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.
Up and Over We Go
Jeff Mangum Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I will float until I learn how to swim
Inside my mother in a garbage bin
Until I find myself again, again
Up and over we go with mouths open wide and spitting still
I will spit until I learn how to speak
Up through the doorway as the sideboards creak
Up and over we go, the weight it sits on down and I don′t know
I will shout until they know what I mean
I mean the marriage of a dead dog sing
And a synthetic flying machine, machine
The lyrics to Jeff Mangum's song "Up and Over We Go" are complex and layered, filled with metaphors and imagery that speak to the human condition. The first verse depicts a journey through turbulent waters, with the singer floating until he learns how to swim. The phrase "up and over" suggests a cyclical movement, indicating that the singer is making progress but isn't quite there yet. The next few lines reference the singer's birth, but the setting of the scene is particularly poignant: inside his mother in a garbage bin. This image is a stark contrast to the image of floating in the waves, and it suggests a sense of abandonment, both by his mother and by life in general. The repetition of the phrase "until I find myself again, again" suggests a quest for identity, a search for meaning in a chaotic world.
The second verse continues with the water imagery, with the singer's mouth open wide and spitting still. This suggests a sense of frustration and a desire to communicate, but an inability to do so effectively. With the line "up through the doorway as the sideboards creak," the singer seems to be making progress, rising up from the depths, but the reference to "sideboards" suggests that this progress is tenuous and unstable. The repetition of the phrase "proclaiming me, me" suggests a desire for recognition, but also a fear of being defined solely by others. The final verse adds another layer to the water metaphor, with the weight sitting on down and the singer shouting until they know what he means. The reference to the "marriage of a dead dog sing and a synthetic flying machine" is particularly intriguing, suggesting a combination of the natural and unnatural, the dead and the mechanical. Overall, the lyrics to "Up and Over We Go" suggest a sense of dislocation and searching, but also a determination to keep moving forward.
Line by Line Meaning
Up and over, we go through the wave and undertow
Moving forward despite facing obstacles and challenges.
I will float until I learn how to swim
I will continue to survive until I learn the necessary skills to thrive.
Inside my mother in a garbage bin
Feeling trapped and stuck in a difficult and unpleasant situation.
Until I find myself again, again
Searching for a sense of self and identity, possibly after feeling lost or forgotten.
Up and over we go with mouths open wide and spitting still
Continuing to speak out and express oneself, even in the face of opposition or adversity.
I will spit until I learn how to speak
Determined to develop and refine one's communication skills.
Up through the doorway as the sideboards creak
Anxiety and tension that comes with entering new spaces and situations.
With them ever proclaiming me, me
Feeling constantly defined and judged by others.
Up and over we go, the weight it sits on down and I don't know
Struggling to carry the burdens and responsibilities of life.
I will shout until they know what I mean
Refusing to be misunderstood or overlooked; striving for clarity and understanding.
I mean the marriage of a dead dog sing
Combining unlikely or unappealing elements to create something unexpected, possibly as a form of artistic expression.
And a synthetic flying machine, machine
Innovation and creativity through the melding of natural and artificial elements.
Writer(s): Jeff Mangum
Contributed by Isabella J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.