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David Smyth's rating
, Look on the bright side, Eels
By
David Smyth
2 Sep 2010
Mark ‘E’ Everett, the extensively bearded derelict behind Eels, has a long and miserable personal history of deaths and divorce trailing behind him. As well as a deluge of heartbroken songs, he even published what must be indie rock’s first misery memoir, Things the Grandchildren Should Know, in 2008.
So it was lovely to hear him brightening up a bit on last week’s new album, Tomorrow Morning, the final instalment of a rapidly released trilogy that also includes the unremittingly bleak End Times. In concert too, though still uncommunicative and inclined towards heavy, distorted rock, this jumpsuited hairball came close to being perky.
Arriving on stage to the wistful strings of Disney’s When You Wish Upon a Star, he went on to cover The Lovin’ Spoonful’s sweltering classic Summer in the City, incorporate Twist and Shout into his already cheery hit Mr E’s Beautiful Blues, and hurl ice lollies into the crowd like a football mascot.
Some new songs had an unmistakable joie de vivre, such as the fizzing gospel of Looking Up and triumphant yelping of Baby Loves Me. Elsewhere he favoured his noisiest numbers, including the wolf howls of Fresh Blood and the explosive riffing of Tremendous Dynamite.
When a more sensitive song did appear, it was all the more impactful for the ruckus around it. The searingly honest lines in That Look You Give That Guy gripped hard.
Yet things could never have become too serious with a drummer called Knuckles and a fusty looking bassist named Koool G Murder on stage.
It was hard to tell beneath all that face furniture, but here and there Everett may even have cracked a smile.
Details are correct at the time of publication - please check with venue before booking.
