David Simutis

If there ever was a guy that you wanted to hear sing, "Goddamn right it's a beautiful day," it's E, the singer/songwriter behind Los Angeles's Eels. "Mr. E's Beautiful Blues," the "hidden" track and first single from the group's third record, Daises of the Galaxy takes that sentiment, and propelled by a throbbing bass and a crisp beat, rides it for all it can. The happiness doesn't come a moment too soon. The band's last record, Electro-Shock Blues, was a hook-filled, cathartic musing on the darkest of subjects -- the death of E's mom and his sister's suicide. That aching song cycle with shifting points of view served him well in preparation for Daisies. On the new record E is joined by long-time one-named drummer, Butch, plus Peter Buck of R.E.M. and Grant Lee Phillips of Grant Lee Buffalo. They crank out crystal clear pop songs with clever, opulent production and a happier, shinier tone.

drDrew.com: Was the new record planned as a happier reaction to the last record?
E: No, it just naturally came out that way. It's definitely a sequel to Electro-Shock Blues; it picks up right where that one left off. That one left off on a positive note, and this one picks up from there. So that's why it's a sequel and it's the antidote.

drDrew.com: Was it helpful to have something tangible to work on to get through such a tough ordeal as the deaths in your family?
E: Yeah, it did. In retrospect I feel lucky that I had that outlet and that way to deal with [the death of loved ones]. It's such a great way to be able and try and make something beautiful out of so many troubling experiences. It's really important to me because I have a real need to make things. It's really great to channel all of that energy into something like [a CD]. I'm kind of simultaneously helping myself in several different ways, but it doesn't change that much in my life. I mean, I do think I'm a better person having made [Electro-Shock Blues], having dealt with it in that sense. Making a record is a great extra thing to be able to do, but you really have to deal with things on a whole other level to help yourself.

drDrew.com: What else got you through it?
E: Friends. They are more helpful than making a record.

drDrew.com: But does it feel weird revealing so much of your personal life in your songs?
E: I never think about it when I'm writing the songs or making a record. It's only right before a record comes out or a concert, then all of the sudden I start to feel really vulnerable. [I think], "Geez, what am I doing? I'm pouring my heart out to a bunch of strangers." Usually by the end of the concert I feel good about it, and there's a nice community feeling in the room. But at the same time I'm not spelling out what's going on in my life on a day-to-day basis. And often I'm writing in character; a lot of songs are mistakenly taken as autobiography, when they're not. I think somehow I've successfully revealed a lot of things about my life without really having it feel like an invasion of privacy.

drDrew.com: How do you get into character to write a song?
E: Well, like the title song from this record, first I wrote a short story, then I based the song on it. The song is complete fiction. Other times, like on Electro-Shock Blues the narrator of the song is different from song to song. A lot of times it's coming from my sister's point of view, a lot of times it is from my point of view, and sometimes it's from someone else's point of view.

drDrew.com: You're very prolific and writing is a solitary activity. The new album was even mostly recorded in your basement. Do you think you spend an awful lot of time in your own head?
E: I'm so isolated, I barely ever leave the house -- that's why I put off getting a computer for so long. I tried and tried and tried not to get into the computer thing because it's going to completely seal the deal that I'm isolated from the whole world. And now, I've finally succumbed to it.