N.B. This review is based on the original 1996 album. Since the reissue features only two additional songs - both previously available on the Everything Is EP - it seems reasonable to provide a critique of the album in its original glory, and to assume that those considering purchasing the remastered edition are largely unfamiliar with the original version.
These are exciting times for fans of Neutral Milk Hotel, Jeff Mangum, and Elephant Six in general. This week's news of the forthcoming release of
hitherto unreleased Neutral Milk Hotel material follows on from a flurry of activity in recent months, including
new Olivia Tremor Control material,
a Mangum-curated ATP festival and
a host of solo dates. It really seems as if Mangum was, and remains, the true heart and soul of the tight-knit crew which formed the Elephant Six collective.
All of which makes the reissue, and subsequent reassessment, of Neutral Milk Hotel's 1996 debut LP
On Avery Island all the more timely. Perenially regarded as "the one which preceded
In The Aeroplane Over The Sea" - an album for which the term "cult classic" was seemingly coined specifically for -
On Avery Island has been given its long-overdue day in the sun. Sure enough
On Avery Island has much in common with its more illustrious successor: the distortion-ridden acoustic guitars; Jeff Mangum's stream-of-consciousness lyrics; Jeremy Barnes' crashing symbals; the mariachi-esque horns. In fact, it's striking just how unprecedented
On Avery Island was at the time of its release and that even 15 years on, when so many band line-ups are swollen with additional horn players and such like, it still sounds like such an original piece of work.
That, in large part, is thanks to Mangum. Whilst not yet possessing the degree of confidence in his voice he would subsequently find on
ITAOTS, his all-or-nothing bleats and the obscure, yet highly visual poetry of his lyrics are
On Avery Island's star turn. The album's most stripped back moments, such as A Baby For Pree and Three Peaches, are essentially Mangum and an acoustic guitar, but over the most rudimentary chord progressions, Mangum's compelling voice turns these songs into spine-tingling tour-de-forces; the despairing la-da-dahs which characterise Three Peaches would ultimately be recycled for
ITAOTS' Oh Comely.
There's no overriding concept to the songs on
On Avery Island, but with its recurring lyrical themes and musical motifs, it remains a remarkably cohesive album, even as it tumbles between full-band songs, the aforementioned Mangum solo moments, and trippy instrumentals. The Elephant Six influence is perhaps more noticeable here than on
ITAOTS; the clanging fairground chimes which close out Someone Is Waiting or the tape experiment vibe of Marching Theme are certainly close cousins to Will Cullen Hart's work with Olivia Tremor Control and Circulatory System. If there's anything that ties
On Avery Island together, it's a lingering sense of dread; death, in some shape or form, has never strayed far from Mangum's lyric sheet, and as early as opener Song About Sex he's pleaing to some girl "don't take those pills your boyfriend gave you/you're too wonderful to die".
So where does all this leave
On Avery Island? Well there's still no denying that the band's peak was still to come; the fuzz of their debut LP would be crispened up on ITAOTS, and the rest of the band would grow with Mangum to write more dynamic songs. But
On Avery Island remains a fascinating and essential document, a near-classic from a band which had already forged a unique identity
84/100
