CD name: ‘End Times’

Artist: Eels

Genre: Alternative/Folk

Sounds like: Ray LaMontagne and Wilco

Decibels: 3.5 of 5

Maybe you know about Eels. Not the slimy fish, of course – the rock band. Eels have been churning out self-produced albums and populating soundtracks since the mid-1990s. With songs prominently featured in films such as ‘American Beauty,’ ‘Yes Man’ and all three ‘Shrek’ installments, the band has built up a steady body of work without fully breaking through into the mainstream.

The deeply personal and honest songwriting of lead man Mark Oliver Everett and stripped-down, guitar-driven instrumentation makes up the Eels’ sound. Their latest effort, ‘End Times,’ remains true to the Eels’ spirit, finding the reeling, recently divorced Everett spilling his guts to the world. He beautifully links his feelings of heartbreak with the world’s growing loss of integrity throughout the album.

‘End Times’ should immediately bring to mind a multitude of apocalyptic imagery and thematic content. After a decade in of life in the United States largely defined by terrorism, fear and war, Everett’s apparent pessimism in 2010 is understandable. Themes of discontent pervade ‘End Times.’ It features doses of everyday observations with ironic twists.

But make no mistake, this is a breakup album, and that is clear once the first track begins. ‘In The Beginning’ is an aptly titled opener that recounts the early, happy stages of Everett’s romance: ‘Pulled her closer to me/ To keep her warm/ And everything was beautiful and free/ In the beginning.’ The song serves as a prologue to the album’s subject matter, and Everett sings in the style of a contemplative, candid Johnny Cash.

The tide quickly turns in the album, and we are abruptly thrown into a world of heartbreak. ‘In My Younger Days’ opens with a slow, melodic electric guitar arpeggio, creating a nice ambience to this moody song. The next two tracks, ‘Mansions of los Feliz’ and ‘A Line in the Dirt,’ plod along. Both are characterized by catchy melodies and nice piano chords. The title track, ‘End Times,’ is a dark song that comments on Everett’s tormented emotions: ‘I don’t feel nothing now/ Not even fear/ Now that end times are here.’ This song portrays a man who lost his only positive inspiration and sense of stability. Now that his love is gone, the world is much darker.

Track eight, ‘Paradise Blues,’ injects some much-needed passion and energy into the album, channeling Jim Morrison and The Doors in a synthesized yet bluesy jam. The song comments on the perplexing and morally broken nature of suicide bombers. When Everett sings, ‘I may not be in paradise/ Woo, but I’m not dead,’ he conveys that no matter how black and blue and battered he is, he still prefers the beauty of life over death. The album’s last few songs retain this optimism, summed up best in the touching song ‘Little Bird,’ in which Everett begs a small bird to give him some reassurance that everything will be all right.

Once the end of the album finally arrives, there’s no doubt that these songs came from the soul of a deeply heartbroken man – one who has seen just a bit too much in his 46 years. The final track, ‘On My Feet,’ is a modest reflection of broken love, with the theme of slowly but surely getting back up and on your feet.

If John Mayer’s recent ‘Battle Studies’ album is the warm, glass-half-full musical commentary on heartbreak, then ‘End Times’ can be likened to a glass that got knocked over and cracked – not broken, but damaged. This is the ideal cold-winter album for anyone who has ever felt brokenhearted and just a little bitter about love and the world’s ills. But things can get better, so listen to this album, share some optimistic despair and be reminded that a warmer spring awaits.

[email protected]

Published on January 25, 2010 at 12:00 pm