As well as their regular album discography, Eels have released a whole collection of live albums via their website. This wasn't the first, but it was the first one I got, as a result of my brother's inadverdant criminality - he ordered an album, it arrived, it got hidden under a pile of stuff, he mistakenly asked for a replacement which ended up being mine.'Electro-Shock Blues Show' was recorded in 1998 during the 'Electro-Shock Blues' tour, and released four years later. At the time, the Eels act consisted of only E, drummer Butch and and bassist Adam Siegel. This three piece version of the band leads to a very stark set of arrangements - bass, drums and organ or guitar. This gives the songs a real punch, but if anything, ups their intensity. It's great stuff. The vast majority of the songs are taken from 'Electro-Shock Blues', and Eels show no real sign of pandering to the crowd with the more popular stuff - 'Novocaine For The Soul' and 'My Beloved Monster' are both here, but in radically reworked form, and 'Not Ready Yet' is blown out to a hugely indulgent thirteen minutes. Seasonal track 'Everything's Gonna Be Cool This Christmas' is hugley incongrous, but a welcome spot of light relief.
It's easy to see why this wasn't released in shops - a hard sell to the average consumer, but a good listen for the fanbase.
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