Do you really need to know anything about me? It's not as if we'll ever meet. It's pretty obvious ...
Do you really need to know anything about me? It's not as if we'll ever meet. It's pretty obvious what I like if you read my reviews, so what's the pint in me telling you here?
Member since:13.12.2000
Reviews:124
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"A pessimist is never disappointed" said indie losers theaudience a few years ago and while their music may have been anonymous, the sentiment is especially true for Mark "E" Everett A.K.A "The Unluckiest Man In Pop". He isn’t unlucky in the sense that he’s missed out on the No. 1 spot or anything, but he has been the victim of countless family tragedies that taint the music of Eels. But one man’s misfortune is another man’s gain and that leads us to the wonderful "Daisies Of The Galaxy".
DOTG arrived early in 2000 and is the third LP offering from Eels. E’s misfortune peaked during the writing of the second Eels album "Electro-Shock Blues", therefore this album sounds as happy as a Lolly album in comparison, but those who crave sad songs won’t be disappointed. This album can be as blunt and harsh lyrically, as it can be soft and wistful musically.
Evidence of the more optimistic E is hard to see in songs like "It’s A Motherfucker" when he starkly surmises that “It’s a motherfucker / Getting through a Sunday / Talking to the walls / Just me again”. I might add that such are the woos of Mark ‘E’ Everett, that he was only faced with the death of his mother during the recording of this album.
But E still seems to find optimism in his words and the listener feels the beauty of this. On the penultimate track "Something Is Sacred" he declares “As the world will blow to bits / I will cradle you and hold you tight’. The lyrics are exceptional on this album and even stronger than E’s previous lyrical peaks such as "Susan’s House" and "The Medication’s Wearing Off".
But the brilliance of the lyrics shouldn’t take away from the music. Lyrics mean nothing over a useless soundtrack, but the lo-fi sound compliments the lyrics superbly. The musicianship is nothing special and E is not a strong vocalist, but that doesn’t really matter. Like his contemporary Elliott Smith he can get away with a lacklustre voice purely through his delivery.
The addition of strings in some of the songs adds weight to the songs and thankfully they are not over ambitious in a Manic Street Preachers style. This certainly heralds a shift into more professionalism for the band. The pace is often "funeral" slow (typically) and there is less of the poppy sound that put Eels into the charts. However it does resurface on the wonderful "Tiger In My Tank". But such is E’s protection of the over-riding sound, the single "Mr. E’s Beautiful Blues" isn’t even listed and appears only as a bonus track. It’s a wonderful Elvis impersonation, though.
If you know the previous work of Eels you will love this album, if you have an inclination towards sad, but not melodramatic songs you will love it too. My only criticism is of a couple of the earlier tracks. "The Sound Of Fear" and "I Like Birds" just can’t cut it with the rest of the album. And unlike other albums, it is structured so that the highlight is the final track (bar the bonus track). "Selective Memory" is on a par with a sunset or lover in terms of beauty. It is a classic in my opinion, but then again, the entire album is too.
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Eels burst out to prominence with 1996's witty, bold paean to geekdom Beautiful Freak, ... more
which matched black humour with bold arrangements and catchy melodies. Its follow-up, Electro Shock Blues--written against the backdrop of the suicide of frontman E'...
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Grace Kelly Blues Packing Blankets The Sound Of Fear I Like Birds Daisies Of The Galaxy ... more
Flyswatter It's A Motherf#&!@r Estate Sale Tiger In My Tank A Daisy Through Concrete Jeannie's Diary Wooden Nickels Something Is Sacred Selective Memory Mr. E's...
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Advantages: I would say the best Ee's album, very lively Disadvantages: The design of the CD is good, but cardboard. So unless you keep it in a vacuum it will get ropey
Advantages: I would say the best Ee's album, very lively Disadvantages: The design of the CD is good, but cardboard. So unless you keep it in a vacuum it will get ropey
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Dec 19th, 2000
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