This came out in 2005 — or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):
Mark Everett is not in a good place. And no wonder. His sister killed herself in 1996. His mother died in 1998. And his cousin was on the plane that hit the Pentagon on 9/11.
Of course, if you’ve been paying attention over the years, most of this isn’t news. Everett — the E in Eels — dealt with the first two tragedies on 1998’s devastating Electro-Shock Blues. Blinking Lights and Other Revelations, his sixth release, makes that set seem like small potatoes. A two-disc concept album-song cycle that follows a life from birth to death, this 33-track set of Beckish folk-hop, basement orch-pop and Tom Waitsian electro-blues tackles questions about the meaning of life, the magic of love, the fleeting nature of happiness, the fragility of sanity, and whatever happened to Soy Bomb. Easy listening it’s not — but thanks to his unflinching honesty and uncompromising creativity (not to mention the help of guests like Waits, Peter Buck and John Sebastian), E has no problem making good on the Revelations promised in the title.
