The eleventh track in my All-Time Top 25 Tunes is number nine, ‘Novocaine For The Soul’ by those Californian, off-the-wall, anarcho-rock, lo-fi funsters, Eels.
In my head, ‘Novocaine For The Soul’ is the antidote to so many forms of mainstream music that is punishingly guilty of taking itself far too seriously.
The scratchy start, tricky break-backs, unexpectedly-long pauses and yet an absence of loops, buzzes, clicks and technology mark this as an exemplary piece. It’s nothing other than well-played straight-to-amp guitars… this is music, pure and simple.