Eels

The eels (whose real name is "eels", no capital, no "the" before it) were officially founded when Butch Norton and Mark Everett (aka E) met Tommy Walter. The name "eels" was chosen so that the band's records would be close to E's solo records. eels became one of the first groups to sign a record deal with DreamWorks Records. In 1996 the band released their debut album "Beautiful Freak", with the hit single, "Novocaine for the Soul". "Susan's House" and "Your Lucky Day in Hell" achieved modest national and international success, winning the Best International Breakthrough Act award at the 1998 BRIT Awards. In September 1997, Walter quit the band to pursue other interests, while E and Butch continued as the "eels". Following the success of "Beautiful Freak", E experienced a difficult time in his personal life. His sister committed suicide, and his mother was diagnosed with cancer. These events inspired him to write "Electro-Shock Blues", which was released in 1998. Contributions to the