One of the joys of living in L.A. during the early days of the 21st century was catching E from eels at Largo on numerous occasions. Largo, back then, was an intimate supper club of sorts that would regularly feature the likes of E, Jon Brion, Robyn Hitchcock, Andy Prieboy, and Aimee Mann.
A friend of mine from out of town once remarked "It's hard to believe you're not the booking agent for Largo because this calendar reads like your record collection."
Alas, he had a point. After all, I was the guy who'd been turned on to Mark Everett (a.k.a. E) after starting a fanzine for the sole purpose of getting on as many labels' promo lists as possible. A Man Called E was one of the first promos to arrive in the mail back in '90.
After Broken Toy Shop came and went with little fanfare, E lost his deal and we of the pre-internet age were left to wonder "whatever happened to..." until the fateful day when a friend in DreamWorks Records' A&R department mentioned offhand that his label had "just signed E's new band."
Ex-squeeze me?
"What's your address? I'll send you an advance copy."
It must have taken five days to arrive, but when it did, I spent two weeks just listening to "Susan's House", trying to see what made it tick. Every album since has continued to amaze in one way or another and just when you think you've got E pegged, you realize that it has always been the other way around.
Such as the time a crowd populated by families who'd discovered the band via the latest "Shrek" film gathered at L.A.'s Sunset Junction main stage to witness what ultimately turned out to be an all-hardcore eels set.
Adorned in industrial jumpsuits and gas masks, the band tore through one militant noise punk anthem after another.
The next week, E was in a heated banjo duel with Grant Lee Phillips and matching Jon Brion's improvisational genius note-for-note on the postage stamp-sized stage of the Largo.
After fourteen studio albums, E continually finds new ways to delight, such as on the buoyant "Today is The Day" single, complete with an equally inspired video featuring Mike Mitchell (Netflx's "Love Series).
Eels will bring their tour to Chicago's Thalia Hall on June 6.
Tags:
gimme an E