Mental
by Eels

Album: Beautiful Freak (1996)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This a song about having a form of schizophrenia. He hears voices and dresses in his mothers clothes - everyone thinks he's "Mental" but he is explaining that it's because of his confusion with the world: "The only truth is that everything is a lie." It sounds like he suffered from abuse as a child: "They say I'm mental but I'm just confused, they say I'm mental but I've been abused." >>
    Suggestion credit:
    Paul - Warrington, England

Comments: 1

  • Mike from Ho Chi Minh City, OtherDon't know about abuse, but Mark Oliver Everett, who basically _is_ the Eels as it's more of a collective than a band, did have a disturbed/disturbing early life. His dad died when he was a kid and he basically dropped out - drink/drug problems, crashed out of school etc.... Isn't the whole point of the song that the singer _doesn't_ have a "real" mental illness, that's just what "they say"?
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Janet Jackson

Janet JacksonFact or Fiction

Was Janet secretly married at 18? Did she gain 60 pounds for a movie role that went to Mariah Carey? See what you know about Ms. Jackson.

Muhammad Ali: His Musical Legacy and the Songs he Inspired

Muhammad Ali: His Musical Legacy and the Songs he InspiredSong Writing

Before he was the champ, Ali released an album called I Am The Greatest!, but his musical influence is best heard in the songs he inspired.

Rush: Album by Album - A Conversation With Martin Popoff

Rush: Album by Album - A Conversation With Martin PopoffSong Writing

A talk with Martin Popoff about his latest book on Rush and how he assessed the thousands of albums he reviewed.

Al Jourgensen of Ministry

Al Jourgensen of MinistrySongwriter Interviews

In the name of song explanation, Al talks about scoring heroin for William Burroughs, and that's not even the most shocking story in this one.

N.W.A vs. the World

N.W.A vs. the WorldSong Writing

How the American gangsta rappers made history by getting banned in the UK.

Modern A Cappella with Peder Karlsson of The Real Group

Modern A Cappella with Peder Karlsson of The Real GroupSong Writing

The leader of the Modern A Cappella movement talks about the genre.