RATING: 4.5 out of 5
Mark Oliver Everett’s musical avatar Eels has always been known for its depressive sound, and the new double CD Blinking Lights and Other Revelations continues in this vein with a new emphasis on ethereal production. The record presents a varied sweep of lyrical and musical interpretations on the same general themes of loss and loneliness. The second disc begins to develop a more hopeful sound, but even the ligther moments such as “Losing Streak” seem to be delivered with a self-conscious irony supported by the return to melancholy by album’s end. A theme reminiscent of Jon Brion’s recent work scoring films such as I Heart Huckabees, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and Punch-Drunk Love provides a recurring departure point for the genre jumping Everett does throughout the record. The fundamental sound is still simple guitar and piano balladry, but the tongue-in-cheek crowd noise and sampled handclaps on the garage freakout “Goin’ Fetal” and the swirling psych-pop of “Old Shit/New Shit” are notable examples of Everett’s genre-bending. Although most of high points of the album are these departures, the remaining songs are by no means filler; this is that rare contemporary double-album that deserves its length. More than that, the sequencing shows Everett was conscious of the opportunities the album’s opened up to him. There is an album-wide flow and texture here that gives the album a timeless quality that most contemporary albums miss with their focus on encapsulated singles.
- joaquin black
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