Hombre Lobo: 12 Songs of Desire[1] 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,[2] 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.[3] The cover art is a tribute to the famous Cuban cigar brand Cohiba.

Hombre Lobo
Studio album by
ReleasedJune 2, 2009 (2009-06-02)
RecordedJuly–December 2008
StudioOneHitsville, U.S.A.; Los Feliz; California, United States
GenreRock
Length40:16
LabelE Works/Vagrant
ProducerE
Eels chronology
Blinking Lights and Other Revelations
(2005)
Hombre Lobo
(2009)
End Times
(2010)
Singles from Hombre Lobo
  1. "My Timing Is Off"/"Fresh Blood"
    Released: April 26, 2009

Composition

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The songs form a concept album about arrogance and pride (.[citation needed] As frontman Mark Oliver "E" Everett 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."[4] In part, the album was inspired by E's facial hair[5] and written as a sequel to the Souljacker song "Dog Faced Boy".[6] 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.[7] In an interview with NPR on June 6, 2009, Everett stated, "That Look You Give That Guy" is his favorite song from the album.[8]

In contrast to 2005's Blinking Lights and Other Revelations, Everett tried to compose more straightforward rock songs for Hombre Lobo.[9]

Hombre Lobo is the first in a trilogy of three concept albums continuing with the 2010 albums End Times and Tomorrow Morning.[10]

Release history

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The album was released as a single CD in Europe on Polydor/Vagrant, an enhanced CD with the Tremendous Dynamite documentary in the United States through E Works/Vagrant,[11] 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".[4]

Marketing

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Prior to the album's release, Eels promoted it with music videos for "Fresh Blood" (premiered April 29),[12] "That Look You Give That Guy" (May 14),[13] "Prizefighter", and "In My Dreams" (July 7).[14] The band also briefly used a Twitter account to generate hype for the album.[15]

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 third 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. It was also used as the theme song for the HBO docu-series The Jinx.

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic70/100[16]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [17]
The Guardian     [18]
Mojo     [19]
Pitchfork4.6/10[20]
PopMatters     [21]
Record Collector     [22]
Spin     [23]
The Times     [24]
Uncut     [25]

The album has a score of 70/100 on Metacritic, indicating "generally positive reviews".[26] One negative review of the album came again from Pitchfork, who gave the album 4.6 out of 10.[20]

Track listing

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All songs written by E and Kelly Logsdon, except where noted

  1. "Prizefighter" – 2:53
  2. "That Look You Give That Guy" – 4:15
  3. "Lilac Breeze" (E) – 2:36
  4. "In My Dreams" – 3:22
  5. "Tremendous Dynamite" – 2:46
  6. "The Longing" (E) – 4:22
  7. "Fresh Blood" – 4:25
  8. "What's a Fella Gotta Do" – 3:25
  9. "My Timing Is Off" (E) – 2:58
  10. "All the Beautiful Things" (E) – 2:22
  11. "Beginner's Luck" – 3:37
  12. "Ordinary Man" (E) – 3:15

Personnel

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Eels

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  • Derek Brown – drums
  • E – vocals and guitar
  • Kelly Logsdon – bass guitar

Production

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Charts

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Certifications

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Sales certifications for Hombre Lobo
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Belgium (BEA)[45] Gold 15,000*

* Sales figures based on certification alone.

References

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  1. ^ "Eels homepage: Hombre Lobo". 2009-03-11.
  2. ^ Robertson, Jessica (March 31, 2009). "'Fresh Blood' on AOL Music". AOL Music. Archived from the original on May 24, 2011. Retrieved March 31, 2009.
  3. ^ Everett, Mark Oliver [@Eels] (April 3, 2009). "A 30 minute documentary film about the making of the new EELS album called TREMENDOUS DYNAMITE: Making HOMBRE LOBO is coming soon" (Tweet). Retrieved April 3, 2009 – via Twitter.
  4. ^ a b "Eels: Official Band Website — Hombre Lobo". Mark Oliver Everett. 2009-04-21. Retrieved 2009-04-22.
  5. ^ Graff, Gary (May 21, 2009). "Eels Ready Beard-Inspired Album". Billboard. Retrieved May 25, 2009.
  6. ^ "Eels "If you're going to boo somebody, you better know who you're booing, bitch."". Tiny Mix Tapes. May 2009. Retrieved July 16, 2009.
  7. ^ Bell, Sean (May 31, 2009). "The Wolf in Eels Clothing". Sunday Herald. Retrieved May 30, 2009.[permanent dead link]
  8. ^ "Eels: Finding Danger With 'Hombre Lobo' on NPR". NPR. June 6, 2009. Retrieved June 6, 2009.
  9. ^ Beaumont, Nick (July 15, 2009). "Parallel Universe: Eels: The Many Worlds of Mark Oliver Everett". MSN Music. Archived from the original on April 7, 2010. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
  10. ^ Murray, Robin (June 21, 2010). "Eels Talk About Their Rock Trilogy". CLash Music. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
  11. ^ "Eels: Official Band Website". Mark Oliver Everett. May 1, 2009. Retrieved May 1, 2009.
  12. ^ "'Fresh Blood' music video". Stereogum. 2009-04-29. Archived from the original on 2009-05-02. Retrieved 2009-04-29.
  13. ^ "'That Look You Give That Guy' music video". May 14, 2009. Archived from the original on July 9, 2009. Retrieved May 14, 2009.
  14. ^ "New Eels Video - "In My Dreams"". Stereogum. July 7, 2009. Archived from the original on July 9, 2009. Retrieved July 11, 2009.
  15. ^ Eels [@THE_EELS] (March 17, 2009). "have a new album, HOMBRE LOBO, coming out June 2, 2009" (Tweet). Retrieved April 28, 2022 – via Twitter.
  16. ^ "Hombre Lobo: 12 Songs of Desire - Eels". Metacritic. Retrieved May 29, 2016.
  17. ^ Jurek, Thom (June 4, 2009). "Hombre Lobo: Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved June 4, 2009.
  18. ^ Simpson, Dave (May 29, 2009). "Review of Hombre Lobo". The Guardian. Retrieved May 30, 2009.
  19. ^ McNair, James (April 29, 2009). "Review of Hombre Lobo". Mojo.
  20. ^ a b Ian Cohen (June 5, 2009). "Hombre Lobo: 12 Songs of Desire". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 25, 2010.
  21. ^ "Eels - Blinking Lights and Other Revelations - Review - Uncut.co.uk". Archived from the original on 2006-05-15. Retrieved 2013-06-04.
  22. ^ Kennedy, Jake (June 2009). "Review of Hombre Lobo". Record Collector. Retrieved May 21, 2009.
  23. ^ Thomas, Lindsay (June 2, 2009). "Eels — Hombre Loco Album Review". Spin. Retrieved June 2, 2009.
  24. ^ Paphides, Pete (May 30, 2009). "Eels: Hombre Lobo". The Times. Archived from the original on June 17, 2011. Retrieved May 30, 2009.
  25. ^ Mueller, Andrew (22 May 2009). "Review of Hombre Lobo". Uncut.
  26. ^ "Eels: Hombre Lobo: 12 Songs Of Desire (2009)". Metacritic. 2009-06-10. Retrieved 2009-06-10.
  27. ^ "Australiancharts.com – Eels – Hombre Lobo". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
  28. ^ "Austriancharts.at – Eels – Hombre Lobo" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
  29. ^ "Ultratop.be – Eels – Hombre Lobo" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
  30. ^ "Ultratop.be – Eels – Hombre Lobo" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
  31. ^ Burland, Chris (June 30, 2009). "Grizzly Bear At #1 For Third Week". Chart. Archived from the original on 2011-06-07. Retrieved July 16, 2009.{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  32. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Eels – Hombre Lobo" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
  33. ^ "Hombre Lobo: European Top 100 Albums". Billboard. 2009-06-20. Archived from the original on 2021-11-21. Retrieved 2009-06-17.
  34. ^ "Lescharts.com – Eels – Hombre Lobo". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
  35. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Eels – Hombre Lobo" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
  36. ^ "Irish-charts.com – Discography Eels". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
  37. ^ "Italiancharts.com – Eels – Hombre Lobo". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
  38. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Eels – Hombre Lobo". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
  39. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
  40. ^ "Eels Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
  41. ^ "Eels Chart History (Top Alternative Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  42. ^ "Eels Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
  43. ^ "Eels Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  44. ^ "Jaaroverzichten 2009". Ultratop. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  45. ^ "Ultratop − Goud en Platina – albums 2010". Ultratop. Hung Medien.
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