...Therefore 'Souljacker' was an important record.It would either ease them further into the mainstream or send them back to the margins of rock.
Before I tell you about the album, I want to say a few things.I own every Eels album prior to this one.I haven't bought any since.I'd seen the Eels ... Read review
Souljacker is the fourth album from the Eels front man, "E" Named after an American serial ... more
killer who claimed to steal the souls of his victims, and dedicated to Life's lost, this fourth visit to E's deadpan world is slyer, more awkward, beautiful and ...
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Souljackeris the fourth album from the Eels front man, "E" Named after an American serial ... more
killer who claimed to steal the souls of his victims, and dedicated to Life's lost, this fourth visit to E's deadpan world is slyer, more awkward, beautiful and odd than anything he's done since "Novocain For The Soul" established him as the ultimate geek back in 1996. Depicting all manner of tragic misfits from teenage witches ("Teenage Witch") to the desperately lonely ("Friendly Ghost"),Souljackershould be a depressing listen. But after the fantastically ramshackle soundtrack of dirty guitars, cosy strings and ambling break beats, E's greatest gift is the ability to spike the saddest tale with a twisted turn of phrase. Be it "World Of Shit"'s backhanded compliment: "In this world of shit / baby you are it", the desperate "Mum won't shave me / Jesus can't save me" of "Dog Faced Boy" or his retort to his girlfriend's mocking of his manhood "You say a lot of funny things my little bunny / and I almost always laugh / but that's not really funny" the darkest tales are his most amusing. A lo-fi masterpiece, with plenty to laugh and cry about,Souljackerconfirms E as the undisputed king of geek-dom and a bona fide musical genius. --Dan Gennoe
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Advantages: a couple of good songs to remind of past glories Disadvantages: very mediocre compared to previous output
Eels are vocalist and multi instrumentalist E and drummer Butch.They have been the only constant members of the Eels lineup.The band's debut 'Beautiful Freak' is something of a classic and spawned hit singles 'Susan's House' and 'Novocaine for the soul'.The follow up 'Electro-shock blues' was a darker affair concerned with death,disease and suicide, but married such grim lyrical matter to pop melodies.Their thrid album 'Daisies of the galaxy' was ... ...'Flyswatter' and 'Mr E' Beautiful Blues'.Despite having UK top 40 hits with a number of singles the band never gained as big a profile as you might have imagined until 'Daisies of the galaxy' which saw them appear on Top of the Pops, CD:UK and also play a mainstage set at the Reading Festival.Therefore 'Souljacker' was an important record.It would either ease them further into the mainstream or send them back to the margins of rock.
Eels are vocalist and multi instrumentalist E and drummer Butch.They have been the only constant members of the Eels lineup.The band's debut 'Beautiful Freak' is something of a classic and spawned hit singles 'Susan's House' and 'Novocaine for the soul'.The follow up 'Electro-shock blues' was a darker affair concerned with death,disease and suicide, but married such grim lyrical matter to pop melodies.Their thrid album 'Daisies of the galaxy' was a more uplifting journey and they scored further hits with 'Flyswatter' and 'Mr E' Beautiful Blues'.Despite having UK top 40 hits with a number of singles the band never gained as big a profile as you might have imagined until 'Daisies of the galaxy' which saw them appear on Top of the Pops, CD:UK and also play a mainstage set at the Reading Festival.Therefore 'Souljacker' was an important record.It would either ease them further into the mainstream or send them back to the margins of rock.
Before I tell you about the album, I want to say a few things.I own every Eels album prior to this one.I haven't bought any since.I'd seen the Eels twice before this record.I haven't seen them since.Even the most die hard Eels fan will find this record massviely disappointing.The problem is partly that the lyrics,rather than witty and still touching like the earlier albums,are inane and forgettable.The main problem is that almost everything here sounds like a b-side.I get the feeling that this is the Eel's "rock" record.The skewed, but melodically beautiful indie-pop of the previous records has been discarded in favour of harsh and abrassive songs that aren't a patch on their previous output.
1.DOG FACED BOY Quiet verses and loud choruses are pretty standard in rock music, and this is a pretty standard song.The lyrics are plain stupid:'Life ain't pretty for a dog faced boy'.The album has just begun and already you feel like they aren't trying. 2.THAT'S NOT REALLY FUNNY Harsh,paranoid and angry, but unlike the moody 'Electro-shock blues' this just feels like cliched rock whinning. 3.FRESH FEELING Best song on the album.A breezy melody and a great gruff vocal 4.WOMAN DRIVING MAN SLEEPING Simplistic but effective folk rock 5.SOULJACKER PART 1 First single and a good one.Again the quiet verse/loud chorus thing is used but to much better effect on this infectious shout along,with a great bass part. 6.FRIENDLY GHOST Lightweight and forgettable.It kind of drifts by without you realising you're listenning to it. 7.TEENAGE WITCH The lyrics are dire,moaning about nothing in particular and the music is little better. 8.BUS STOP BOXER Again,it's just totally forgettable.It could be one of about four tracks on this album. 9.JUNGLE TELEGRAPH More dire lyrics and a song without much substance or hint of a decent tune. 10.WORLD OF SH#T Despite the title, this is a heartfelt lovesong that is pretty good,although not up ot their previous album's standard. 11.SOULJACKER PART 2 A quiet lullabye esque song,which is passable. 12.WHAT IS THIS NOTE? Low key ending for the album,that is one of the better tracks with some weary yet oddly uplifting vocals.
As this is the limited edition it comes with an extra CD of 4 songs.Of these only 'Rotten World Blues' is worth owning.'Hidden track', 'I write the B sides' and 'Jehovah's witness' are completely unessential.
I used to really like the Eels and so this record really annoyed me.It's not absolutely terrible, but it's average and that's not good enough from a band of this calibre.Buy the other three albums I mentioned and steer clear of this
Advantages: Good songs mainly Disadvantages: New direction not immediately appealing, a few less great moments
.
* Woman Driving, Man Sleeping *
Probably the best ballad eels have ever recorded, it’s a fairly simple song from a musical perspective. Just an electro acoustic guitar, subtle strings and a drumbeat for most of the song. This provides the backing for a lyrical story. Sometimes it’s telling the sad tale of a woman driving alone in “a little metal box under the stars” and other suitable metaphors for late night journeys. Other times it’s more upbeat as we get to peer into the mans dreams. Simple but very effective.
* Souljacker part 1*
A restrained yet slightly funky intro moves the pace back up for Souljacker part 1. It’s not long though until E shouts “Ah yee” and blues guitars rip in. Throw in an almost atonal guitar solo and you have a strange blues song. Lyrically it’s once ...
Advantages: A mixture of good sounds | Excellent lyrics once more Disadvantages: Some weak tracks
First there was the birth of the Eels with Beautiful Freak. A bunch of quirky, rocky little tunes that got them noticed for the first time. Then there was the funeral when things took a turn to the darkside with Electro-shock Blues. Daisies of the Galaxy was the wake, stepping out of the shadows and into the bright sunshine. So what would we class Souljacker as? Well the calling it the marriage seems suitable as E himself got himself hitched whilst recording this album. This unconventional path of life has been rewarding to the fans so far and seems to carry on with the latest album.
Souljacker is a mix of heavy rock and gentle love songs. The rock is sometimes raw and often harsh in mood and tone, linking to the Electro-shock Blue phase. The gentle love songs are obviously inspiration from his wife. They make up quite ...
Advantages: Superior lo-fi Disadvantages: Superior lo-fi
Souljacker is Mark ‘E’ Everett’s fourth album proper under the guise of Eels and he has again produced a masterpiece. Strangely for an American bad Eels have been pretty productive over the years and this is their third album in a year and a half. But the quality does not suffer due to the productivity of the man called E.
For those of you who don’t know Eels (which begs the question, "why are you reading a review of their new album"), they are a lo-fi American indie band. Everyone’s heard Novocain For The Soul and possibly Mr E’s Beautiful Blues (uh-hu). E has gained the reputation for being the most unlucky man in rock over the years after a string of personal tragedies that inspired the dark (but wonderful) Electro-Shock Blues back in 1998, which may not seem like a long time ago, but in those ...
SOULJACKER contains a bonus disc of the EP, ROTTEN WORLD BLUES. Personnel: E (vocals, guitar, baritone guitar, piano, Wurlitzer piano, Clavinet, mellotron); John Parish (guitar, melodica, keyboards, stylophone, drums, percussion, programming); Koool G Murder (guitar, clavinet, synthesizer, bass); Joe Gore (guitar); Adam Siegel (bass); Ryan Boesch (programming). Recorded at Onehitsville USA, Honorsound, and Bristol & The Bomb Factory, Los Angeles, California. 2001's SOULJACKER finds E and the Eels expanding their musical palette to include hints of glam rock, surf music, children's music and yet more of E's fearless experimental streak on songs like "Woman Driving Man Sleeping" and "That's Not Really Funny." UK limited editon includes a four-track second CD.
Album Reviews
Rolling Stone (3/28/02, p.70) - 3.5 stars out of 5 - "...A hard-looking, no-holds-barred look at the moral bankruptcy of society at large....Over squalling guitars, fuzzy surf lines, loping break beats and lush strings, E spins tales of small-town misfits searching for meaning in a media-driven world..." Entertainment Weekly (3/22/02, p.110) - "...Artfully skewed...the darkness is strangely joyous..." - Rating: B+ Alternative Press (4/02, p.72) - 8 out of 10 - "...Frontman E lightens his subject matter-but not his touch....You get surly rock jams glorifying social outcasts. You get lo-fi beats underlaid with sublime orchestration....SOULJACKER is fresh, funny and unpredictable..." CMJ (3/11/02, p.4) - "...E shows his fondness for mutating several styles at once...part caustic blues, part cabaret song and a dash of chaos....It'd be fitting as a centerpiece for a David Lynch film just before normalcy gets up-ended and things go down a surreal, strobe-lit path to psychosis..."
Titles on disc 1
1.
Dog Faced Boy
2.
That's Not Really Funny
3.
Fresh Feeling
4.
Woman Driving Man Sleeping
5.
Souljacker (part 1)
6.
Friendly Ghost
7.
Teenage Witch
8.
Bus Stop Boxer
9.
Jungle Telegraph
10.
World Of Shit
11.
Souljacker (part 2)
12.
What Is This Note
Titles on disc 2
1.
I Write The B Sides (bonus track)
2.
Hidden Track (bonus track)
3.
Jehova's Witness (bonus track)
4.
Mr E's Beautiful Remix (bonus track)
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06/04/2006
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