Origins
Jeff Mangum was a member of The Olivia Tremor Control, along with his friend Will Cullen Hart and Bill Doss, appearing on their first release, the California Demise 7".
Prior to recording for friends under the NMH moniker, Mangum recorded at least one cassette under the name Milk: the only known tape was called Pygmie Barn in E Minor. This is the earliest known recordings that Mangum initiated and executed himself, on the cover there is "all songs: j.m '89. art: w. cullen hart". There is only an estimated dozen or so copies ever made of this tape, none of which have been made public. The tracklist etc. are also unknown.
Neutral Milk Hotel began life in Ruston, Louisiana, United States in the early 1990s, simply as a recording project for Mangum. He produced several demo cassettes, among them 1991's Invent Yourself a Shortcake, 1992's Beauty and 1993's Hype City Soundtrack, along with two more from this period, seemingly unnamed. Although easily found on the internet, these demos capture the project at a very embryonic state: songs are played in between various sound collages and tape experiments, and even, at one point, a six minute conversation between Mangum and Hart.
During this period, Mangum was wandering the country, staying in the closets of friends, and in a state of permanent unemployment. It was in these circumstances that the band's first formal releases took shape. Strictly speaking, however, the 'band' usually consisted of Mangum and whoever else was present at the time. This is obvious on Neutral Milk Hotel's first release, a 7" entitled Everything Is, recorded when Mangum was spending time in Seattle, Washington, released on Cher Doll Records in 1994.
On Avery Island
A full album, On Avery Island, followed, this time recorded mainly in Denver, Colorado, where Mangum was backed by Robert Schneider of the Apples in Stereo, Rick Benjamin of the Perry Weissman Three and Lisa Janssen of Secret Square. Merge Records released it in 1996. On On Avery Island, Mangum's unique vocal style and the band's quirky but playful arrangements create a carnival atmosphere of moods ranging from excitement, suspense, and melodrama.
After the release of On Avery Island, Neutral Milk Hotel became a fully-fledged band, as Julian Koster, Scott Spillane and Jeremy Barnes joined Mangum, the band now being based in New York. Soon after this, they moved to Athens, Georgia, where many of Mangum's friends had begun to settle, and the Elephant 6 recording company began, fully, to take shape. After this, the band went back to Denver, to record a proper follow up to On Avery Island.
In the Aeroplane Over the Sea
The band's second LP, In the Aeroplane Over the Sea, released in 1998, is notable as a critically acclaimed work and a widely popular recording. It is a spiritually motivated work, conceptually based on the beauty to be found in the horrific fate of Anne Frank and similarly overwhelming tragedies. (Mangum has, during live performances, including the one released under the title "Live at Jittery Joe's", described some of the songs off this album as based on urgent, recurring dreams he had of a European family during the 1940s.) The album was highly praised by critics for its wildly inventive instrumentation and Mangum's provocative and impassioned lyrics. Although it met with scant response from the general public when it was released, the recording has continued to gain momentum in indie music circles and has become a cult classic, selling well over 100,000 copies according to Merge Records. However, the record along with the year of constant touring that succeeded it took its toll on Mangum. The band quite abruptly went on hiatus turning down all requests for shows, including a support slot for R.E.M.. All of a sudden, the band appeared to go silent and very little has been heard from Mangum since 1999.
Hiatus
Although all the members are still active with one another in other projects, it is unknown whether any more Neutral Milk Hotel albums will be released. There were plans to release a Neutral Milk Hotel rarities album on the Orange Twin label; however, after an announcement in 2005 on the Orange Twin website claiming that Jeff Mangum had in fact eventually decided against the project, it is unclear if this will ever happen.
There has been, however, some activity since In the Aeroplane Over the Sea. First, Orange Twin re-released Everything Is...., complete with extra bonus tracks, as well as Live at Jittery Joe's, a bootleg recording of a show Mangum played in a coffee house in Athens in 1997. The Major Organ and the Adding Machine album, a rather secretive project released by Orange Twin in 2001 and consisting mainly of experimental musical collage, features Mangum, along with Julian Koster, Of Montreal's Kevin Barnes, Elf Power's Andrew Reiger and the Olivia Tremor Control and Circulatory System's Will Cullen Hart and Eric Harris. There was also the release of Orange Twin Field Works, Vol. 1, Mangum's field recording of a Bulgarian folk festival, also on Orange Twin in 2001. Additionally, he plays drums on the first Circulatory System album.
Since the start of the hiatus Neutral Milk Hotel, Jeff Mangum has only played live properly again once, under the pseudonym 'World of Wild Beards, Inc.', at the Kings Arms pub in Auckland, New Zealand, at the request of the Tall Dwarfs' Chris Knox. He has also made appearances with Elf Power, and appeared onstage at the first of The Olivia Tremor Control's New York shows on their 2005 reunion tour, to sing briefly. Further releases from Neutral Milk Hotel, however, are indicated to be unlikely.
The other members are all still releasing or recording material: Julian Koster as The Music Tapes, Scott Spillane as The Gerbils and Jeremy Barnes as A Hawk & A Hacksaw, Bablicon and Marta Tennae.
In 2005, In the Aeroplane Over the Sea saw its re-release by Domino Records in the UK, in a sleeve featuring praise from, among others, Franz Ferdinand and The Arcade Fire, both very much influenced by the band. On Avery Island was re-released in the US in January of 2006 with live bonus tracks. Mangum has also been fairly busy creatively - following a charity auction on eBay of an acoustic guitar decorated by Mangum himself, more guitars hand-decorated by Mangum were sold via Orange Twin Records for $900 apiece. In addition, a number of Mangum's original drawings, this time costing only $10 each, were sold via Neutral Milk Hotel's website.
In 2013, made a reunion tour of the United States, Australia, Taiwan and Japan. The band subsequently played concerts sporadically until going on indefinite hiatus in mid-2015.
Two‐Headed Boy
Neutral Milk Hotel Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
All floating in glass
The sun it has passed
Now it's blacker than black
I can hear as you tap on your jar
I am listening to hear where you are
I am listening to hear where you are
Put on Sunday shoes
And dance round the room to accordion keys
With the needle that sings in your heart
Catching signals that sound in the dark
Catching signals that sound in the dark
We will take off our clothes
And they'll be placing fingers through the notches in your spine
And when all is breaking
Everything that you could keep inside
Now your eyes ain't moving
Now they just lay there in their climb
Two headed boy
With pulleys and weights
Creating a radio played just for two
In the parlor with a moon across her face
And through the music he sweetly displays
Silver speakers that sparkle all day
Made for his lover who's floating and choking with her hands across her face
And in the dark we will take off our clothes
And they'll be placing fingers through the notches in your spine
And when all is breaking everything that you could keep inside
Now your eyes ain't moving now, they just lay there in their climb
Two headed boy
There is no reason to grieve
The world that you need is wrapped in gold silver sleeves
Left beneath Christmas trees in the snow
And I will take you and leave you alone
Watching spirals of white softly flow
Over your eyelids and all you did
Will wait until the point when you let go
The song "Two-Headed Boy" by Neutral Milk Hotel is about a person with two heads, floating in a jar of glass. The song starts with a dark tone as the sun sets and it turns blacker than black. The singer can hear the two-headed boy tapping on his jar and is listening to hear where he is. It then switches to a more upbeat tone as the boy puts on Sunday shoes and dances to accordion keys. The needle in his heart catches signals that sound in the dark.
In the chorus, the lyrics talk about taking off clothes and placing fingers through the notches in the boy's spine. This imagery is unsettling and implies that people are experimenting on the boy. The two-headed boy creates a radio played just for him and his lover in the parlor with a moon across her face. The singer sparkles all day as it was made for his lover who is floating and choking with her hands across her face.
In the final verse, the singer reassures the boy that there is no reason to grieve, and the world that he needs is wrapped in gold and silver sleeves. The boy's actions will wait until the point when he lets go. This song has a lot of interpretation to it, but it seems like it's about isolation, experimentation, and a boy who is trying to find love and joy in a dark and unsettling world.
Line by Line Meaning
Two headed boy
The singer is addressing someone who is unusual and unique, like a two-headed boy.
All floating in glass
The person being addressed may feel trapped and fragile, like they are floating in glass.
The sun it has passed
The time for hope has gone, represented by the passing of the sun.
Now it's blacker than black
Things have become incredibly dark and hopeless.
I can hear as you tap on your jar
The artist can sense the person's attempts to escape their confinement, even though they are trapped.
I am listening to hear where you are
The singer is trying to understand where the person is coming from and what they are feeling.
Put on Sunday shoes
The person is getting dressed up for a special occasion, but it may not mean much in the grand scheme of things.
And dance round the room to accordion keys
The person is celebrating life and joy through music, even in the midst of difficult circumstances.
With the needle that sings in your heart
The person has a passion and drive that fuels their actions and decisions.
Catching signals that sound in the dark
The person is listening intently for signs of hope and change, even in the darkest moments.
We will take off our clothes
The singer is offering a connection and intimacy with the person being addressed.
And they'll be placing fingers through the notches in your spine
The artist and the other person will explore each other's vulnerabilities and secrets.
And when all is breaking
Everything that you could keep inside
Now your eyes ain't moving
Now they just lay there in their climb
In moments of great stress, the person may feel paralyzed and helpless, unable to keep their emotions bottled up.
With pulleys and weights
Creating a radio played just for two
The person has an active imagination and is able to create beauty and joy, even in solitary moments.
In the parlor with a moon across her face
And through the music he sweetly displays
The person is using music and creativity to connect with someone special, in a romantic and intimate setting.
Silver speakers that sparkle all day
Made for his lover who's floating and choking with her hands across her face
The person uses music to create a beautiful, dream-like world for their lover, who is struggling and in need of escape.
There is no reason to grieve
The world that you need is wrapped in gold silver sleeves
Left beneath Christmas trees in the snow
The artist is offering hope and comfort, assuring the person that their dreams and desires are waiting for them in a magical, beautiful world.
And I will take you and leave you alone
Watching spirals of white softly flow
Over your eyelids and all you did
Will wait until the point when you let go
The singer will be a guide and companion to the person, watching as their thoughts and memories drift away until they are able to let go and find peace.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Jeff Mangum
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind