Guh. Some bozo at Delusions of Adequacy who obviously just wanted a retread of Beautiful Freak is sabotaging Eels' metascore with a fanboyish bashing...

(This is why the lowest should be dropped)

The Delusions review isn't listed (presently) as part of the Metascore. I have to imagine that they don't rate a particularly weighted score.

If you're gonna drop the lowest, though, you've also gotta drop the highest. Fanboys go both ways.

Not necessarily when the distribution is hugely negative.

If you've got a distribution of statistics where 99 of 100 datapoints fall between 40 and 60, and then one way out at 200, you only consider throwing out the 200, because it's the outlier.

You obviously know the statistical stuff very well. My point, and the point you SEEMED to be making, wasn't about statistics. It was about 'fannishness' which implied some concern about fairness or objectivity. A really low score (20) would obviously skew the overall rating more than a 100 when the average score was in the 80's. But if you want to make a general statement about keeping the Metascores objective (by rooting out fanboy reviews) then I think you have to take out the top and bottom scores, even if one (or the other) has more statistical weight.

I don't know how Metacritic weights scores, but I recalculated (without weightings) several reviews, dropping the high and low scores, and found little substantive change. But none of the ones I looked at had a really high or really low score (eg. Pitchfork's review of Weezer, or TMT's "review" of NIN) which probably would have made a difference.

Honestly, all this hemming and hawing about metascores, rating and grading albums, and whatnot is a little fruitless. If you like the record, why does it matter what the Metascore is? The eels record isn't going to get worse because the metascore dropped, is it? I'm all for taking on a reviewer if they do a crappy job, but the only practical difference I can see a change in the Metascore making is if someone is buying records based on how they score, which seems silly. That's "everyone else likes it...I should!" reasoning.

I realized, after the last post, that although Bob said the LOWEST should be dropped, I think what he was going for, if I understand the distribution stuff, is the MOST DEVIANT score should be dropped. It might be the high score, depending on the record.

I was just curious what everyone's favorite Eels song is. For me there are really three.

"Climbing Up to the Moon" - The Eels have a lot of sad songs, but this one tops them all. The lyrics are poetic, yet not esoteric, and the music is restrained and beautiful.

"Last Stop: This Town" - Another killer track from Electro-Shock Blues. This one exhibits a more playful side of the Eels. The placement of the track in the album order is crucial. Three of the previous four songs are really sad, and the next four songs are devastating. This song is the breath of fresh air amidst all that sadness. It's that one joke that cracks you up for one minute of the day despite the severe depression you're in.

"Fresh Feeling" - I'm not much of a guy for love songs since I can't really relate (surprise! internet message board geek's never been in love), but this song is just gorgeous. "Birds singin' a song / old paint is peeling / this is that fresh, that fresh feeling / Words can't be that strong / my heart is reeling / this is that fresh, that fresh feeling." It's got a nice, strong drumbeat to it, lending it a bit of energy and excitement, and the violin bit is exquisite.


Lots of other candidates out there, but those are the three that stand out for me.

quote:

Originally posted by RavingLunatic:
I was just curious what everyone's favorite Eels song is.

"Dog Faced Boy"

Oh, man, I didn't expect to see that song listed here. I like it fine, but it just seems like Souljacker never got much love from anybody.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by philosopherEric:
The fact the Eels even EXISTED when you were in kindergarten makes me feel old, Ginny, but you had good taste in music as a little 'un.


I must agree with you. I´m nearly 30 and I´m strating to feel older. Or not. What really matters is how you feel an not how old you are.

I´ve know Eels for few years and I must say I like they´re nostalgic melodies, although in this last album ( Blinking Lights) I was expecting some little more.

Just checked the Eels website and found this information:

quote:

EELS leader Mark Oliver Everett has written a book about his life, to be published in 2008.

That should be very interesting book.

My favorite Eels song is "Railroad Man" off Blinking Lights, by the way. Coincidentally or not, it might be the most simple and straightforward song he's ever written.

While it's probably not among my top 10 Eels songs, I agree that "Railroad Man" may be the best song off of Blinking Lights.

Railroad Man is my favorite song of theirs.

From the official Eels site:

quote:

9/18/2007- EELS CELEBRATE FIRST TEN YEARS WITH BEST OF AND RARITIES COLLECTIONS:
Universal Music and the EELS are celebrating the EELS' first decade, 1996-2006, by releasing best of and rarities collections this coming January. MEET THE EELS: ESSENTIAL EELS VOL. I will feature the EELS' most popular tracks with a DVD collecting the EELS videos accompanying it. USELESS TRINKETS will feature two discs packed with B-sides, soundtrack tunes, rarities and unreleased tracks plus a DVD with 6 performances from EELS' 2006 Lollapalooza show. Both packages will be packed with never before seen photos, artifacts and E's notes about each song. Stay tuned to EELStheband.com for release dates, track lists and other info

Other interesting Eels info:

quote:

9/14/2007- PARALLEL UNIVERSES, PARALLEL LIVES:
The BBC has made a film about E and his father, noted physicist Hugh Everett III, entitled PARALLEL UNIVERSES, PARALLEL LIVES. The film follows E on a journey to learn and understand more about his father during the fiftieth anniversary of Hugh Everett's Many Worlds theory. Stay tuned for air date information.

I'd heard in Eels press releases and so forth about E's dad being a well-known cosmologist, but I didn't realize how famous he was until I read his name in a couple books I was reading.

So the Eels have a Best Of/Rarities/DVD thingy coming out in January. http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/page/news/46435-eels-best...-comp-due-in-january

I'm not really interested. I've heard all of those rarities, and only a few are really worth listening to. And I own most of their albums, so there's really no need to own their greatest hits.

WHERE MY EELS HOMIES AT?

As stated before the Eels have a double disc rarities compilation entitled Useless Trinkets as well as a greatest hits called Essential Eels coming out on January 17th. There are 24 or 25 tracks on all 3 discs, and the greatest hits comes with a DVD with 12 tracks on it. The rarities disc comes with a DVD featuring the Eels' performance at Lollapalooza 2006. You can order a bundle (there are 3 options) that includes a t-shirt with the deal as well. Here are the tracklistings:

Useless Trinkets

Useless Trinkets Bundle
DISC 1:
01 novocaine for the soul (live from hell)
02 fucker
03 my beloved monster (live from tennessee)
04 dog's life
05 susan's apartment
06 manchester girl (BBC)
07 flower (BBC)
08 my beloved mad monster party (BBC)
09 animal
10 stepmother
11 everything's gonna be cool this christmas
12 your lucky day in hell (michael simpson remix) (previously unreleased)
13 altar boy
14 novocaine for the soul (moog cookbook remix)
15 if i was your girlfriend (live) (previously unreleased)
16 bad news
17 funeral parlor
18 hospital food (BBC)
19 open the door (BBC)
20 birdgirl on a cell phone
21 vice president fruitley
22 my beloved monstrosity
23 dark end of the street (live) (previously unreleased)
24 the cheater's guide to your heart (live) (previously unreleased)
25 useless trinkets (previously unreleased)


DISC 2:
01 mr. E's beautiful remix
02 souljacker part I (alternate version) (previously unreleased)
03 dog faced boy (alternate version) (previously unreleased)
04 jennifer eccles
05 rotten world blues
06 can't help falling in love
07 christmas is going to the dogs
08 mighty fine blues
09 eyes down
10 skywriting
11 taking a bath in rust
12 estranged friends (previously unreleased)
13 her
14 waltz of the naked clowns
15 i like birds (live) (previously unreleased)
16 sad foot sign
17 living life
18 the bright side
19 after the operation
20 jelly dancers
21 i could never take the place of your man (live at Town Hall)
22 mr. E's beautiful blues (live at Town Hall)
23 i want to protect you (previously unreleased)
24 i put a spell on you (live) (previously unreleased)
25 saw a ufo (previously unreleased)

EELS LOLLAPALOOZA 2006 DVD:
01 Saturday Morning
02 Eyes Down
03 My Beloved Monster
04 A Magic World
05 Not Ready Yet
06 Souljacker part I



Essential Eels

01 novocaine for the soul
02 susan's house
03 my beloved monster
04 your lucky day in hell
05 3 speed
06 last stop: this town
07 climbing to the moon (jon brion remix)*
08 flyswatter
09 i like birds
10 mr. E's beautiful blues
11 it's a motherfucker
12 souljacker part 1
13 that's not really funny
14 fresh feeling
15 get ur freak on*
16 saturday morning
17 love of the loveless
18 dirty girl (live at town hall)
19 i need some sleep
20 hey man (now you're really living)
21 i'm going to stop pretending that i didn't break your heart
22 trouble with dreams
23 railroad man
24 losing streak

* previously unreleased

EELS VIDEO COLLECTION DVD:
01 Novocaine For The Soul
02 Susan's House
03 Rags To Rags
04 Your Lucky Day In Hell
05 Last Stop: This Town
06 Cancer For The Cure
07 Flyswatter
08 Souljacker part I
09 Saturday Morning
10 Hey Man (Now You're Really Living)
11 Trouble With Dreams
12 Dirty Girl (Live at Town Hall)


More later on the songs chosen to include on the greatest hits. I give them a C+ on that front.

I hate to say it, as I can ill afford it, but I think I'm gonna drop $40 on this and get the whole package. I don't think you can call yourself an Eels fan unless you do.

That BBC documentary sounds really interesting (especially considering I'm an Eels fan who's into physics).
And I want to ammend I think the first thing I said in this- I looked at the book that I have that we wrote my favorite things in different grades and it was in first grade that Eels were my favorite band and Susan's House was my favorite song. Beautiful Freak would have been the only album of theirs that would have been out though.

quote:

Originally posted by Ginny:
That BBC documentary sounds really interesting (especially considering I'm an Eels fan who's into physics).

Sweet. Physics rules. I'm actually reading a physics book right now, called "Search for A Final Theory" or something like that. I've read some passing references to Hugh Everett's "Many Worlds Theory," but I've never read enough to gain a full understanding of it. From what I gathered it has to do with quantum uncertainty. The premise from which it was derived sounded really fascinating. I need to find some more good physics books to read.