bring on the bunnymen

Influential '80s band Echo & The Bunnymen bring on a Dallas stop in new tour

Lead singer Ian McCulloch hits Dallas with the band this August.

Echo & The Bunnymen/Facebook

In yet another jolt to Gen-Xers’ “it’s been how long!?” sensibilities, one of the most influential bands in modern British music history has just announced a North American tour celebrating 40 — yes, 40 — years.

Innovative pop-New Wave act Echo & The Bunnymen will visit three Texas cities during the tour, including Dallas’ House of Blues on Friday, August 19. They'll also hit up Houston at House of Blues on Wednesday, August 17 and Austin’s Austin City Limits Live at The Moody Theater on Tuesday, August 20.

Tickets for the 2022 North American tour will be available at 10 am Friday, May 20 online.

Fans can expect at least 20 of the Bunnymen’s top-20 hits, such as “The Killing Moon,” “Lips like Sugar,” “Bring On the Dancing Horses,” “Never Stop,” “Seven Seas,” and “Nothing Lasts Forever.” The band also boasts nine, seminal, top-20 albums, including Crocodiles, Heaven Up Here, Porcupine, and Ocean Rain — all of which have served as inspiration and foundations for modern acts such as Coldplay (who covered “Lips Like Sugar,”), The Killers, Hole, and The Flaming Lips.

Led by lead singer Ian McCulloch (no, he’s not “Echo”) and his gravity-defying hair and Bowie-esque crooning, Echo & The Bunnymen were smart, stylish leaders of the ’80s post-punk movement, crafting irresistibly catchy hooks and instrumentation.

Singles such as the poppy, anthemic “Bring On the Dancing Horses” were perfectly defining matches in 1980s teen movies such as Pretty in Pink, while the moodily upbeat “The Killing Moon” is widely considered the band’s biggest hit.

Most recently, the band dropped the album The Stars, The Oceans & The Moon in 2018, with Q Magazine anointing the release as “magical.”

“I can’t wait for this upcoming tour of America and Toronto,” said McCulloch in a statement. “It will be a continuation of the U.K. tour we did in February/March of this year which was my favourite ever tour, and talking to fans and friends after shows and reading loads of brilliant comments from Bunnymen and Bunnywomen, all saying pretty much what I was feeling … that some new magical ingredient had been added to the starlight and the moonbeams and the angels and the devils that live inside the songs.”

music concerts

Turn Cancer Upside Down

Figure skating legend Scott Hamilton brings holiday ice show to DFW

Scott Hamilton & Friends Benefiting The Scott Hamilton CARES Foundation

Photo by Jason Kempin/Getty Images

Scott Hamilton will emcee the ice show.

Scott Hamilton, the 1984 Olympic gold medal-winning figure skater known for his signature backflip, is coming to Dallas-Fort Worth for a holiday ice show and "Frozen 5K" fundraising mega-event.

The fundraiser portion ties into Hamilton's public battle with testicular cancer in the 1990s, which led him to found the Scott Hamilton CARES Foundation in 2014. The nonprofit's mission is to fund innovative, patient-centered, targeted treatments that fight cancer while preserving quality of life.

One of its fundraising events is the Sk8 to Elimin8 Cancer ice shows, which bring Hamilton and other world-class athletes to rinks around the country.

NYTEX Sports Centre in North Richland Hills is hosting a holiday version on Saturday, December 20 at 7 pm, where Hamilton will emcee and Olympians Mariah Bell, Ashley Cain, and Polina Edmunds will perform.

Tickets range from $32.75 to $79, with proceeds benefiting UT Southwestern Medical Center in addition to the Scott Hamilton CARES Foundation.

Mariah Bell, figure skating, Olympian Figure skater Mariah Bell. Getty Images

"This isn’t just an ice show - it’s a celebration of hope, resilience, and community," the city of North Richland Hills says in a Facebook post. "Expect breathtaking performances, holiday cheer, and the chance to see world-class athletes light up the ice, all while supporting a cause that will touch so many."

If you'd like to get out on the ice yourself, you can register for the Frozen 5K on December 21 and skate 35 laps to honor and remember those impacted by cancer. The $35 registration fee includes a T-shirt, or you can donate extra to receive other Sk8 to Elimin8 Cancer swag.

DFW-only fundraising incentives include an autographed program ($500), a VIP meet-and-greet plus autographed program ($1,000), or the chance to perform at the holiday ice show (top fundraisers only — see more info here). Better start stretching.

It's the perfect time for Hamilton to bring his ice show to North Texas. Ice rinks are a huge holiday trend for 2025, with kids of all ages gliding and spinning on special pop-up rinks from Grapevine to Garland to the all-new CultureMap City Rink in downtown Dallas.

scott hamilton cancer research fundraising olympians mariah bell ashley cain polina edmunds scott hamilton cares foundation ska8 to elimin8 cancer frozen 5k ice skating city rink