Overrated: "In The Aeroplane Over The Sea"

First of all, while these segments may be controversial, they do not aim to be inflammatory for no other reason than to evoke public outcry. The goal of these pieces is to explain why the author thinks these album are overrated and at the same time acknowledge why others praise them.

Neutral Milk Hotel
In The Aeroplane Over The Sea
1998

When it comes down to it, my taste's don't vary that much from most fans of indie rock/pop. However I disagree with all those who consider Neutral Milk Hotel's In The Aeroplane Over The Sea to be "perfect" and hugely influential.

I first tried to make my way through In The "Aeroplane Over The Sea" in high school. Granted at the time I was looking for bands with the same grandiosity as Broken Social Scene and The Arcade Fire, and was disappointed by it.

Flash forward to my freshmen year in college, and I kept reading people reference this album as one of their favorites, and thought I'd give it another try. This time I unfairly dismissed it as overrated sloppy campfire songs—the kind of songs that jerk at the party with the guitar would be playing. (2010 EDIT: I actually met one of those jerks last summer, transcending them from the "oh they probably exist" level to the "oh they unfortunately do exist" level)

A few weeks ago I sat down and tried it again, after listening to the "Everything Is" ep and enjoying it. Has my opinion changed?

I still think the guitar is too campfire-y. But I can forgive that; progressions have been ripped off since the dawn of music by countless imitators in their soulless tunes, but Neutral Milk Hotel do a good job convincing me that these aren't those songs, but instead something unique.

I still think most of the vocals are sloppy. But the melodies are catchy as hell. After repeated listenings many melodies were stuck in my head. I think Jeff Mangum's voice is so much more effective when it's controlled and quieter, as in "The Communist Daughter" or "Two-Headed Boy Part 2."

I'll also concede that the album has had an impact on the modern indie scene. There are so many imitators trying to achieve this folk/pop song sound, but I don't really think any of them come close. One thing that actually surprised me was how much the horn arrangements reminded me of the newest Beirut EP . Which leads me to a complaint: some of the instruments sound horrible because of the terrible sound quality. Perhaps this was an aesthetic choice, but when I compare "The Fool" to "On A Bayonet", I realize that while both are good, I like Beirut's better, if only because of the cleaner sound. But it's easy to see how Zach Condon was influenced by this album.

But is it worth all the hype? I personally adopt the viewpoint that it's a good album, but not perfect. And perhaps it would be better for one to listen to it not out of desire to see what the hype is all about, but instead to enjoy an album of consistently great songs, with the knowledge that it might not be an easy album to get into. But that's just my opinion. If you disagree you're welcome to leave a comment.

Some months later: I have been listening to it even more, and have gone through different periods of liking different songs. I can see why this album comes up as so many people's favorites--it's diverse enough to find a song for almost any mood, it's full of energy, and while it may sound sloppy at times it's hard to imagine Jeff Mangum recording a better take than any of those featured on this album.

I'm not sure whether I'd call it essential listening if you're a fan of the genre, because that might draw people in with the same expectations I had. Instead, I think this is one of those albums that should be passed on via the recommendation of friends. It seems contradictory to make a widespread impersonal recommendation of an album that affects so many people on a very personal level.