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.
Sign the Dotted Line
Jeff Mangum Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And see if we can find the same way out
Of this whole mess.
It's not as if we′d lose our lives
Or be impailed by carving knives
Just yet,
No, not unless
We sign the dotted line
Let's just discard what makes us tick
And act as if we're really thick and slow
Taking a hand,
And sign the dotted line,
So everything will turn out fine.
And if it′s not what it appears to be
We′ll get down on our bended knees
And lick the shit of which they stand
Until it shines.
Let's go away to somewhere new
Where people havent got a clue
And bland into the crowd,
And sign the dotted line,
So everything will turn out fine.
And if it′s not what it's cracked up to be
We′ll sit and sip so passively.
We'll smile and nod and be well dressed
For our decline.
The song "Sign the Dotted Line" by Jeff Mangum delves into the idea of sacrificing one's true self to conform to societal norms in the pursuit of a false sense of security. The opening lines of the song introduce the idea of struggling through difficult circumstances, possibly representing the unpredictable nature of life. However, the singer suggests that there might be a way out of this confusion, a false sense of control over the unpredictable by "signing the dotted line."
The phrase "sign the dotted line" suggests a contract, something legally binding. The singer implies that a contract or commitment might be the way to provide structure and assurance in life. However, the cost of signing away one's freedom and sense of individuality might not be worth the perceived benefits. The song also implies the fear of being impaled by carving knives in the second line of the first verse, which expresses the idea of becoming stuck and vulnerable to the world.
The rest of the song talks about the slow devaluation of one's self and individuality over time. The lyric, "Let's just discard what makes us tick/And act as if we're really thick and slow" is an invitation to abandon one's unique identity and become more generic or superficial. The song suggests that doing this will allow for a semblance of stability in life, as everything will "turn out fine." However, the singer acknowledges that this is a precarious position with the lyric, "And if it's not what it appears to be/We'll get down on our bended knees/And lick the shit of which they stand/Until it shines," suggesting an alternative in which one must continually perform to maintain this sense of control.
Overall, "Sign the Dotted Line" by Jeff Magnum provides a critique of conformity, contract society, and the cost of stability. The song's lyrics highlight the price of losing one's individuality and surrendering personal independence.
Line by Line Meaning
Let’s descend through fog and rain
Let’s go through difficult and challenging times together
And see if we can find the same way out
Let’s try to find an escape route from this complicated situation together
Of this whole mess.
Of this chaotic situation we are in.
It’s not as if we’d lose our lives
There is no danger of losing our lives
Or be impaled by carving knives
Or face any physical harm
Just yet,
At least not for now
No, not unless
Only if
We sign the dotted line
If we commit to something by signing a contract
So everything will turn out fine.
To ensure a positive outcome
Let’s just discard what makes us tick
Let’s ignore our personal values and beliefs
And act as if we’re really thick and slow
Pretend to be dumb and naive
Taking a hand,
Guiding each other
And sign the dotted line,
Committing to something by signing a contract
So everything will turn out fine.
To ensure a positive outcome
And if it's not what it appears to be
If the situation is not as it seems
We’ll get down on our bended knees
We’ll humble ourselves and ask for forgiveness
And lick the shit of which they stand
We’ll obey and follow their orders, no matter how unpleasant or degrading
Until it shines.
Until we make it work
Let's go away to somewhere new
Let's escape this situation and start fresh
Where people haven't got a clue
Where people are unaware of our past
And blend into the crowd,
Let's become unnoticeable by blending in
And sign the dotted line,
Committing to something by signing a contract
So everything will turn out fine.
To ensure a positive outcome
And if it’s not what it's cracked up to be
If the situation is not as good as it was hyped up to be
We’ll sit and sip so passively.
We’ll accept the situation passively without complaint or action
We'll smile and nod and be well dressed
We'll maintain appearances, even if things are not going well
For our decline.
Even though we are heading towards failure
Writer(s): Alexander Charles Bathgate, Christopher Alexander Knox
Contributed by Samuel S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Adrian Vanegas
Jeff Mangum is a beautiful man