"Death and Axis" - the eels  (typed on page with pic of E sitting on a chair 
with his chin on a 6-string banjo and adam on his left against a wall, with 
butch outside the room looking in a window with his cowboy hat on)

    Most artists gather inspiration from life experience.  But let's face it, 
usually there's not much life experience to draw from until you hit middle 
age -- if you're lucky, that is.
    eels thirtysomething singer-songwriter E (otherwise known as Mark Oliver 
Everett), however, came across some real-time angst when he discovered a 
disturbing trend: His family members and friends were dying off in clumps, 
thanks to various physical and mental illnesses.  Sobered by the reality, E 
used them as fodder for "Electro-Shock Blues", eels' second album.  But 
turning this dark subject matter into pop magic required a certain change of 
attitude.
    I set out to make a record that would be hopeful, but I think people will 
look at these song titles and get scared," E says.  "Marilyn Manson is 
supposed to be exploring the dark side, but that, to me, is more of a 
caricature.  The stuff [I'm writing about] -- hopsitals and mental illness 
and cancer and death -- are all things that people would like to brush under 
the carpet, and this makes people a lot more uncomfortable.  There are 
studies that show that people who don't talk about cancer are more likely to 
get cancer, so I thought, let's talk about it -- or better yet, let's sing 
about it."
    The resultant album is a kind of concept piece that's alternately 
oppressive and hopeful.  There are jazzy flairs, bluesy riffs and yes, the 
occaisonal pop chord.  None of it is particularly catchy, though, which is 
fine with E.  "The pop songs I always liked were the ones that made you go, 
'What was that?' " he says.  "Like [Prince's] 'When Doves Cry' or [the 
Beatles'] 'Strawberry Fields Forever.' "
    E and friends recorded "Electro-Shock Blues" largely on 8-track studios 
in their basements, and had the album mastered and released without 
interference from eels' big-time label Dreamworks.  "It's sad what an 
enviable position that has become," says E.  "Records these days are often 
made by committee, like a movie, all these suits giving their creative input. 
 I respect what [Dreamworks] have to say; so far they've liked what we do 
enough to just let us do it.  Of course, probably after this they'll say, 
'Okay, we let you do your stuff.  Now please give us 'Wind Beneath My Wings.' 
"
    But even if eels are forced to record schmaltz next time, E says he can 
look back happily on "Electro-Shock Blues".  He's even embellished the album 
with poetry and artwork from his late sister and father, which, regardless of 
how cynical you might be, is a nice touch.
    "A lot of this record is a tribute to my family," says E.  "I just wanted 
to show some of the good stuff, too."  -- Randee Dawn

and then a quote from CMJ New Music Monthly December 1998:

eels mastermind Mark "E" Everett explains the group's fan base to Melody 
Maker:  "After we played in Manchester recently, I was signing this one guy's 
CD and as a joke I said, 'Tell all your friends about us.'  And he goes, 'I 
don't have any friends.'  And I thought, 'We're probably never going to be 
really big because there's not gonna be any word of mouth about us because 
our fans don't have any friends.  I'm kinda proud of that in a way.  It's 
kind of nice to have the outcasts.  A lot of the outcasts are really 
intelligent people."