The Eels at Terminal 5 and the Ogden Theater

Los Hombres Lobos!

On their studio recordings, the Eels have never really impressed me. Led by Mark Oliver Everett, otherwise known as "E" or "Mister E", they've sounded like one guy farting around with recording devices in his basement. Whether it be an electric organ, keyboard, electronic percussion or even with recorded tracks of live instruments. To no surprise, that's EXACTLY how some of their albums have been recorded. So while I've heard good things about their concerts, I was a little reluctant to check out their live show.

Yet I'm happy to say that I liked their live act so much that I've now seen them TWICE in less than two weeks.

I first saw the band on September 25 at Terminal 5, a converted old warehouse in the Hell's Kitchen district of New York City. With three levels, several bars and plenty of A/C, Terminal 5 seemed a little large, yet also somewhat sterile. But the place had great sound and plenty of room to wander around. It was possible to find a good "cocnert watching spot", then leave for a drink or a piss, to come back and find an equally suitable additional "concert watching spot".

Unfortuantely, I missed the opening acts, a "rock n' roll ventriloquist" named Carla Rhodes, along with Jesca Hoop.... but a quick hit to ol' YouTube can fill us both in. The Eels portion of the night began with a recording of Disney's "When You Wish Upon a Star" playing. Mr. E soon arrived, with just his guitar, playing the somber-- almost whiny-- tune caleld "Grace Kelly Blues". Things slowly picked up from there, however. E shouted out "CHET!" as his bandmate "The Chet" arrived to accompany him on steel guitar for two more tunes. E was decked out in a white janitor's jumpsuit with a bandana, sunglasses and a bushy ebard. Looking like a high school janitor meshed with a member of SAMCRO. Meanwhile, The Chet beared a resemblance to Elwood Blues on the golf range.

The fourth song, "Prize Fighter" was when the rest of the band arrived, all dressed in suits and sunglasses. Guitarist P-boo, drummer Knuckles and bassist Koool G Murder all assembled on stage as the band resembled sort of a modern day Blues Brothers-- a definite forecast that said: "uhh... something that rocks is going to happen, Beavis"! That's exactly what happened, as they picked up the tempo with a cover of the Rolling Stones' "She Said Yeah" and "Gone Man". They paused as E thanked the crowd and asked them if they were having a nice summer. At which point, The Chet whispered something into E's ear: "Oh....The Chet has just informed me that summer was over a few days ago. Well..it still feels like summer. That's okay...it's summer in my heart". The band then shot into "Summer in the City" by the Lovin' Spoonful.

E began growling frequently during the chorus to "Fresh Blood"...aka "That Song That Played Over the Credits for True Blood". E's "Hombre Lobo" beard seemed to emphasis the piece as it came off like a werewolf lovesong. Probably the first song since Warren Zevon that's given off such a vibe.

From there, they continued their rockin' 3-way "guitarsenal" with hard stuff like "Tremendous Dynamite", "Dog Faced Boy" and "Souljacker Part 1" along with more mellow tracks like the peaceful "In My Dreams" or "That Look You Gave That Guy". After "Souljacker", E stopped to introduce the rest of the band, formally. The Chet is a regular, but E announced that P-Boo was a rookie and that Koool G Murder was on the bass "for one night only". Which made it all the funnier when I saw the band in Denver...and saw that Murder was a regular part of the band!

E's final introduction was the dummer, Knuckles. Which is always an excuse to kick up the official Knuckles theme song, appropriately named "Talkin' bout Knuckles" sung by the eponymous drummer himself. I thought for a minute that things couldn't possibly get cooler... until they started their next song: an awesome remake of "Mr. E's Beautiful Blues" to the tune of the Beatles' "Twist and Shout". Complete with the appropriate backup vocals. Goddamn right, it's a beatiful day to shake up, baby!

They completed their intial set with "I Like Birds", "Summertime" and "Lookin' Up". E went to the drumkit and opened up a small cooler, which contained POP-SICKLES, which he threw out to the crowd. As the set wound down, Mr. E playfully excused himself and thanked the crowd. He sauntered offstage, but immediately realized he had left too soon, so he shuffled right back to the mic. They did two encores which included "I'm Going to Stop Pretending That I Didn't Break Your Hear", the upbeat "I Like the Way This is Going" and finally "Baby Loves Me". That final song was a bit of strange choice. While it has a memorable guitar squeak to it, it seemed to rely too much on heavy howling from E; a bit of a dichotomy when compared to the overall merriment of the show.

But I was extremely satisfied, pleased and surprised. They fulfilled my expecatations and I now have a band that ranks among my favorites. At least live. So it was a no-brainer to see them less than two weeks later in my hometown of Denver.

Their set at the Ogden Theatre was essentially the same. It was similar to going on an amusement park ride for the second time-- you know where the fun and suprising parts are going to be, yet it's still fun as all hell.

A few differences were in the Denver show as you'd expect, but this time out E told us that Koool G Murder was originally from "the mean streets of Colorado" and that his parents were in attendance. I also noticed, during the band introductions, that each member had their own little handshake or knuckle-bmp for each other. Murder's is apparently a swinging fist-bump followed by a lean-back. A move which I need to incorporate amonsgt my close friends. E repeated his little joke about summer expiring, right on cue. Also, while Terminal 5 had better sound, the Ogden was a nicer venue. It's much smaller than the spacious warehouse of Terminal 5, but being packed in closer to the band can make for a better show.

If this is what farting around in E's basement is like... I want in!

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