EELS Announce New Album And Share Lead Single 'Cap In Hand'

Official Announcement | Published: Jun 16, 2026 3:16 PM EDT

(DawBell) EELS have announced their 16th studio album, COOKIE HAPPENED, arriving 16th October via E Works / Play It Again Sam. Alongside the announcement, EELS have shared 'Cap In Hand', a bittersweet and beautifully bruised first taste of the album, told from the perspective of someone finally confronting their mistakes and is now attempting to set things right.

The warm-hearted, rueful and quietly triumphant song, sets the tone for an album that finds E (Mark Oliver Everett) turning his gaze toward life's small victories, inevitable disappointments and the strange miracle of having been here at all.

Speaking about the album title, E says: "All of this will be forgotten. Every joy, accomplishment and hardship will one day become so irrelevant it will be as if none of it occurred. But as the great philosopher of our times, Cookie Monster once said: 'Me no cry because cookie is finished. Me smile because cookie happened.' This will all be forgotten. But isn't it still a beautiful thing that it happened?"

COOKIE HAPPENED follows 2024's critically acclaimed EELS TIME!, which saw EELS continuing their remarkable late-career run with a collection of songs that balanced reflection, humour and hard-won optimism. With its latest offering, EELS once again demonstrate that few artists are better at finding meaning in life's messiest moments.

The album's lead single, 'Cap In Hand', introduces one of the record's recurring characters: a person attempting to make peace with their mistakes.

E explains: "I wanted to sound kind of worn out for this one too, like someone who's messed up their life but now sees the error of their ways and is trying to make amends with their tail between their legs. You know how record companies are: "We don't care what you give us, just make sure you sound defeated on the first two tracks!"