Blinking Lights And Other Revelationsby EELS

This is the sixth album that Mark Oliver Everett (otherwise known as E) has put out with his band the Eels. The band's second album Electro Shock Blues of 1998, was a major milestone that saw E sing about the loss of his sister to suicide and his mother's illness with lung cancer, the result was one of the most beautiful musical masterpieces of the late 90s. The albums that followed saw the bands music become gradually more upbeat however this album sees the Eels return to the dark and bleak sounds they were producing on Electro Shock Blues, only this time it's darker, bleaker and E hits much closer to the bone, practically telling the story of his life over the 33 songs on offer.

The music takes all sorts of twists and turns along the way. At times it is all soft and melancholy such as in the theme from blinking lights (as well as the other two tunes in the blinking light trilogy) and the charismatic violin driven instrumental Marie floating over the backyard. In other parts it is all loud and chaotic such as on trouble with dreams. There are the unusually up beat catchy tunes such as Going fetal which is something of a sing-along tune with lots of horns and a cheering crowd in the background and the energetic electronic moments such as hey man (now you're really living). The rapid movements from one extreme to another allow each extreme to be fully appreciated as they manage to surprise the listener each time. If any other band tried to make an album like this they'd probably end up sounding way through on first listen, there will always be something new to discover on each and every listen thereafter.

Listening to the album in one go is quite a challenge! Not just because this is the band's longest ever album, going for over an hour and a half with 33 different songs over two disks, but also because they cover so much ground and take the listener in so many different directions throughout. That is by no means a bad thing, listening to the album in full is quite a phenomenal experience that most bands would never even look like providing through their music. Furthermore it guarantees that even if you do hear it the whole

This is more than just an album, it is an epic marathon of musical masterpieces! Not only is there twice the music you'd usually get for the price of a CD but all of it is totally and utterly amazing! Every one of the 33 songs hits the mark perfectly giving the listener something new and amazing. It may not be the most accessible album to the casual radio friendly music fan but if you like what the Eels have done so far, or like to hear something that is musically challenging then this is an album you simply cannot live without!