Eels
Ever since 1985, Mark Everett has been making records under the enigmatic ‘E’ moniker. His first was called ‘Bad Dude In Love’, and that’s pretty much all anyone other than the man himself knows about it. And he’s not telling. In 1992 however, Polydor records would release ‘A Man Called E’, which far more people would come to know and love after E was booked as the opening act for flame haired warbler Tori Amos, bringing him wider acclaim. He released another record for Polydor called ‘Broken Toy Shop’, on which for the first time he would collaborate with drum banger Jonathan ‘Butch’ Norton.
The pair of bearded musicians met up with bass player Tommy Walter and founded Eels, choosing the name so that E’s solo albums would be next to his band’s output in the collections of those who organise their records alphabetically (so long as they haven’t got anything by, say, The Eagles). After becoming one of the first bands to sign on the dotted line with a new label, Dreamworks Records, they released their debut LP ‘Beautiful Freak’ in 1996. Britain went especially mad for it, DJs like Steve Lamacq and Jo Whiley caning singles like ‘Novocaine For the Soul’ and ‘Susan’s House’, joyously unable to place the band’s twisted grunge sound amidst the tail end of Britpop that the UK was living in.
A year before the recording of ‘Beautiful Freak’s follow up, Tommy Walter left the band to be replaced by Adam Siegel (though even he only stuck around only until promotional duties for the second LP were over). It wasn’t to be the only departure in the life of E at the time, with friends dying, his sister committing suicide and his mother being diagnosed with cancer. No surprise then that 1998’s sophomore effort ‘Electro Shock Blues’ was largely devoid of the quirkiness that characterised its predecessor. However, it’s the band’s masterpiece – a huge, sprawling work that reflects brilliantly many of the aspects of a person’s character than can only surface when things are at rock bottom.
Retreating to his basement, E managed to recruit Peter Buck from R.E.M., Michael Simpson from the Dust Brothers and the same piano Neil Young used on ‘After The Gold Rush’ (wouldn’t have fancied getting that one down the stairs) to record the successor to ‘Electro Shock Blues’, the far lighter, poppier, happier ‘Daisies of the Galaxy’. Included as a bonus track was the single ‘Mr. E’s Beautiful Blues’, the simplest and most joyous moment in the expansive Eels back catalogue, which also featured on the soundtrack to the teen rom-com ‘Road Trip’.
The tour for the record saw the Eels swell to a six piece for the first time, incorporating an orchestral section. However, this wasn’t to signal the arrival of a luscious, strings ridden record – not just yet. In 2001, Eels returned with ‘Souljacker’, a murder-obsessed rock record far meaner in spirit that the cute melodies of ‘Daisies…’, co-written with long time PJ Harvey collaborator John Parish. Eels were increasingly becoming a band with an ever rotating line up, with E the only constant. Even drummer Butch didn’t survive the sessions for 2003’s ‘Shootenanny!’ LP, E stating that he’d left the band to drum for Tracy Champman, Butch himself citing money problems. The album itself was recorded live over a ten day stretch, E now referring to the period as a ‘break’ from recording the 33 song double disc set that would follow it, ‘Blinking Lights and Other Revelations’, a mammoth work which would see him collaborate again with Peter Buck, and for the first time, the legendary Tom Waits.
To recreate the lush sonic textures of the album live, Eels once again enlisted the help of an orchestra. And this time, E really embraced the idea, sanctioning the release of a live album ‘Eels with Strings: Live at Town Hall’, a career spanning set put to tape during a gig in New York.
And until now, that’s all we’ve heard from the band. Granted, there’s been quite a lot going on there, so we begrudge not – in fact, we celebrate - the dawn on January 21st 2008 of their first ever compilation records. ‘Meet The Eels: Essential Eels Volume 1’ will be a ‘Best Of’ style compilation taking in tracks from each of the ever-mutating band’s albums and a DVD featuring all the band’s videos and a live performance. Heard it all before? Then cast your gaze towards ‘Useless Trinkets’, the unfairly self deprecating title for their rarities compilation which will include fifty (yeah, five zero!) tracks of hard to get hold of Eels material alongside a DVD of the band’s entire performance at Lollapalooza 2006.
EELSTHEBAND.COM: Very different in look and content to www.eelsthefish.com, which doesn’t exist, this is a remarkably comprehensive official site with material dating back throughout their entire career.
MYSPACE.COM/EELS: The drill is well known to you by now – tour dates, five songs, videos, pics, blog, the random drivel of a billion fans.
EELSTHEDISCOGRAPHY.CO.UK: You want an Eels discography printed with ink that doesn’t come off on your hands? Try this one – it’s a website.
ROCKINGEELS.COM: God bless fan sites for bringing you everything you never wanted to know about something. This one does a particularly good job of being pointlessy comprehensive. Bravo.
GALAXY.BYKR.ORG: A database listing and detailing every Eels song, and E solo project. Could take you a while.
HEY MAN! (NOW YOU’RE REALLY LIVING): One of Eels’ finest singles, the title of which made a change from their usual death / dying / dead shtick.
SHOOTENANNY!: Recorded live over a ten day stretch, this might not have been Eels’ most labour intensive records, but it’s one of their best.
Below, a video for the lead single for each and every Eels album so far:
NOVOCAINE FOR THE SOUL:
LAST STOP: THIS TOWN:
MR. E’S BEAUTIFUL BLUES:
SOULJACKER PT.1
SATURDAY MORNING
HEY MAN (NOW YOU’RE REALLY LIVIN’):