Longtime American indie rock band Neutral Milk Hotel has released a video for the performance they held on Halloween ’97 in Athens, Georgia. Whilst many clips from that gig exist and have been appearing online, this is the first full length recording of this show that has been released to the public.
The recording was uploaded by the Neutral Milk Hotel Archive account on Youtube, and notes int the description several interesting facts about that show. The description mentions how it is the first time that the tracks “The King of Carrot Flowers Pt.1” and “Holland, 1945” are played with a full band live, and also includes several other tidbits about the show.
Neutral Milk Hotel, noted for its experimental sound, abstract lyrics and eclectic instrumentation, began as a simple recording project for frontman Jeff Magnum in the late 80’s, he was joined by Julian Koster (whose no longer with the band), Scott Spillane, and Jeremy Barnes for the group’s first LP On Avery Island. The band’s follow-up album In the Aeroplane Over The Sea received critical acclaim and became widely popular, taking inspiration of Anne Frank’s story during the Holocaust, and accumulating praise for its inventive instrumentation and provocative lyrics written by Magnum.
After that album the band chose to go into indefinite hiatus, which disappointed fans immensely. However, it seems that there are rumors circulating the internet, hinting towards a possible release of new music, after a set of drawings made by Magnum were released online. According to NME, Reddit user maldenfilms posted a recent picture of an art piece that was purchased from Magnum that seems to have the words “double album” written on the top of the design.
The last recorded material that was released by the band was in 2011, with the Ferris Wheel on Fire EP, so with these hints being dropped left and right, fans can only hope that the band not only comes out with new material, but will once again hit the stage hard for their memorable performances and an epic tour.
Leave a Comment