From the ashes of a band called Synthetic Flying Machine, Olivia Tremor Control was born, with an original line-up of Will and Bill on guitar and bass and Jeff on drums. Around 1995 Jeff decided to leave the group to focus on his own songs. A year of intensive songwriting (some of it accomplished, according to Jeff, while he was living in a haunted closet!) in Denver, Colorado with Rob Schneider at his Pet Sounds studio resulted in his debut album, On Avery Island, released in 1996, which was mostly Rob and Jeff playing Jeff's songs with a few helpful friends. Jeff eventually expanded the line up of Neutral Milk Hotel and in 1998 released what many consider the band's (and indeed, the Elephant Six Collective's) defining album, In the Aeroplane Over the Sea.
The relative success of the album in addition to the pressures of being suddenly thrust into the spotlight took its toll on Mangum, who disbanded Neutral Milk Hotel in 1998 after a tour in support of their latest album. Jeff has kept out of the public eye since then (although not without rabid fans speculating on his whereabouts), rarely if ever playing acoustic sets and concentrating more on his recorded sound and music collages. Most recently he released a compilation of field recordings of Bulgarian folk music called Orange Twin Field Works Vol. 1 in the summer of 2000, followed by a live album on the Orange Twin label, Live at Jittery Joe's. The set was recorded in 1997 and was put out to squash the exhorbitant sums that Neutral Milk Hotel live albums were selling for on eBay. The cd features a Quicktime movie of the concert performance, but Mangum is backlit and cannot be seen throughout the video.
On August 2nd, 2005, Jeff Mangum joined Olivia Tremor Control onstage at New York's Bowery Ballroom to sing lead vocals on their songs I Have Been Floated and Shaving Spiders. Accounts say that he was wiping back tears; afterwards, he was pulled to the floor by OTC member Julian Koster and then dogpiled by the rest of the band. He was wearing a baseball cap and a blue button down shirt.
On November 17th, 2005, Jeff Mangum joined Elf Power, another former Elephant Six band, onstage at New York's Knitting Factory for the final chorus of only one song, The Arrow Flies Close, leaving the stage immediately afterwards.
I Will Bury You in Time
Jeff Mangum Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You have buried my belief where all your sisters sleep, that the scent the purity will make when their youth is over frozen in some lost October.
I am breathing into you and it makes your features move, and they shimmer like balloons that fly above the ocean.
All the world is waiting here, you can hear the children cheer.
But they′ll need you when you're near the brink of complete implosion.
Crown your king when your life is broken.
Everything you are I′m tearing through, everything you want I'm wanting too, I gave you more then I thought I could ever do, but I will never break you.
And if I was the king of all the kids you'd hear me singing in my spit.
I will bury you in time when the sea begins to slide into this hole where you and I will sing our songs unbroken.
As the water starts it′s choking.
Ahhhhh-ah-ah Dee-dee-dee-dee
The lyrics of Jeff Mangum's song "I Will Bury You in Time" are cryptic and open to interpretation. On the surface, the song appears to be about a relationship between two people, but there is a sense of darkness and foreboding that runs through the lyrics.
The opening line, "I will bury you in time when the sea begins to slide into this hole where I am smiling on your shoulder," suggests a sense of impending doom. The sea sliding into a hole suggests a flood or some other catastrophic event. The singer seems to be resigned to this fate, and is smiling on their loved one's shoulder despite everything.
The next lines, "You have buried my belief where all your sisters sleep, that the scent the purity will make when their youth is over frozen in some lost October," are even more enigmatic. It seems to suggest that the singer has lost faith in something important to them, possibly due to the actions of the person they are addressing. The reference to a lost October suggests a time of sorrow or loss.
The rest of the song continues in this vein, with references to balloons flying above the ocean, the children cheering, and the singer wanting to crown their king when their life is broken. There is a sense of desperation in the lyrics, as if the singer is trying to hold on to something that is slipping away.
Overall, "I Will Bury You in Time" is a haunting song that leaves a lot of room for interpretation. It is a testament to Jeff Mangum's ability to write lyrics that are both simple and profound.
Line by Line Meaning
I will bury you in time when the sea begins to slide into this hole where I am smiling on your shoulder.
I will cherish you forever, even as reality takes a turn for the worse and the world around us crumbles.
You have buried my belief where all your sisters sleep, that the scent the purity will make when their youth is over frozen in some lost October.
Your actions have shattered my faith in the goodness of the world, leaving me with only memories of a time long gone.
I am breathing into you and it makes your features move, and they shimmer like balloons that fly above the ocean.
My love for you is so strong that it appears to animate and elevate you like a balloon floating above the water.
All the world is waiting here, you can hear the children cheer. But they'll need you when you're near the brink of complete implosion.
The world can be a welcoming place, but it can also be cruel and unforgiving. You must be strong to navigate its challenges.
Crown your king when your life is broken.
Even in times of great strife, it is important to recognize and honor those who lead and inspire us.
Everything you are I'm tearing through, everything you want I'm wanting too, I gave you more then I thought I could ever do, but I will never break you.
I am devoted to you completely, even as I struggle to understand the complexities of your inner world and the challenges you face.
And if I was the king of all the kids you'd hear me singing in my spit. But all you would hear is the shit inside my burnt emotions.
Even if I were in a position of great authority and influence, my true feelings and vulnerabilities would still come through in my music and writing.
I will bury you in time when the sea begins to slide into this hole where you and I will sing our songs unbroken. As the water starts it's choking. Ahhhhh-ah-ah Dee-dee-dee-dee
Together, we will continue to make music and art even as the world around us falls apart. Our love will be a beacon of hope in the chaos.
Writer(s): Jeff Mangum
Contributed by Katherine J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.