E's So Good (Electro-shock Blues - Eels)

Member Name: indiecater

Product:	Electro-shock Blues - Eels
Date:	01/02/01 (193 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Wistful Pop with a Deranged Edge.

Disadvantages: Eat some Angel Delight Man.

Eels didn't appeal to me at all with their debut 'Beautiful Freak'. Ok 'Novocaine for the Soul' was amazing but everything else was fairly limp. Thankfully Electro-Shock Blues makes up for that albums failings. It is as fresh faced and mischievous as Denis the Menace but also a deep intelligence.

Straight from the off there is a zany, almost hauntingly beautiful moment when 'Elizabeth on the Bathroom Floor' effortlessly slips by. Followed by the curious 'Going to the Funeral' and all those stories about lead singer 'E' begin to make sense. Choosing subject material that any sane songwriter would avoid is certainly not in 'E's script. And they call Radiohead depressing, next to Eels indie's great hope sound like Steps.

Eltro-Shock Blues is an intimate record but singularly lacks the comfort that intimacy provides. It's bile is somehow harnessed by a low-key approach but even then the sentiments often find their target. It is similar to smiling and speaking in tones that don't portray the anger that the words contain.

At times legendary miserablist 'E' lapses into overdrive. Who else could come up with song depressing titles like 'Cancer for the Cure', 'Hospital Food' and 'My Descent into Madness'. The latter combining several moans with sleigh-bells, a combination that is close to intriguing. A Grinch Christmas Carol if you wish.

At other times 'E' uses his pop sensibilities on the shiny 'Last Stop: This Town'. The title track is a frosty morning at dawn, 'Efils God' is the day before playing in reverse. 'The Medication is wearing off' could almost be a jaunty Boards of Canada number. Closing track 'P.S. You Rock my World' containing the immortal line 'I was at a funeral, the day I realised I wanted to spend my life with you' is more than a little affecting.

So thankfully it&#
39;s not all doom and gloom. In fact if you block out the lyrics what is left is a gorgeous quilt of tranquillity. The album that could have been so morose suddenly becomes adorable and inviting. So my advise is to listen with care and never judge a song by it's title.

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