Hombre Lobo
Encyclopedia
Hombre Lobo: 12 Songs of Desire is the seventh studio album
by American
rock
band
Eels
, released on June 2, 2009. Hombre Lobo is Spanish
for "werewolf
." On March 31, 2009, the band made the track "Fresh Blood" available on Spinner.com
, explaining that the song would be the lead single for the album. A documentary entitled Tremendous Dynamite was filmed to document the recording of the album. The cover art is a tribute to the famous Cuban cigar brand Cohiba
.
about desire
. As E explained "I wanted to write a set of songs about desire. That dreadful, intense want that gets you into all sorts of situations that can change your life in big ways." In part, the album was inspired by E's facial hair and written as a sequel to the Souljacker
song "Dog Faced Boy." The character of "Dog Faced Boy" has grown up into a werewolf and is the protagonist who experiences various types of desire throughout the songs. In an interview with NPR
on June 6, 2009, Eels frontman Mark Oliver Everett
stated "That Look You Give That Guy" is his favorite song from the album.
In contrast to the lush double album that was 2005's Blinking Lights and Other Revelations
, Everett tried to compose more straight-forward rock songs for Hombre Lobo.
Hombre Lobo is the first in a trilogy of three concept album
s continuing with the 2010 albums End Times
and Tomorrow Morning
.
in Europe on Polydor
/Vagrant
, an enhanced CD
with the Tremendous Dynamite documentary in the United States through E Works/Vagrant, a deluxe edition CD with a DVD, and a limited-edition vinyl
LP with gold embossing with a print run of 2,000. It is also sold digitally from the iTunes Store
; pre-ordered copies receive a copy of the music video for "Prizefighter."
account to generate hype for the album.
The live EP The Myspace Transmissions Session 2009
was also released to promote the album.
"Fresh Blood" was used in the June 2010 trailer for the 3rd season of HBO's "True Blood, as well as the ending credits of episode 11, Season 3."
It was also used as the closing song for the season 6 premiere episode of FX's series "Rescue Me."
, indicating "generally positive reviews." One negative review of the album came from Pitchfork Media
, who gave the album 4.6 out of 10.
and Koool G Murder, except where noted
Production
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
by American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band
Musical ensemble
A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...
Eels
Eels (band)
Eels is an American indie rock band formed by singer/songwriter Mark Oliver Everett, better known as E...
, released on June 2, 2009. Hombre Lobo is Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
for "werewolf
Werewolf
A werewolf, also known as a lycanthrope , is a mythological or folkloric human with the ability to shapeshift into a wolf or an anthropomorphic wolf-like creature, either purposely or after being placed under a curse...
." On March 31, 2009, the band made the track "Fresh Blood" available on Spinner.com
Spinner.com
Spinner is an AOL Music property, which bills itself as "the ultimate music blog for free MP3s, free CD listening, [and] discovering new artists."...
, explaining that the song would be the lead single for the album. A documentary entitled Tremendous Dynamite was filmed to document the recording of the album. The cover art is a tribute to the famous Cuban cigar brand Cohiba
Cohiba (cigar brand)
Cohiba is a brand for two kinds of premium cigar, one produced in Cuba for Habanos S.A., the Cuban state-owned tobacco company, and the other produced in the Dominican Republic for US-based General Cigar Company...
.
Composition
The songs form a concept albumConcept album
In music, a concept album is an album that is "unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical." Commonly, concept albums tend to incorporate preconceived musical or lyrical ideas rather than being improvised or composed in the studio, with all songs contributing...
about desire
Desire (emotion)
Desire is a sense of longing for a person or object or hoping for an outcome. Desire is the fire that sets action aflame. The same sense is expressed by emotions such as "craving" or "hankering". When a person desires something or someone, their sense of longing is excited by the enjoyment or the...
. As E explained "I wanted to write a set of songs about desire. That dreadful, intense want that gets you into all sorts of situations that can change your life in big ways." In part, the album was inspired by E's facial hair and written as a sequel to the Souljacker
Souljacker
Souljacker is a studio album from Eels released on September 19, 2001 in Japan, September 24, 2001 in the United Kingdom, and March 12, 2002 in the United States...
song "Dog Faced Boy." The character of "Dog Faced Boy" has grown up into a werewolf and is the protagonist who experiences various types of desire throughout the songs. In an interview with NPR
NPR
NPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
on June 6, 2009, Eels frontman Mark Oliver Everett
Mark Oliver Everett
Mark Oliver Everett is the lead singer, songwriter, guitarist, keyboardist and sometime drummer of the independent rock band Eels...
stated "That Look You Give That Guy" is his favorite song from the album.
In contrast to the lush double album that was 2005's Blinking Lights and Other Revelations
Blinking Lights and Other Revelations
Blinking Lights and Other Revelations is a 2005 double album by Eels. It was described by E on the official website as an album about "God and all the questions related to the subject of God...
, Everett tried to compose more straight-forward rock songs for Hombre Lobo.
Hombre Lobo is the first in a trilogy of three concept album
Concept album
In music, a concept album is an album that is "unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical." Commonly, concept albums tend to incorporate preconceived musical or lyrical ideas rather than being improvised or composed in the studio, with all songs contributing...
s continuing with the 2010 albums End Times
End Times (album)
-Charts:-Personnel:Eels*Wayne Bergeron – horns*Butch – drums*Chris Bleth – horns*E – vocals, guitars, bass guitar, harmonica, piano, Optigan, Hammond B3 organ, banjo, Harmonium, Vox Continental organ, drums, percussion, and production...
and Tomorrow Morning
Tomorrow Morning (album)
Tomorrow Morning is a 2010 studio album by Eels—the third in a trilogy of concept albums including Hombre Lobo and End Times . The band will tour for the album for the first time since their 2008 An Evening with Eels tour....
.
Release history
The album was released as a single CDCompact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
in Europe on Polydor
Polydor Records
Polydor is a record label owned by Universal Music Group, headquartered in the United Kingdom.-Beginnings:Polydor was originally an independent branch of the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft. Its name was first used as an export label in 1924, the British and German branches of the Gramophone...
/Vagrant
Vagrant Records
Vagrant Records is an indie rock label based in Los Angeles, California and is home to such artists as The Hold Steady, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, Active Child, PJ Harvey, Reptar, School of Seven Bells, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Thrice, James Vincent McMorrow, Placebo, and many...
, an enhanced CD
Enhanced CD
Enhanced CD, also known as CD Extra and CD Plus, is a certification mark of the Recording Industry Association of America for various technologies that combine audio and computer data for use in both Compact Disc and CD-ROM players....
with the Tremendous Dynamite documentary in the United States through E Works/Vagrant, a deluxe edition CD with a DVD, and a limited-edition vinyl
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
LP with gold embossing with a print run of 2,000. It is also sold digitally from the iTunes Store
ITunes Store
The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...
; pre-ordered copies receive a copy of the music video for "Prizefighter."
Marketing
Prior to the album's release, Eels promoted it with music videos for "Fresh Blood" (premiered April 29), "That Look You Give That Guy" (May 14), "Prizefighter", and "In My Dreams" (July 7). The band also briefly used a TwitterTwitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
account to generate hype for the album.
The live EP The Myspace Transmissions Session 2009
The Myspace Transmissions Session 2009
The Myspace Transmissions Session 2009 is a live EP from Eels released digitally on August 14, 2009, and on 10" vinyl on September 1, 2009. The songs were recorded as a part of The MySpace Transmissions album series...
was also released to promote the album.
"Fresh Blood" was used in the June 2010 trailer for the 3rd season of HBO's "True Blood, as well as the ending credits of episode 11, Season 3."
It was also used as the closing song for the season 6 premiere episode of FX's series "Rescue Me."
Critical reception
The album has a score of 70/100 on MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, indicating "generally positive reviews." One negative review of the album came from Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
, who gave the album 4.6 out of 10.
Track listing
All songs written by EMark Oliver Everett
Mark Oliver Everett is the lead singer, songwriter, guitarist, keyboardist and sometime drummer of the independent rock band Eels...
and Koool G Murder, except where noted
- "Prizefighter" – 2:53
- "That Look You Give That Guy" – 4:15
- "Lilac Breeze" (E) – 2:36
- "In My Dreams" – 3:22
- "Tremendous Dynamite" – 2:46
- "The Longing" (E) – 4:22
- "Fresh BloodFresh Blood (song)"Fresh Blood" is the first single from the 2009 Eels album Hombre Lobo. On March 31, 2009, the band made the track available on Spinner.com, explaining that the song would be the lead single for the album. The song is about a werewolf who desires "fresh blood"...
" – 4:25 - "What's a Fella Gotta Do" – 3:25
- "My Timing Is Off" (E) – 2:58
- "All the Beautiful Things" (E) – 2:22
- "Beginner's Luck" – 3:37
- "Ordinary Man" (E) – 3:15
Personnel
Eels- EMark Oliver EverettMark Oliver Everett is the lead singer, songwriter, guitarist, keyboardist and sometime drummer of the independent rock band Eels...
– vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
and guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with... - Knuckles – drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
- Koool G Murder – bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
Production
- Autumn de WildeAutumn de WildeAutumn de Wilde is an American photographer best known for her portraiture and commercial work photography of musicians.-Early life:...
– photography - E – productionRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
- Lisa Glines – design
- Dan "Huevos Grande" Hersch, Digiprep Mastering – masteringAudio masteringMastering, a form of audio post-production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device ; the source from which all copies will be produced...
- Koool G Murder – recordingAudio engineeringAn audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
and mixingAudio mixing (recorded music)In audio recording, audio mixing is the process by which multiple recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels, most commonly two-channel stereo. In the process, the source signals' level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated and effects such as reverb may... - Dan Pinder – recording and mixing
Sales chart performance
| Chart (2009) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| ARIA Charts ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... (Australia) |
35 |
| Austrian album charts | 42 |
| Belgian Album Chart (Flanders) | 1 |
| Belgian Album Chart (Wallonia) | 43 |
| Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... (United States) |
43 |
| Chart Chart (magazine) ChartAttack is a Canadian online music publication. Formerly a monthly print magazine called Chart, which was published from 1991 to 2009, the web version continues operation.... (Canada) |
10 |
| European Top 100 Albums European Top 100 Albums The European Top 100 Albums chart is the European adaptation of the Billboard 200 albums chart. It was created in March 1984.The European Top 100 Albums, commonly referred to as Eurochart Top 100 Albums shows the sales of an act in 19 European countries based on IFPI data.The European Top 100... |
20 |
| Irish Recorded Music Association Irish Recorded Music Association Irish Recorded Music Association is the Irish record industry association. IRMA is a non-profit association set up to manage and control the music industry in the Republic of Ireland.-Goals and activities:... |
24 |
| MegaCharts (The Netherlands) | 37 |
| Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... (France) |
59 |
| Swiss Charts | 10 |
| Top Independent Albums | 6 |
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
18 |