Mark Oliver Everett, the driving force behind US alt. rock outfit Eels, is one of those artists it’s easy to take for granted. First appearing on the American alt. rock landscape with 1996’s excellent Beautiful Freak – an innovative mix of art-rock experimentation, electro weirdness and hip hop-influenced rhythms – in the years since he has quietly had an outstanding career, releasing a string of accomplished albums and positioning himself amongst the foremost songwriters of his generation.
Whilst remaining strictly a cult concern in the US, Everett’s work has generally enjoyed greater success in Europe, and his most recent album, 2010’s Tomorrow Morning – the third installment in a trilogy also including Hombre Lobo and End Times – actually charted in the top 10 in Ireland, and the top 20 in the UK (and even hit number one in Belgium!). In common with artists like Damon Albarn, James Murphy and Josh Homme, Everett is one of these musicians whose songwriting skills are so sharply honed that he doesn’t seem to make bad records. And with Eels’ tenth studio album, Wonderful, Glorious, Everett has delivered another wonderful collection of emotionally direct and sonically adventurous art-rock.
The album largely varies between howling, blues-infused rockers and ethereal ballads, and it’s into the latter category that the opening number, ‘Bombs Away’, falls. It’s a delightful mix of a dreamy soundscape and E’s quietly menacing vocals – a trademark Eels combination. Indeed, the quieter moments on Wonderful, Glorious are the album’s strongest. There’s the superb ‘Accident Prone’, which boasts ringing guitar notes, offbeat electro sounds and lyrics that are unashamedly romantic. It’s a simple formula, but E is an artist who has always created powerful work using the basic palette.
The soothing guitar rhythms of ‘On The Ropes’ provide the album with another one of its highlights, whilst the standout track is undoubtedly ‘The Turnaround’, the lyrics of which neatly sum up the central theme of Wonderful, Glorious, that of resilience and starting anew. A beautiful ballad, it builds in intensity towards the finish, with E repeating the refrain, “Six bucks in my pocket and the shoes on my feet / The first step is out the door and onto the street.”
Lest anyone think that Wonderful, Glorious is all about low-key atmospherics, E still has a fondness for wailing blues-rockers along the lines of ‘Souljacker Part 1’. Though featuring a quiet interlude, ‘Kinda Fuzzy’ is chiefly propelled by abrasive riffing, whilst the group also kick out the jams on tracks like ‘New Alphabet’ and ‘Open My Present’. E hasn’t lost his penchant for sonic experimentation either, with the squalling synths of ‘Peach Blossom’ and the offbeat electro of ‘You’re My Friend’ showcasing his avant-garde side.
The concluding title track is a simple rocker based around a catchy guitar riff, whilst also featuring some celestial, Beach Boys-style harmonies. Lyrically, E once again makes the record’s concerns plain in the lines “The sum of all the love inside your heart / Will get you through your plight, it’s alright.”
Once again, we can all get high on E.