Album Review: Mount Eerie – A Crow Looked at Me
By: Thomas Troyan
We are all going to die someday. While everyone knows this to some extent it’s not something that most people can seem to process. This is especially true when thinking about loved ones. This album was written and recorded following the passing of Phil Elverum’s wife Geneviève. He’s not trying to turn her death and his experiences into art however. This album is a matter-of-fact statement about death, and the pain of someone you truly love dying. The album encapsulated the feelings of emptiness and loneliness that you might be familiar with if someone close to you has died. Phil doesn’t try to turn his wife’s passing into some grandiose metaphor, which I think is this album’s strength. He gives the bare details of his life before and after his loss, and the lingering feelings that will always be there no matter how much time has passed. This is not an easy album. It’s not an album about learning how to deal with death, or to move on and conquer your sadness. It’s not an opportunity to learn, it’s just death.
Rating: 4.5/5 (High Rotation)
RIYL: The Microphones, Neutral Milk Hotel, the Mountain Goats
Recommended: 1, 3, 7, 8, 11
