“Coachella was kind of fun, but I think we’d all like to hang out with you guys,” said Julian Koster of Neutral Milk Hotel, and though artists often say these types of things to pander to their audience and fans, as this was one of several similar statements throughout the night, you couldn’t help but feel the sincerity in the words. For as long as I can recall, there’s always been a certain sense of mysticism associated with Neutral Milk Hotel; their influence stretches across both time and distance to bridge a gap between so many fans. As pillars of Indie rock, and contemporaries of alternative rock and roll, Jeff Magnum, Scott Spillane, Jeremy Barnes, and Julian Koster have cultivated a generation of dedicated and devout followers, followers who have been craving for the better part of the last two decades for an experience like the one at the Crescent Ballroom Tuesday, April 15th 2014. As the first of Neutral Milk Hotel’s two sold-out shows in Phoenix, there was a palpable excitement in the air, the majority of which belonging to the underage crowd, as this was the only one of the two they were able to attend.
After Jeff Magnum’s wildly successful solo tour, the possibility of a Neutral Milk Hotel reunion was once again on the minds of avid fans, (in hindsight maybe Jeff’s solo tour was just an impressive approach to market research, wading the waters to test the long-lasting relevance of NMH’s discography.) Amidst such a large international tour it would have been easy for the crew from Georgia, to dismiss Phoenix all together, and opt for a bigger venue, but where would the fun be in that? It’s been a well know fact that shows from an Elephant 6 band pretty much require the intimacy that can only be found in a club or small theatre, and what better place than the Crescent Ballroom in Phoenix Arizona.
Elephant Six compatriots, Elf Power, have been playing with Neutral Milk Hotel for as long as the two have been around, and this tour is no different as they began the night. There’s certainly a great deal of pressure on most opening acts to lay a foundation for the headliner, this pressure can often be overwhelming and effect the performance of the artists, but with seasoned veterans like Elf Power this was hardly the case, they played with fervor and they played well.
Of course there’s a certain sense of anonymity in play here, an anonymity that should be preserved if only because of its rarity. In today’s music there has been an obvious paradigm shift for the average concertgoer, myself included, where all to easily we become fixated by the electronic device ostensibly attached to our hands. There’s an artificial sense of urgency driving us to document and share every benign aspect of life…in acknowledging this you would hope that the conflict would be resolved, but I fear this condition has become so deeply rooted culturally that hopes for its reconciliation is less than that of an Oasis reunion we’ve so desperately waited for. Thanks to the continuous efforts of Neutral Milk Hotel fans, this admittedly peculiar, yet welcomed, cloud of anonymity that befalls the band as a whole gets perpetuated in the mutually agreed upon ban of all things electronic.
With that being said there are a few things from the night I’d like to offer after witnessing such an amazing spectacle:
1. Beginning and ending as a lone voice on a dimming stage, Jeff Magnum stood as a momentary waypoint in the cultural timeline, creating that sense of nostalgia that few often know how to harness, a tranquility which though fleeting in action can become permanent in memory.
2. Thanks to NMH’s adroit composition, I can feel comfortable in saying, I now know how to replicate the sound of a whale’s chant.
3. Best smile of the night coincidentally goes to the person who gets best hat…Julian Koster! His exuberance was one of a million captivating qualities on display, yet his shined through seemingly unabridged. May his smile and hopefully innate jovial nature stay in part with all who are privilege enough to witness it.
4. Never in my life did I think I would use latex, crowd surfing and moshing, as words to describe a Neutral Milk Hotel show, but with floating gloves abound, and restless youth at the helm anything is possible.
Keeping in suit with the attempt of surprise and mystery, I feel it’s best to forgo a breakdown of the setlist, and an emotional account of each song, besides there’s already enough out there. Just know that yes they will play your favorites, yes you will sing along, you will jump, hell you’ll likely participate if not bare witness to a mosh pit and if you listened to any of their albums during your formidable years you will likely shed a tear or two.