Eels

Eels (often typeset in lower case or all caps) is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1995 by singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Mark Oliver Everett, known by the stage name E. Band members have changed over the years, both in the studio and on stage, making Everett the only constant member for most of the band's work.

Eels' music is often filled with themes of family, death, and unrequited love. Since 1996, Eels has released sixteen studio albums, seven of which entered the Billboard 200.

History

Eels were officially founded when Butch and E met Tommy Walter. The name "Eels" was chosen so that the band's records would be close to E's solo records in an alphabetical ordering, although it was too late once they realized that numerous Eagles and Earth, Wind and Fire releases were in between. "I went to the Virgin Megastore and I see the E CDs right at the beginning of the E section," Everett recalled on the Naked Lunch podcast with Phil Rosenthal and David Wild. "And then there's like, 28 Earth, Wind and Fire [albums], 40 Eagles [albums]—they're nowhere near each other!"

Eels became one of the first acts to sign a record deal with DreamWorks Records, followed by Elliott Smith.

Beautiful Freak

In 1996, the band released their debut album Beautiful Freak. The singles "Novocaine for the Soul", "Susan's House" and "Your Lucky Day in Hell" achieved modest national and international success, with the band winning the Best International Breakthrough Act award at the 1998 BRIT Awards. The single Susan's House was extremely popular in the UK, in part due to its stylistic resemblance to the then-popular trip hop genre, with its slow tempo, subdued melody, and distorted spoken-word vocals. In 1996 and 1997, Eels toured extensively to support the album, building their name as a live act in the United States and Europe. In September 1997, Walter quit the band.

Released in May 2001, the motion picture soundtrack for the movie Shrek included the song "My Beloved Monster".

Electro-Shock Blues

Following the success of Beautiful Freak, E experienced a difficult time in his personal life. His sister died by suicide, and his mother was diagnosed with cancer. These events inspired Eels' second album, 1998's Electro-Shock Blues. The album deals with many difficult subjects, including cancer, mental illness, suicide and death. The 1982 death of his father, physicist Hugh Everett III, inspired the song "Baby Genius". Contributors to the album included Jon Brion, Lisa Germano, Jim Jacobsen, Grant-Lee Phillips, Dust Brother Michael Simpson, and T-Bone Burnett.

The single "Last Stop: This Town" saw minor success, while "Cancer for the Cure", the second single from the album, appeared on the soundtrack for American Beauty (1999).

Still a three-piece band on stage, Tommy Walter was replaced by Adam Siegel. Part of the American leg of the tour was canceled after the death of E's mother. They returned to tour Europe later in the year, to open for Pulp.

Daisies of the Galaxy

In 2000, Eels released Daisies of the Galaxy. The album, which was recorded almost entirely in E's basement, is lighter and more upbeat than its predecessor. Everett noted, "if Electro-Shock Blues was the phone call in the middle of the night that the world doesn't want to answer, then Daisies of the Galaxy is the hotel wake-up call that says your lovely breakfast is ready". He was joined in the studio by Michael Simpson (Dust Brothers), Grant-Lee Phillips (Grant Lee Buffalo), and Peter Buck (R.E.M.).