Customer Reviews

Electro-Shock Blues

5 star:		(67)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Everyone who knows the Eels knows their frontman/leader/ect doesn't flinch from writing songs about the darker things in life. Even so this is probably the bands darkest album too date. Starting with a song about his sisters suicide and then a song about her funeral its hard to imagine a bleaker start to an album, especially when its backed by the Eels twisted alt pop. Its pretty accurate to describe 'Electro-Shock Blues' as being a concept album, all about death, depression and even the light at the end of the tunnel. In the hands of another band like Marylin Manson or Pink Floyd this might by an unbearably selfrighteous, indulgent and wallowing experience, but E has just enough off kilter humor and quirkiness to pull it off without every giving unto those tendencies. Who else could write a song about watching your world crumble around you and going insane and include line like "voices tell me I am the sh*t" as E does on 'My Descent Into Madness'.

Probably the least 'rock' of the Eels albums, 'Electro-Shock Blues' is all twisted jazz, occasional drum loops, distorted violins, and breathy vocals. Like most Eels albums its got weird nursery rhyme quality, but this time its darker and more nightmarish. Theres only one real break for a pop song in 'Last Stop: This Town' which lightens up the gloomy mood and direction the album is taking up to this point. From their it quitely builds until finally there is relief at the end with 'PS You Rock My World', which its lucky because the confessions of E are so depressing that by the end your in desperate need of relief. Its not an easy album to listen to, and take really appreciate it it needs to be listened too in full, but as E will tell you the good things in life never come easy.

This is the 3rd or 4th time I have reviewed this record, and I will persist until one of my reviews gets posted. I will persist because this album is worth raving about. the eels have been compared to Soul Coughing and even Cake. I have a hard time seeing the similarities. The eels have a fresh, original sound. (Yes I said original). Sure, lead singer and songwriter E has his influences, but he brings something all his own to these songs. He has an intruiging voice, and a knack for writing a pop song that doesnt neccessarily fall on the ears as such... It took me a couple of listens to really dig my teeth into ElectorShock Blues, but It quickly became one of my favorite albums. Some might say that the lyrics are melodramatic. They might be, but this is a concept album about sickness and suffering (if you dont know, you should read up on what was going on with E before this came out). E captures the feeling of being powerless and alone perfectly. Check it out, give it a careful listen or two. You wont be sorry.

"Eels" are such an over-looked band. This second album is particular beauteous. The opening song is iced and fragile- it transports you directly into an atmosphere of devastation. What follows is wave after wave of naked emotion.

Some crackin demented tracks like "Cancer for the Cure" and the stonking "Hospital Food", are balanced by delicate acustic pieces like "Climbing up to the moon" and "3 speed". The title song and "Baby genius" are brilliant momonts of pause. But the key song here is the perfectly balanced, catchy "Last stop: this town"- possibly the definitive "Eels" tune.

Yes...it's disturbing. Listen to it at night and you'll feel haunted. Especially lookin at the sleave with a child drawing of someone crying over split milk and a tomestone which reads "Sing along at home". But this makes the final track "PS you rock my world" all the more uplifting- a peaceful light at the end of an insane tunnel.

I gotta start off by saying that I'm no music critic. In fact, most of the reviews that I've posted have gotten an overwhelming amount of "no, this review was NOT helpful"'s. But this is something I have to do. I HAVE to keep on getting people to buy this gorgeous album and rate it so that the average user rating is 5 stars. Get it? Buy this album, and rate it 5 stars because this is perhaps my favorite cd of all time.

It wasnt until last summer that I started to listen to the eels religiously, and this is the album that started my rampage. It's gorgeous from beginning to end (even baby genius, probably the most hated track on the cd). Mark Oliver Everett (or E), vocals for Eels, wrote this album about death, or death around him, and how he dealt with it. When he was 18 (or 19) he saw his father have a heart attack and die. I believe that year his sister also tried to kill herself. She succeeded years later during the Eels tour in europe. E's mother was also diagnosed with cancer and he was soon to become the last remaining member of his family. I love this cd, not only because of the beautiful lyrics, but because if flows so perfectly together, from the haunting first tracks to the powerful accoustic numbers near the end. And its also really cool to see the change, musically, that the eels went through with each of their albums. Truly Beautiful.

Wow...what can be said about "Electro-Shock Blues" that other people on here haven't said about it yet? Well, I'll start by saying it's truly one of the greatest and most beautiful albums I've ever heard and for that, it's in my Top 5 list for sure.

Unlike alot of other people, this record took no time to grow on me at all. I immediately fell in love with it. Everything about it. I loved the idea's and feelings that ran throughout the entire album, the way the songs flowed together, how the tracks were listed as a "side A" and a "side B", even the way it was packaged - and it hit me at just the right time in my life. And I know it sounds kind of dumb, but during some troubled times when things weren't going that great, it really felt like this album was there.

I'll never forget the first time I layed down on my bed and listened to this album all the way through. That's when I noticed the most beautiful thing about it - All the sad feelings and thoughts of death expressed early on in the album gradually change into feelings of hope, happiness, and life towards the end. It takes you on an incredible journey. Please do yourself a big favor and pick it up.

Scarred by the death of his mother and sister, this masterpiece was always going to be subdued. Yet its beauty thrives off E's vocal simplicity and his ability to implicity evoke messages through subtle lyrics. 'Last Stop This Town' is a wonderful figurative piece engraved with euphanisms, as through is restrained voice he chokes 'Its getting dark a little too early, are you missing the dearly bereft?' Although undervalued upon its first hearing, the album grows with time to emerge as a collection of songs simply incomparable with any of its peers. Infectious at times (my descent into madness) and thoughtful at others,its only defect being the occasional filler (baby genius), Electric Shock Blues is a masterful album whose beauty will prevent you from reaching for the anti-depressants.

For those of you who don't know who the Eels are or are not sure if you have heard them before than let me help you out. You may have heard their first single from the mid-nineties entitled "Novocaine for the Soul". It received some MTV spin but mostly late at night when the good videos are shown. The Eels than dropped off the pop music radar until the movie "Road Trip" came out. If you are between the ages of 17 and 30 I'm sure you've seen it and heard the Eels song "Mr. E's Beautiful Blues" with the chorus of "--- Damn right it's a beautiful day, uh-huh". The surprising thing is that neither of these songs are representative of the Eels sound. The lead singer E knows that too which is why he wouldn't even list this song on Daises of the Galaxy, the cd it's on. It's a hidden track.
With this said I have to state that the music you haven't heard is the best. The span of years during which the Eels "fell off the radar" are highlighted by this excellent cd I am reviewing here. As stated in the other reviews, E wrote these songs following the death of his mother from cancer and his sister from suicide, and you can tell. The words are extremely depressing but sincere. You almost have to know the background in order to truly enjoy the songs. The eels also employ an orchestra which create beautiful music.
I feel as if this cd could be the Hope diamond in the rough. It truly embodies the way songwriting should be, heartfelt and sincere. I would not start here if you are a fan of the two popular songs I discussed earlier, in fact, I would look elsewhere. None of the Eels cds truly appeal to the majority and take quite a few dedicated listens to truly appreciate. If you do feel like taking the time to listen repetitively to the true storytelling of the Eels, however, than most definitely this is the album to buy.
My favorite cd I own.

Okay, there is probably no connection between this record being one of my all time favorites and the chunk of scrap metal and wire that my cd player became... But take my word for it, this is an amazing record. It is lightyears away from the eels first record, Beautiful Freak, or any of lead singer (E)'s solo work. The music can only be described as "wintery." I have found that the best time to listen to it is on a cloudy sunday afternoon, but it is good whenever. It is important to note that most of the songs here express a very downtrodden mood. With the exception of Last Stop: This Town and P.S. You Rock My World, these are moody, and often dark songs. I dont like to listen to them unless I am alone, for fear that someone will try and have an intervention, or something. But I enjoy every song on this record tremendously. (E) has a tremendous voice, It really brings the most out of his songs.

As the title indicates, this collection deals with depression, hospitalization, cancer, funerals. Lots of original hooky songs. Too dissonant for happy cupcake type personalities. Lots of talent here.

Usually the best concept albums are once drawn from pure emotion. Using music as his venting post, E recorded to recover from the deaths of his mother and sister. The result is simply brilliant.

The opening track is quite possibly the most saddening, sporting the most haunting imagery in a song title that I can remember. The subsequent tracks, all through the end of PS You Rock My World (with exception to Baby Genuis- I'm just not all that crazy about it), are all winners, with the major highlight going to "My Descent Into Madness" with its understated "La-la-la"s and repeating violins.

If you aren't familiar with the Eels, than this is the album to start with; and if you have Beautiful Freak, Daisies, and/or Souljacker, but not this, than you are missing E at his peak performance.

(Also a side note- E is consistently compared to Beck and I'd like to take this time to explain why. First off, E and Beck both have almost identical voices. They also are experimental in their sounds and layers- though Beck is the much more experimental of the two. What seperates them is the Eels are more subtle with their style, while Beck tends to be outragous and more and more hip-hop driven.)