sing?

More Songs to Learn and Sing has 28 tracks, running approximately 76 minutes.

Released 20 years ago

More Songs to Learn and Sing

Echo & the Bunnymen · 2006

76 min · 28 tracks · post-punk

This career-spanning collection moves from taut post-punk urgency toward orchestral grandeur and later pop sheen.

Spotify Apple Music

YouTube Music YouTube Deezer Bandcamp SoundCloud

Own it: Amazon eBay

Top tracks — play these first

→
The Cutter Start here — establishes the sonic palette early
→
The Back of Love — Its restless bass and tightly wound rhythm show the band’s early post-punk attack before the collection turns toward more expansive arrangements.
→
The Killing Moon — A measured pulse and orchestral sweep give the song its sense of grandeur, balancing romantic fatalism with an unusually stately pop melody.
→
Lips Like Sugar — The bright, layered production and insistent chorus show the band translating its moody atmosphere into late-1980s pop.
→
Nothing Lasts Forever — This reunion-era single brings a reflective lyric to an expansive arrangement, showing how the band carried its dramatic style into the 1990s.

Elevation

Our rating, out of 100 — and why.

AI-generated from five scored dimensions. An opinion, not a measurement.

52 /100

Lowland

Higher than 2% of albums we've rated

The compilation showcases notable tracks but lacks a cohesive narrative or progression.

What we noticed

The instrumentation often includes jangly guitars and atmospheric synths, characteristic of the post-punk genre.

Composition 25% of the score: 6/10
Craft 20% of the score: 6/10
Durability 25% of the score: 5/10
Distinctiveness 18% of the score: 5/10
Sequencing 12% of the score: 4/10

Influence 4/10

Known within its scene. Reported but not counted — how far a record travelled describes its reception rather than the record, and a newer release has had less time to travel than an older one.

Is this for you?

Good fit if you like

nostalgic melodies for reflection
dynamic energy shifts throughout
catchy anthems for sing-alongs
engaging tracks for social gatherings
wave-like pacing with surprises

Maybe skip if you

seeking instant gratification
prefer standalone singles only

Where this album fits

In the catalog: Breakthrough — Reintroduced the band to a wider audience after a long hiatus.
Themes: post-punk nostalgia· ethereal melodies
Career context: Released in 2006, More Songs to Learn and Sing revisits Echo & the Bunnymen’s 1980s breakthrough and extends the story beyond their 1985 compilation Songs to Learn and Sing. It also reaches into the band’s reunion era, including material from 1997’s Evergreen and 2005’s Siberia.
Stylistic neighbors: The Cure· Joy Division· Siouxsie and the Banshees

New to Echo & the Bunnymen? Find your way in →

Moments worth listening for

Where the writing does something specific.

The Killing Moon

The chorus returns to a confrontation between fate and individual will, then makes surrender the condition for its resolution.

The conditional turn delays the payoff, giving the repeated refrain the shape of a bargain rather than a simple prediction.