* En anglais uniquement
The swirling guitars of Will Sergeant has been one of
Echo and the Bunnymen's distinguishing characteristics since the band's inception in 1978. Initially only playing a one-string guitar, Sergeant was inspired by the punk movement's minimalist approach to music. However, Sergeant was also enamored of '60s psychedelic rock and the marriage of the two spawned the brittle, otherworldly guitar sound of
Echo and the Bunnymen's 1980 debut LP,
Crocodiles. On
Crocodiles, Sergeant unshackled his
Love,
Doors, and
Velvet Underground influences and sharpened the edges, creating bleak, dreamy landscapes that countless imitators would feed from. Post-punk and new wave bands such as
the Chameleons,
the Mighty Lemon Drops, and
the Ocean Blue intoxicated themselves on Sergeant's ethereal riffs.
In 1982, Sergeant released a solo album of instrumentals, Themes for Grind. After vocalist
Ian McCulloch departed from
Echo and the Bunnymen in 1988, Sergeant recorded another
Echo and the Bunnymen LP in 1990 without him. Entitled
Reverberation, the album introduced singer Noel Burke as a replacement for McCulloch. The album was a commercial and critical flop. When Sergeant reunited with McCulloch as
Electrafixion in the mid-'90s, grunge had conquered the alternative-rock scene; consequently, Sergeant cranked up the amps for
Electrafixion. But fans didn't embrace Elektrafixion's hard rock touches; in 1997,
Echo and the Bunnymen reformed with Sergeant, McCulloch, and bassist Les Pattinson. Sergeant has also released ambient music under the name Glide. ~ Michael Sutton