The Microphones were an American indie folk, indie rock, and experimental band, founded and fronted by Phil Elverum. The band has released 5 studio albums, 13 miscellaneous albums,[lower-alpha 1] 3 extended plays, and 8 singles. Elverum began the Microphones initially as a solo project, releasing cassette demos of tests and experiments.[1] Between 1996 and 1998, Elverum released four demos,[lower-alpha 2] mostly on Bret Lunsford's label Knw-Yr-Own.[3] The CD Tests, released in June 1998, was a compilation album comprising tracks from previous cassettes.[lower-alpha 3] The same year, the band released the 7" single "Bass Drum Dream".[4] The band's first studio album, Don't Wake Me Up, was released on K Records in August 1999 and gave the band a small following.[5] Two more 7-inches were released in 1999: "Feedback (Life, Love, Loop)" and "Moon Moon".[6]
The extended playWindow: was released in February 2000.[7] In September 2000, the studio album It Was Hot, We Stayed in the Water was released on K, solidifying Don't Wake Me Up's sound.[8]The Glow Pt. 2 was released on K in September 2001; it went on to become a cult classic and Elverum's most critically acclaimed album.[9][10] The same month, Blood was released, a limited-copy compilation album.[11] Two 7-inches were released in 2001: "The Moon" and "I Can't Believe You Actually Died", the former included on The Glow Pt. 2.[12]
The single compilation album Song Islands was released in August 2002, and the limited-copy album Little Bird Flies into a Big Black Cloud was released in September 2002.[13] The 7-inch "Lanterns/Antlers" was also released in 2002, and was included on Song Islands.[13] In 2003, the studio album Mount Eerie was released, along with two extended plays consisting of stems from the album: The Singing from Mt. Eerie and The Drums from Mt. Eerie.[14]Mount Eerie is a concept album that portrays a linear storyline.[15][16] After the release of Mount Eerie, Elverum retired the Microphones pseudonym and opted to release his music under Mount Eerie instead, as the themes of his music had changed.[17]
There were some sparse releases during the Microphones' hiatus: the live album Live in Japan in 2004; the B-sides album The Glow Pt. 2 (Other Songs & Destroyed Versions) in 2007; the 7-inch "Don’t Smoke/Get Off the Internet" in 2007; an appearance on a collaborative single in 2011; and the 2016 compilation album Early Tapes, 1996–1998, made of selections from the early demos. In August 2020, Elverum returned to the Microphones name with the studio album Microphones in 2020, an autobiographical concept album consisting of one 44-minute song.[18] The limited-copy album Foghorn Tape was released in March 2021, consisting of an ambient foghorn recording. In February 2022, Completely Everything, 1996–2021 was released, a compilation box set of the five Microphones studio albums, Early Tapes, and Song Islands.[19] Elverum has stated that the box set is the end of the Microphones, which makes Microphones in 2020 the band's final studio album.[20][21]
Compilation box set of the 5 Microphones studio albums, Early Tapes, and Song Islands. Live recordings, the complete discography, stems, and outtakes are included digitally.
↑ Including live albums, box sets, compilation albums, and demo albums
1 2 Elverum's first two cassette demos, Face Shapes and Beautiful Face, were released in 1996 but were not released under the Microphones name, thus are not included on this list.[2]
1 2 3 Elverum released two albums under the name "Tests", but they had different contents: the first was a demo cassette, and the second was a compilation CD of tracks from previous cassettes.
↑ Was not released as a standalone single, but part of the collaborative 7" single, Collaborate with a 1940s Wire Recorder
↑ Douglas, Martin (October 1, 2020). "Throwaway Style: What If I Called This Piece Microphones in 2020?". KEXP. Retrieved November 24, 2022. X-Ray Means Woman and Mostly Clouds and Trees made way for Elverum to begin naming his project the Microphones after developing an interpersonal relationship with his recording equipment and a deep reward in putting songs to tape.
↑ Ankeny n.d., "the Microphones' first two cassettes, 1997's Microphone and Wires & Cords, appeared on Lunsford's Knw-Yr-Own label.".
1 2 Gormely 2018, "Up Records, early home to fellow Pacific Northwest groups Built to Spill and Modest Mouse, releases Bass Drum Dream on seven-inch".
↑ Gormely 2018, "This is the first time Elverum is able to connect with an audience, and he builds a small following".
1 2 3 Gormely 2018, "Elverum releases a further two Microphones seven-inches: Moon Moon on K Records, and Feedback (Life, Love, Loop) on the Bedtime Records.".
1 2 Gormely 2018, "The Microphones also release the EP Window on YoYo Records".
1 2 3 Gormely 2018, "The Moon seven-inch, credited to the Micro Phones, appears on Instatone Brand, while the Microphones' Singers I Can't Believe You Actually Died, a seven-inch, [...] comes out on Comin in Second".
1 2 Ankeny n.d., "while the singles collection Song Islands and single "Lanterns/Antlers" appeared on K".
1 2 3 Gormely 2018, "K also releases The Singing from Mount Eerie and The Drums from Mount Eerie; each features the singing and drums from the Mount Eerie album in isolation, plus one bonus track not included on the original album.".
↑ Gormely 2018, "Some of the material he records, combined with selections from his previous releases, make up his first CD, confusingly also called Tests. It's released on Elsinor Records. ".
↑ Gormely 2018, "In December, Elverum releases the Microphones Early Tapes 1996–1998 on Phil Elverum and Suns. As the title suggests, it collects selections from the Microphones early cassette recordings.".
↑ Gormely 2018, "Elverum contributes "I Lost My Wind," credited to the Microphones, to the five-way split seven-inch that includes the Flaming Lips Wayne Coyne and Bishop Allen called Collaborate with a 1940s Wire Recorder".
The Microphones were an American indie folk, indie rock, and experimental project from Olympia, Washington. The project was founded in 1996 and ended in 2003, with a short reunion following in 2007 and revivals in 2019 and 2020. Across every iteration of the Microphones, it has been fronted by Phil Elverum. Elverum is the principal songwriter and producer behind the band's albums, but he has also collaborated with other local musicians on his other recordings and tours. Many of Elverum's recordings from the project's initial period were released by the label K Records.
Mount Eerie is the musical project of American songwriter and producer Phil Elverum. Elverum is the principal member of the band, but has collaborated with many other musicians on his records and in live performances. Most of Mount Eerie's releases have been issued on Elverum's label P.W. Elverum & Sun, Ltd., and feature highly detailed packaging with his own artwork.
Philip Whitman Elverum is an American musician, songwriter, record producer and visual artist, best known for his musical projects the Microphones and Mount Eerie. Based in Anacortes, Washington, in the mid-2000s he began to spell his surname Elvrum as "Elverum".
The Glow Pt. 2 is the third studio album by American indie folk and indie rock project the Microphones. It was released on September 11, 2001, through K Records and later through P.W. Elverum & Sun, Ltd. Recording was done on analog equipment at Dub Narcotic, Olympia, Washington, from May 2000 to March 2001. The album takes influences from numerous music genres such as black metal, ambient and avant-garde, as well as non-musical sources like the American drama television show Twin Peaks and primary member Phil Elverum's relationship to Khaela Maricich. Elverum was responsible for the album's production in its entirety.
"No Flashlight": Songs of the Fulfilled Night is the debut studio album released by the band Mount Eerie. It was released on the 9th May 2005 and features appearances by Geneviève Castrée and Jason Wall.
It Was Hot, We Stayed in the Water, sometimes shortened to It Was Hot, is the second studio album by American indie folk and indie rock band the Microphones. It was released by K Records on September 26, 2000. After gaining a small following with 1999's Don't Wake Me Up, frontman Phil Elverum recorded It Was Hot at Dub Narcotic Studio in Olympia, Washington, between September 1999 and March 2000. Recorded on analog tape, Elverum embraced the medium's technical imperfections. Classified by critics as indie rock, lo-fi, and indie pop, It Was Hot revolves thematically around the concept of water, with lyrics focusing on nature. The 11-minute track "The Glow" acts as the album's climax and introduces the concept of the "glow", which was explored in more depth on 2001's The Glow Pt. 2.
Mount Eerie is the fourth studio album by American indie folk and indie rock band the Microphones, released by K Records on January 21, 2003. The album is named after the mountain Mount Erie near Anacortes, Washington, which is the hometown of Phil Elverum, the band's frontman. The album received generally positive reviews from critics, including accolades such as Pitchfork's "Best New Music" title and inclusion on Treblezine's list of "essential" psychedelic folk albums.
Don't Wake Me Up is the debut studio album by American musical project the Microphones. It was released by K Records on August 24, 1999, and reissued on vinyl via P.W. Elverum & Sun on April 16, 2013. The album was recorded between April 25, 1998, and March 1, 1999, in studios in Olympia and Anacortes, Washington.
Geneviève Elverum, also known as Geneviève Castrée, was a Canadian cartoonist, illustrator, and musician from Quebec. An early admirer of comics, she began creating them at a young age. L'Oie de Cravan published her first book, Lait Frappé, in 2000. By 2004 she had released three more books—Die Fabrik, Roulatheque Roulatheque Nicolore and Pamplemoussi. The latter is considered her artistic breakthrough.
Mount Eerie pts. 6 & 7 is an EP released by Mount Eerie. This release acts as an extension to 2003's Mount Eerie, the fourth studio album by Phil Elverum's previous band The Microphones. It was released on a 10" picture disc packaged in a 132-page hardcover artbook of photography taken by Elverum.
Dawn, also known as Dawn: Winter Journal, is the third full-length album by Mount Eerie. It was officially released November 1, 2008 on P. W. Elverum & Sun.
Little Bird Flies into a Big Black Cloud is an album by the Microphones. It was released in 2002 by St. Ives.
Tests is an album by The Microphones. It was first released as a cassette tape on Knw-Yr-Own in 1998. A CD release by Elsinor followed in the same year, but the track listing was a mixture of The Microphones's three previous albums: Microphone, Wires and Cords, and the Tests cassette. Most of the material was recorded at The Business while Elverum worked there.
Clear Moon is the fifth studio album by Mount Eerie, a solo project by American musician Phil Elverum. It was released May 22, 2012 on Elverum's own label P.W. Elverum & Sun. The album was written and produced entirely by Elverum, who recorded it at his studio the Unknown.
Ocean Roar is the sixth studio album by Mount Eerie, released on August 29, 2012. It is the second of two albums released by Mount Eerie in 2012.
Sauna is the seventh full-length album by Mount Eerie. It was released on February 3, 2015.
A Crow Looked at Me is the eighth studio album by Mount Eerie, a solo project of the American musician Phil Elverum. Released in 2017, it was composed in the aftermath of his 35-year-old wife Geneviève Castrée's diagnosis with pancreatic cancer in 2015, and her death in July 2016. Elverum wrote and recorded the songs over a six-week period in the room where she died, mostly using her instruments. His sparse lyrics and minimalistic musical accompaniment drew influence from a broad range of artists, including the poet Gary Snyder, author Karl Ove Knausgård and songwriter Julie Doiron.
Pre-Human Ideas is a compilation album released by Phil Elverum under the name Mount Eerie, on November 12, 2013. The album consists of computerised versions of songs from his 2012 releases Clear Moon and Ocean Roar, plus 2 organ excerpts from the songs "Pale Lights" and "The Place Lives" from Clear Moon and Ocean Roar respectively.
Song Islands vol. 2 is a compilation album by Mount Eerie. It was released on October 19, 2010. It is a sequel to the Microphones album Song Islands.
Microphones in 2020 is the fifth and final studio album by American indie folk and indie rock band the Microphones. It is a concept album consisting of one 44-minute song about frontman Phil Elverum's life and musical career. Elverum began the Microphones in 1996, releasing four studio albums before retiring the moniker in 2003. He instead opted to release his music under Mount Eerie as he felt the themes had changed. After performing a show under the Microphones name in 2019, the attention it received motivated Elverum to return to the project.
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