The Wolfman's Lament

Hombre Lobo: 12 Songs of Desire
The Eels (Vagrant Records, 2009)

Never let it be said that facial hair can’t inspire music. If ZZ Top went clean-shaved no doubt they’d feel silly singing the same songs. Mark Oliver Everett, known on stage as the band Eels’, is back, sporting a ZZ Top beard and a new wolf-man persona. After a five year absence from the studio, Hombre Lobo: 12 Songs of Desire adopts the persona of a lusty, swaggering werewolf, carrying a cane and prowling the night.

"I was working on some other music," Everett says in a recent NPR interview, "and I looked in the mirror one morning and I saw this werewolf staring back at me. And I thought, 'You know, this beard doesn't really suit the music I'm working on currently. I should cut it off.' And then, at the last minute, it occurred to me, 'Well, why don't I just make some music that suits the beard, and I'll keep it.' "

Where previous works showcased Everett’s softer side, the wolfman character allows him to project a cockiness unheard in much of his material. Album opener "Prizefighter" and the single "Fresh Blood" epitomize this sentiment. In many ways, he says, the album marks a tonal shift away from the intimate songs of 2004's Blinking Lights and Other Revelations, but makes up for that with its palpable desire and raw animality.

"It occurred to me that something that seems to be kind of lacking in so-called indie rock these days is an element of sex and danger," Everett says. "And I just thought, 'Isn't that where the term rock 'n' roll came from?' Let's howl after some girls now and then.”



It is only when he drops the act and reveals his insecurities that the wolfman becomes a real person. "The Look You Give That Guy" shows the pale flesh and human heart underneath the sharp fangs and slick fur of the big bad wolf ."I look at the songs as kind of sales pitches from this character who's trying to convince the object of his desire that he's the man," he adds. "And he takes different approaches, like he kind of loses his cool and lets his passions take over. And other times, he takes a more tender approach.”

Thirteen years later, Eels sounds as energetic as ever. A confidence that only comes with maturity paired with Everett’s stripped-down sound shows that werewolves, besides being predators, are essentially outsiders looking for love and acceptance.

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