The Deconstruction

Thematically, The Deconstruction doesn't add a great deal of new ideas to the Eels' repertoire (happiness has never been his strong suit), but E's gifts as a songwriter and vocalist are still sharp, and if you've ever been partial to Mark Everett's slightly skewed but engagingly literate outlook on the world, then The Deconstruction should meet with your approval.

The Deconstruction ... is arguably the LA band’s best in two decades. Recorded with producer Mickey Petralia on board for the first time since Electro Shock Blues and featuring an orchestra and choir, it’s a rich, elegantly crafted work that shows E retains his capacity to charm and challenge the listener in equal measure.

Everett has always been loathe to stand in one place for too long so it's quite possible that we'll see yet another side of him in a matter of months. For now, The Deconstruction is a rather rote and lacklustre return.

The Deconstruction is easily Eels’ best record in over a decade, but still doesn’t really display the kind of ideas that drove people to their music in the first place. Standout tracks, melancholic interludes and stylistic jumpiness add elements of unpredictability to Everett and co. that they’ve sorely missed. But these same things also make it an overarching mess.

Eels have always shied away from the mainstream, and followed their self-indulgent tendencies. But while The Deconstruction gets off to an energetic start with tracks that rock and inspire, ultimately there's too many tracks that don't rock, so it falls a bit short of what Eels are capable of.

When given the slightest bit of scrutiny, The Deconstruction produces no eccentricity, pop smarts, orchestral creativity, or emotional revelation. This album comes off like a hustle rather than a noble failure, and that’s what makes it more pernicious than the likes of Boarding House Reach, Man of the Woods, and Virtue: Unlike at least some of those guys, Everett knows exactly what he’s doing.