They were among the second wave of groups to emerge from The Elephant 6 Recording Company and the group has a style that is typical of many Elephant 6 bands due to their interest in combining musical experimentation with the basic tenets of pop i.e. catchy melodies and sing-along choruses. The band’s style has been influenced by conventional indie pop, psychedelic music, vaudeville and music hall on their earlier releases and by afrobeat, funk, krautrock and reggae on their recent releases.
The band’s style has been known to change between albums. At first, the band embraced a more simple, quirky, lo-fi indie pop sound, which occasionally bordered on twee pop. The band was created by Kevin Barnes and named after a failed romance with a woman from Montreal, though the story changes in various interviews. Barnes was the only member of the “group” prior to his relocation to Athens, Georgia. There, he met Derek Almstead, later of Circulatory System, M Coast, Elf Power etc., and Bryan Poole, who also performs as The Late B.P. Helium.
Together, they recorded their first album, Cherry Peel, as well as The Bird Who Continues to Eat the Rabbit’s Flower and The Bedside Drama: A Petite Tragedy.
A number of singles and a re-release of The Bird Who Continues to Eat the Rabbit’s Flower occurred before the release of the band’s third album, The Gay Parade in 1999. With contributions from several members of the Elephant Six collective at the time, it also featured artwork from Kevin’s brother David Barnes, who would continue to do artwork for future albums.
This album marked that the band had moved to a fuller sound, which is also found on its follow-up, Coquelicot Asleep in the Poppies: A Variety of Whimsical Verse. These two albums contain more narrative lyrics, as opposed to the rather personal lyrical matter of those preceding it, and often imitating the style of old 1950s radio plays.
After production on The Gay Parade began in 1998, Poole left the band to focus on his duties with Elf Power, another Elephant Six band from Athens. Barnes also recruited Jamey Huggins and Dottie Alexander, who had been performing together as Lightning Bug vs. Firefly, to play various instruments. Derek moved from drums to bass. The band was joined soon after by Marshmallow Coast’s Andy Gonzales.
Following the release of The Gay Parade, the band signed with Kindercore Records, who would release a number of singles and compilations. It wasn’t until 2001 that Coquelicot Asleep in the Poppies: A Variety of Whimsical Verse would be released as a new album with original material. The album again featured contributions from across the Elephant 6 spectrum.
In 2002, Aldhils Arboretum was released, with a slightly different sound than its predecessors, as the songs were more directly structured. This album marks the beginning of the change in of Montreal’s sound, with more danceable rhythms than ever before, especially on the album’s closer, “Death Dance Of The Omipapas and Sons For You”. A successful tour ensued, including of Montreal’s first trip to the UK, along with a tour-only EP.
Kindercore Records would fold shortly after the release of Arboretum, and of Montreal’s status was also threatened. Kevin got married, and Andy and Derek left the band. Barnes, being uncomfortable with the unrest, as well as some divisions within the band, took to writing and performing their 2004 album Satanic Panic in the Attic mostly by himself. Released by Polyvinyl Records, it became one of their more successful efforts to that point. The 2004 tour saw The Late B.P. Helium (Bryan Poole) rejoin the band, with some bass played by Kevin’s partner Nina Barnes. The album marked a shift to something more electronic with traditional structures, to be further advanced in later albums and new songs. In their most recent releases and concerts, the band has fully embraced a sort of techno-pop glam image, with little of their previous incarnations surfacing. This style is featured in singles such as Disconnect the Dots. The style would continue to evolve into 2005’s The Sunlandic Twins, which was even more a Barnes solo effort. Recorded in Athens, with the exception of one track recorded in Norway, it was a much more pronounced electronic album. The album became a success, mostly due to the singles “So Begins Our Alabee” and the MTV clip for “Wraith Pinned to the Mist (and Other Games)”.
The band released several collections of singles in early 2006. Barnes recorded most of the band’s 2007 release, Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?, by himself while living in Norway and Athens, Georgia. The switch to autobiographical themes of suicide, depression and isolation of the album was a direct product of his troubled personal life during that period.
of Montreal released Skeletal Lamping on October 21, 2008 followed by False Priest on September 14, 2010, Paralytic Stalks on February 7, 2012, and Lousy with Sylvianbriar on October 8, 2013. Aureate Gloom is scheduled for release by Polyvinyl Records on March 3, 2015.
Lyrically, their style has changed dramatically throughout the years. In the beginning, many songs were narratives of personal or humorous situations, such as “Tim, I Wish You Were Born A Girl”, from Cherry Peel. This style, however, changed with The Gay Parade, where many songs involve small narratives surrounding invented characters (in songs such as “Jacques Lamure”, “The Autobiographical Grandpa”, “Mimi Merlot” and “Rose Robert”). Others act as extracts from fictional conversations (“Advice From a Divorced Gentleman to His Bachelor Friend Considering Marriage” and “Good Morning Mr. Edminton” as examples). With Aldhils Arboretum came a slight return to the previous writing style, except following more poppy, classical lyrical structures (such as the use of choruses, which are generally absent in the Gay Parade/Coquelicot years). This style continued throughout Satanic Panic and The Sunlandic Twins to some extent. On the album Hissing Fauna: Are You The Destroyer? the lyrics are much more personal than previously used, with songs detailing emotions within the speaker.
Another unique quality of the band is the fusion of ostensibly gloomy lyrics with bouncy, upbeat melodies and hooks. On Aldhils Arboretum, for example, the lyrics for tracks like “Doing Nothing” and “Old People in the Cemetery” focus on apathy, loneliness or death while being contrasted with cheerful instrumentation. Another example of this tendency is shown in their choice of covers; for example, Yoko Ono’s “I Felt Like Smashing my Head Through a Clear Glass Window” from The Bird Who Continues to Eat the Rabbit’s Flower.
True to the style of most Elephant 6 recording artists, of Montreal’s members have been in a variety of side projects and other bands:
The band itself has performed as the backing band for Marshmallow Coast on record and on tour.
My First Keyboard was the pseudonym used by Dottie Alexander to release the song “The You I Created” on the Kindercore singles club. of Montreal acted as her backing band.
Hydra Fancies
of Montreal Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I hardly know, don't know you very well
I really hope that this summer you will change your pursuit
I don't mind, don't stand for you
How about you, my new favorite thing
The flashbulbs burn my irises
But still I love to see you up upon your pedestal
I just love to see you win
But when they torture you
It's like standing on a dragon's tongue
Oh, oh
They flash your pretty nightmare on the sky
When I was playing your card
Kissing your death sun, away
How about you, my new favorite thing
With you and me you're hoping ever more
I know it's work to cope with my dementia and stuff
But I don't mind, don't stand for you
How about you my new favorite thing today
I'm planting some flowers in your name
I'm trying to build a fake flag empire for free
Because I just love to see you win
When we experiment, I will become your surrogate
(Oh, oh)
I really can't conceive with any balance in my future anyways
(Oh, oh)
The comer is poisoned
You've rattled me this uncontrollable sensory
Your actions are an infinite defeat
I've so much to tell you,
And it can't wait until you're born again
The song Hydra Fancies by of Montreal begins with the singer addressing his “new favorite thing,” a person whom he hardly knows. He hopes that this summer, this person will change their pursuit, though he does not specify what that pursuit might be. The singer professes his admiration for this individual, saying that despite the bright flashes of cameras (symbolized by the “flashbulbs burn[ing] my irises”), he loves to see them on their pedestal, and he loves to see them win.
However, the chorus of the song then takes a darker turn, with the singer describing the torture that this person undergoes. It is “like standing on a dragon’s tongue,” and their “pretty nightmare” is shown in the sky. The singer, though, is still devoted to this person, saying that he kisses away their “death sun” and is willing to cope with their “dementia and stuff.” He even plants flowers in their name and builds a “fake flag empire” for free because he just loves to see them win.
Line by Line Meaning
How about you, my new favorite thing
The singer is addressing someone they are interested in.
I hardly know, don't know you very well
The singer does not know the person they are addressing very well.
I really hope that this summer you will change your pursuit
The singer hopes that the addressed person may take a different path in life this summer.
I don't mind, don't stand for you
The artist does not take a stand for the addressed person.
The flashbulbs burn my irises
The flashing of cameras is physically hurting the artist's eyes.
But still I love to see you up upon your pedestal
The singer admires the addressed person's high status and likes to see them in the limelight.
I just love to see you win
The singer takes pleasure in the addressed person's success.
But when they torture you
The artist is acknowledging the addressed person's hardships.
It's like standing on a dragon's tongue
The pain the addressed person is feeling is unbearable, like standing on hot coals or in a dragon's mouth.
They flash your pretty nightmare on the sky
The media is broadcasting and exploiting the addressed person's struggles and fears.
When I was playing your card
The singer was using the addressed person for their own gain.
Kissing your death sun, away
The artist was trying to comfort the addressed person in a time of crisis.
With you and me you're hoping ever more
The singer wants to be with the addressed person and is hoping for more in their relationship.
I know it's work to cope with my dementia and stuff
The singer is aware that it is difficult for the addressed person to cope with their mental state.
But I don't mind, don't stand for you
The singer is not a burden on the addressed person and does not take a stand for them.
I'm planting some flowers in your name
The artist is honoring the addressed person by planting flowers in their name.
I'm trying to build a fake flag empire for free
The artist is trying to create something of value for the addressed person without asking for anything in return.
Because I just love to see you win
The singer takes pleasure in the addressed person's success.
When we experiment, I will become your surrogate
The singer is willing to help the addressed person experiment with new things.
I really can't conceive with any balance in my future anyways
The artist cannot plan for their future because their mental state is unstable.
The comer is poisoned
The situation is toxic and harmful for both the artist and addressed person.
You've rattled me this uncontrollable sensory
The addressed person has affected the artist's senses and emotions beyond their control.
Your actions are an infinite defeat
The addressed person's actions have caused the singer to feel defeated.
I've so much to tell you,
The artist has a lot they want to express to the addressed person.
And it can't wait until you're born again
The singer is longing for the addressed person to become a new and improved version of themselves.
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Kevin L Barnes
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind