Song of The Day #4 - Eels - 'Grace Kelly Blues'

Tweet

More Grace than (R) Kelly.

There's always a different reason why I pick the track that will feature on here as 'Song of the day'. Some bang (K.R.I.T yesterday), some are sweet (The Elected on Friday) and some just do something to me that I can't put my finger on and that's Eels today. See I was just scanning through my iTunes library trying to find something particularly standout and although there's some great music on there, nothing was really offering much resistance to my grubby little digit hitting that shuffle button. Then I saw 'Grace Kelly Blues'. Now I use to be an enormous Eels fan in my youth. ENORMOUS. In fact, buying 'Beautiful Freak' was a massive moment for me as it's the first proper album I can remember having on cassette. By 'proper' there, I mean I've conveniently forgotten a whole truckload of shit I got before that record. BF was the first good album I bought at the age of about 12. That's what I really mean. So alt man, just so alt.

Eels - 'Grace Kelly Blues'

The kid in the mall works that hot dog on the stick.

I mainly dig this song because it's really nice to drift away too. And there's a viola. And a marching band. And it was the first song to be released following the boldly beautiful yet strikingly bleak 'Electro Shock Blues'. I particularly dig how that grandiose funeral opening melts away for E to come in in with that voice of his. A voice which is made for cliche music writing where you basically say plenty of synonyms for words like "weathered" and "worn". To me, it's just great and sounds like an old friend that's been through some tough times and come out the other side.

But me I'm feeling pretty good as of now
I'm not so sure when I got here or how
Sun melt in the fake smile away
I think, you know, I'll be okay.

Eels - End Times

Tweet

Noah ain't been the same since he moved to LA and started watching too much cable.

When Eels released that last effort 'Hombre Lobo', I contemplated giving up on them. The lead single really dissapointed me more than anything. I expected big things but when I heard that 'Fresh Blood' song all I really thought was "...dat it?!" Same kinda thing each morning when (after a night of hard praying that I get snowed in) I awake to see that there isn't feet upon feet of snow outside but instead only about five snowflakes and a few drops of pissy rain have fallen overnight and that yep, you gotta go to work homeboy. Dat It?!

To me 'Hombre Lobo' sounded like a half baked 'Souljacker' more often than not and that album wasn't exactly king milkshake. Still, in my efforts to never actually get my life together and buy good things that last and improve your life, I've again reverted to buying more CDs than all the CD factories can make (burn? Whatever.). So, yeah, I really loved Eels once so I bought 'End Times' the other day.

I'm really liking it too. Perhaps it doesn't warrant it's own blog post but I think it's the nostalgia getting to me. If you know Eels, you'll know what themes this album will cover and E still sounds like he always has but there's some lovely little songs on this record. The fun little stomp of 'Paradise Blues' has got a lot of plays in my car this week which ain't blue nor no paradise and 'In My Younger Days' is resonating a little too strongly with my impending birthday on the way like a jail on wheels. This is a well crafted record that corresponds well with some of the quieter (and best) moments of 'Blinking Lights...' and sounds a lot like a band who are comfortable with with who they are and how they sound. Those things, of course, are the only things they are comfortable with mind. Don't even mention girls, love or friends. Hell, don't even talk about leaving the damn house sometimes with these guys.

"She locked herself in the bathroom again/So I am pissing in the yard"
- Eels - 'A Line In the Dirt'

The scene of a urine incident, yesterday.

All those moons ago I pored over those 'Beautiful Freak' liner notes that read '"One day the world will be ready for you and wonder how they didn't see." Well, when it comes to this record, people have grown up, grown apart. The world did notice you know, it just didn't care a whole lot.