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Just back from their gig in Glasgow, I've realized that The Eels, who could be easily argued to be my favourite band, have no thread on Barbelith. A crying shame, really. I’m here to rectify that.
Comprised of front-man “E” (from a childhood nickname) and 29 constantly rotating band members, The Eels write songs of a personal nature almost to exclusion of all else. If you think you’ve never heard them, well, you might be wrong. Although they fared a bit better in the UK than stateside, their music has been used in a number of popular films, including Shrek (My Beloved Monster) and Shrek 2 (Need Some Sleep).
I became a huge Eels fan when their second album Electro-Shock Blues was released. I had enjoyed their first album, but Blues, an exploration of E’s feelings about the death of his family, affected me in ways that other music has yet to match. Written and recorded in the wake of the suicide of his depressive older sister, the album also involved his mother being diagnosed with cancer and deteriorating to the point of near-death. Through all this on Electro-Shock Blues E takes the listener so close to his sorrow it’s palpable, such as on Elizabeth on the Bathroom Floor about his sister Liz and her depression, or Dead Of Winter which is about his mother’s radiation treatments for cancer, and how he knows she will die soon.
I’m going on a bit much. To stop myself from going into too much detail, I would just add that I’ve never really been disappointed with a single album since. While yet to match the emotional intensity of Blues, the recent album, Blinking Lights and Other Revelations, sees E in a very nostalgic frame of mind, and sees him make what could be considered a reconciliation with his dead father.
Anyway, go listen to some.
Oh, and they fucking rock in concert. Even the tour he’s doing now, which is very laid-back and almost classical in feel, manages to kick ass.
Anyone else here a fan? |
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