Eels - Wonderful, Glorious
- Written by Danielle Gibson
Eels are definitely something different and this album shows them at their best. There isn't one definite genre to classify Wonderful, Glorious (but why should there be?), it's alternative but alternative everything. The songs are a mish-mash of different genres from psychedelic, blues, folk and indie-rock.
Mark E. Everett has a bunch of mismatched stories to tell and employs his full vocal range to bring them alive. The emotional depth of the songs (this is on the whole one of the band's less rockier but more subjectively complex albums) is vocally spot on for the entire length as his voice pulls you in to the heart of each tale.
In ‘Bombs Away’ it seems like he’s channelling Tom Waits' voice and mixing it with this eerie tune. He sounds cross and rebellious, “ I've had enough of being a mouse”, he’s definitely not happy. The more up tempo songs like ‘Kinda Fuzzy’, require you to have your head screwed on pretty tightly. It’s like a psychedelic trip and the music is everywhere, snappy bass to groovy guitars then back again. “I’m feeling kinda fuzzy”, he’s not wrong. ‘Peach Blossom’ is a definite highlight of this collection; it’s brash and grungy but suddenly changes to this soft guitar riff, back to the grunge, soft eerie music and back to grunge. It’s unexpected and odd. The guitar is one thing that sticks out in the album and especially in ‘Stick Together’. The guitar parts meld with the vocals perfectly and give extra resonance to the lyrics - “We gotta stick together”, not 'arf!. ‘Wonderful, Glorious’ finishes this album on just the right note - uplifting and without leaving you hanging. You’re left feeling greatly involved with the emotions Everett set out to impart.
Wonderful, Glorious will have your mind spinning up and down but in a good way. Maybe not the best album for newcomers to listen to but Eels veterans will definitely enjoy it. It shows just how creative and eccentric these guys can be.
Wonderful, Glorious is available now from amazon