(photo: Myspace)

Space may be the final frontier, but it’s no obstacle for Echo & the Bunnymen, the coolest band in the universe (Ian McCulloch’s words).  Their 1984 masterpiece, Ocean Rain, is being taken into the great beyond by Colonel Timothy L. Korpa, a longtime Bunnymen fanatic, whose about to start a three-month mission aboard the International Space Station.  Korpa will take some photos of the album up there with the crew, and give “The Killing Moon” a spin while basking in the glow of the moon itself.  The Bunnymen couldn’t be more pleased about the honour.  McCulloch says, “As a kid I dreamt of being an astronaut, and now in a way it feels like I’m fulfilling that dream.”  Well, kind of.

The mission just so happens to be coinciding with a box set reissue of Ocean Rain that will include the original 1984 album, a live version of the album recorded in Liverpool last November, a DVD documentary and booklet.  The first 1000 copies ordered will also be signed by Bunnymen stalwarts McCulloch and Will Sergeant.  The band are continuing their live engagements, playing the album in its entirety through the summer, mist notably on the Peel Stage at this year’s Glastonbury Festival.  New material (tentatively titled The Fountain) is expected some time this year.

MP3: Echo & The Bunnymen “The Killing Moon”
Twitter: Echo & The Bunnymen
Myspace: Echo & The Bunnymen