Eels – “Agatha Chang” (Stereogum Premiere)

Eels – “Agatha Chang” (Stereogum Premiere)

Mark Oliver Everett, the man best known simply as E, has built up a massive and wide-ranging discography over the past 19 years as the mastermind and only constant member of the alt-rock project known as Eels. That discography is about to get one bigger: This April, Eels will release their eleventh studio album, The Cautionary Tales of Mark Oliver Everett, via E’s label E Works. The record is an introspective turn for E — a press release describes it as “an extraordinarily vivid and intimate document of a personal struggle” — and lead single “Agatha Chang” certainly affirms that this will be one of the quieter versions of Eels on record. The track is a gentle acoustic ballad with a lovely string arrangement; it reminds me first and foremost of Leonard Cohen. E sings forlornly about regret stemming from a missed chance at love, applying his weary baritone to simple, direct statements that cut straight to the point: “I couldn’t bear to break up my old gang/ But I should have stayed with Agatha Chang.” Check out the song below, where you’ll also find the new album tracklist.

The Cautionary Tales of Mark Oliver Everett is out 4/22 via E Works. Tracklist:

1. Where I’m At
2. Parallels
3. Lockdown Hurricane
4. Agatha Chang
5. A Swallow in the Sun
6. Where I’m From
7. Series of Misunderstandings
8. Kindred Spirit
9. Gentleman’s Choice
10. Dead Reckoning
11. Answers
12. Mistakes of My Youth
13. Where I’m Going

Deluxe Edition 13 Track Bonus Disc
1. To Dig It
2. Lonely Lockdown Hurricane
3. Bow Out
4. A Good Deal
5. Good Morning Bright Eyes
6. Millicent Don’t Blame Yourself
7. Thanks I Guess
8. On The Ropes (LIVE WNYC)
9. Accident Prone (LIVE WNYC)
10. I’m Your Brave Little Soldier (LIVE WNYC)
11. Fresh Feeling (LIVE KCRW)
12. Trouble With Dreams (LIVE KCRW)
13. Oh Well (LIVE KCRW)

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