Wonderful, Glorious
Wonderful, Glorious is the tenth studio album by American alternative rock band Eels, released in 2013 by record labels Vagrant and E Works. The album was produced by band leader Mark Oliver Everett. A worldwide tour accompanied the album release. Recording. The songs were recorded in band leader Mark Oliver Everett's home studio in Los Feliz, Los Angeles, which was built for this album, after his previous home studio became too cramped for effectively recording. In an unusual choice for an Eels album, Everett decided to work on the songs by jamming with fellow Eels members and  composing at home, only drawing upon sparse lyrics from his notebooks. He got the idea of collaborating with these musicians in particular after his last two tours and three albums featured a relatively stable line-up to the Eels musical collective. Release. "Wonderful, Glorious" was released on February 4, 2013 by record labels Vagrant and E Works. Reception. "The Skinny"s Stu Lewis gave the album four out of five stars praising the harder rock sound of the album calling it "work few contemporary indie rock bands could better" and Eric Magnuson's review in "American Songwriter" writes that the lyrics  are demanding "like [Everett] has a knife to your throat, creating a wonderful paradox". Jude Clarke of BBC Music summarizes her review by saying the album "continues the band's long-running, idiosyncratic and distinctively creative career path." Maddy Costa of "The Guardian" also praised the album's hard rock sound, noting that the lyrics are "delivered in a growl so jittery and aggressive that gentleness is obliterated." About.com's review by Tim Grierson emphasizes the diversity in songwriting, stating that "Wonderful, Glorious" "offer[s] variations on familiar styles and delivering a few delightful curve balls in the process." Several reviewers  have noted the positive and uplifting themes of the lyrics, such as "The Observer"s Phil Mongredien and Jon Clark of Drowned in Sound whose review stated that "the negativity often present in Eels records is less noticeable here; in fact the record contains many optimistic, if particularly frank and defiant, testimonials." Michael Gallucci of The A.V. Club writes that the lyrics express E's relief after Eels' concept album trilogy. Writing for "NME", Kevin E. G. Perry contrasts the optimism of the lyrics with E's personal tragedies, concluding that "part of the triumph of this record is just how  upbeat he sounds while talking about everything from love and loss to mortality itself." "Paste"s Ryan Reed considers the positivity "awkwardly forced" leading to an album of "lifeless non-revelations married to engrossing tunes". Track listing. All songs written by E, except where noted Deluxe edition bonus disc Personnel. Eels