Mount Eerie - A Crow Looked At Me ALBUM REVIEW

[@sydthemachine]

That line in Seaweed especially, "What about foxgloves? Is that a flower you liked? I can't remember. You did most of my remembering for me..", cut into me like a knife.

[@srolchi]

this line gets me every time. Brutal man...

[@totesjokin5354]

I know, right?! So simple, so real. Ah, that line got this grown ass man crying

[@Rebazar]

Not being able to remember things about someone you love who died is an indescribably shitty feeling.

[@theunnamedknight9342]

My memory is shit. I feel really bad when I forget. I’ve been trying to remember a lot about my girlfriend. It’s scary. You know? They could be gone. And nothing’s there. But you care. And try to remember. My love is sick. And it’s scary for me every day. That’s why I try. And sometimes. That fear. Just makes me want to forget.

[@fionaur5933]

God me too; I cried from that song through to the end of the album (at one a.m., mind), but it did open some knew light on the grieving process for me at least

[@Hola-tq4pg]

Imagine how sad this album was that it made comment section not throw edgy jokes for a minute

[@aquacyanide]

1.7k likes and no comments, I guess people really agreed with you goddamn

[@Spliiinter444]

@@aquacyanide yes

[@mastersgenjimain]

​@@aquacyanide its been 3 years.

[@rickroll9978]

​@@mastersgenjimain It's been 13 days.

[@LeShmon]

@@rickroll9978 it's been 5 days

[@shnookems_]

No opening joke, no sound cue after the title... This is gonna be sad ;;

[@theneedledrop]

yeahhhhhh

[@speakswithtrees]

I love you anthony

[@YungJules001]

Steve Wheeler who hurt you? 😭😂😂😂

[@bobbykotick1163]

he's feeling abit coy because of the dome

[@bunnee]

Deadthony wifetano

[@jxomxo]

"It's definitely music; what it's definitely NOT is entertainment." Couldn't have said it better myself.

[@13MoonGold]

sick pfp

[@jxomxo]

Ethan Mac Gendo Ikari is indeed terrifying

[@Thewillshow123]

Probably why it’s not a 10. It’s amazing, but it’s almost like you want to avoid it because it’s so sad.

[@noahleach7690]

@@Thewillshow123 I want to go back now but I can't.

[@chrilborn4138]

@@Thewillshow123 I can only listen once or twice year, but I will always go back, it's such a beautiful record

[@ColdDildo]

"I reject nature, I disagree" is one of the most powerful lines on this album, especially within the context of Phil's body of work. So much of his output is about accepting futility, accepting meaninglessness, this whole record is so self aware and self critiquing it's spectacular as a "work of art"

[@fademusic1980]

Thank you melon for turning me onto this album, my wife passed away on dec 29 2017. The words I fail to write as a musician, the feeling I am inept to convey through music. It is this album. Thank you.

[@Gooros27]

hey, how are you?

[@mvng.mntns.]

I am good. Thank you. How is your day going?

[@cheesecakelasagna]

Thank you for sharing your story.

[@amildlydisappointingsalad6058]

@@particularshadeofgreen2561 ?

[@jakeellison5008]

@@particularshadeofgreen2561 it’s called relating to someone lmao. Maybe you should think and re-read before you type.

[@Thas2]

“My daughter asked me if mommy swims, I said yes, that’s probably all she does” idk why that hit me so hard

[@nLTwiGGy]

this album crushed my soul

[@BigBangTheory92]

I couldn't stop crying the whole time listening to it. It destroyed me. It was so painfully excellent. I'm so sad for Phil man... He really is lost now without his wife and to hear it out in the open just made me cry even more because he released his pain into the world.

[@Josh.DoubleBogie]

Me too bud

[@marcotejada1498]

"Its dumb, and I don't want to learn anything from this. I love you..." at this point I look up and fan my eyes because I dont want to cry...

[@cheycheyfriend247]

I was dealing with the death of my first love when I found this album and that line gutted me

[@mrflibble1259]

Before listening to this album, there were only 3 songs that had ever made me cry. Almost every song on this one did. Multiple times.

[@Dylan-em1zc]

@@mrflibble1259 I just found this album and same, I think there have been 2 albums I've cried at before and this one had me 2 songs in lol

[@sarah.rarwasunavailable]

Almost nobody can make it past the whole "you still get mail" portion of that song without starting to tear up, but holy shit, the last 3 lines are the precise moment I realized what exactly I was dealing with with this album. I'd never heard anything that so epitomized a stream of consciousness when you're in the middle of sobbing over genuine grief than when I've heard this album.

[@MrRrreal]

"and there she was." this last line in the album just crushed me

[@jskullheisenberg5227]

What do you think means? What does it mean to you? I've been wondering about the ending of this album

[@gusbrown7376]

@@jskullheisenberg5227i think it’s talking about how he still feels so much of her presence even after she is gone. he talks in the album about how he sees her in the sunset, and in his house, i think this line refers to the crow in the song and how it could represent a part of her that still lives on with him

[@threestarrainworld]

@@jskullheisenberg5227 similarly to what @gusbrown7376 said, it feels like a presence of her that he wants to hold onto dearly, and the delivery of the line felt very much like a wrap up, to not only the album, but to how the death effected him, it was very blunt. beautiful line.

[@WillyJunior]

I saw it as a past tense version of "and there she is", highlighting the loss.

[@nickcieri3149]

Gotta say, I have a lot of respect for you keeping the jokes down on this review. good video

[@CliipZx]

The tone of his voice tells it all.

[@kazzz2765]

Although he made gags at Carrie&Lowell review.And he gave it a 7.Unforgivable

[@rashotcake6945]

kazmlg eh not everyone will love that album, just like not everyone will love any single album out there. And this album was more personal to him I guess

[@podfruwajk4]

@@kazzz2765 yeah and he's like "😂" in the thumbnail wtf

[@4am555]

@@rashotcake6945 the jokes are still disrespectful

[@nutmaster652]

jesus christ how sad can an album actually make you? I guess i’m about to find out

[@nutmaster652]

wow.

[@headmltr6247]

nut master yea

[@LilypadOW]

Christopher Gregory Hill that’s how I found out about this album so ty mate

[@Atticus113]

nut master, your response to your own listen is the only funny thing to come out of this album

[@milos1967]

I'm sorry nut master

[@seamusg05]

The line from here “You were thinking ahead to a future you must have known deep down would not include you” is honestly the saddest lyric I have ever heard. This album is tragically beautiful.

[@zachstirk791]

The end of Seaweed was the first time a song has made me actually bawl like a baby

[@jxomxo]

"I brought a chair from home I'm leaving it on the hill Facing west and north And I poured out your ashes on it I guess so you can watch the sunset But the truth is I don't think of that dust as you You are the sunset"

[@0412lennon]

That’s definitely when I started to somewhat “understand” what Phil was going thru. A whole person transformed to ashes was not only what happened to his wife but to himself figuratively speaking. And as much as we’d like it to be, those ashes aren’t the real person.

[@OLR1337]

Zach Stirk oh my god me too jesus

[@HotStrange]

Zach Stirk yeah I can’t even listen to that song. I heard it once and hat was enough for me. It’s beautiful but far too devastating.

[@ZzonkedMCFC]

Glad I'm not the only one. I was listening to the album for the first time while driving into work at 8am. I had to turn it off after Seaweed because I am not ready to cry my eyes out before 9am.

[@gooeyllewy3729]

I hope you read the notes on his bandcamp. he said himself, this album is nothing but a way to say he loves his wife to the world

[@maximosmagyar9653]

I feel like you didn't give it a 10 because you didn't want people to see it as a meme.

[@TheNmecod]

Ted Magyar too late

[@bulletfastspeed]

sh1tP0steerr42 leave

[@OfficialGregGames]

Ted Magyar i wonder if this is something he must consider when grading albums 🤔

[@TheMrAlexK00]

Didn't he give To Be Kind a 10? That album never turned into a meme as far as I know.

[@maximosmagyar9653]

TheMrAlexK00 Then you run in better circles than I. It's still one of my favorite albums though.

[@JamsandTea]

The fact that Phil is now with Michelle Williams, who used to be with Heath Ledger, is simultaneously both kind of wonderful but also the saddest fucking thing ever

[@formula2233]

That is incredibly eerie to know

[@zackzallie8735]

@@formula2233 Mount eerie

[@waxtrax_]

aw dude that's so damn sad

[@japonte173]

they divorced a year later, i imagine phil is still grieving to this day. some people never fall in love again after losing someone like that.

[@1231crazymonkey]

it seemed like it would have been a fitting couple tbh, at least in my life i have seen widows get together a lot and become couples after losing their original loved one to cancer or some other cause. they connect over their shared experience, sucks it didnt work out for phil and michelle

[@i.hold.vertigo2329]

One of my favorite songs by Phil is The Moon from his days with the Microphones, and I was absolutely crushed when a key line from that song showed up here completely re-contextualized. "I went back to feel alone there" was a line he used in 2001 to describe going back to a place that reminded him of a relationship with someone with whom he's broken up (presumably). In 2017, he uses the same words and vocal melody to describe going back home to his bed after visiting his wife in the hospital.

[@anclrevv562]

I was actually going to comment about that! I think there is a greater emotional impact that is added by the song before it, "emptiness pt. 2." In that song, he sings "Conceptual emptiness was cool to talk about/ Back before I knew my way around these hospitals." So when he reuses the melody/lyrics from "the moon," the conceptual emptiness he had sung about many years ago has been recontextualized, and made concrete. It's one of the saddest moments for me

[@i.hold.vertigo2329]

I hadn't thought of it like that, that's interesting. Though the idea that Phil views his past work as "conceptual emptiness" now is mind-blowing considering how much sincerity was in that music.

[@greydsmarin9994]

Zack Fishley I heard "There is no end" repeated on this album and lost it.

[@dalexanderberry4317]

Zack Fishley he means singing about the concept of emptiness

[@TooMuchFez]

yeah that line made me start bawling and immediately my mood shifted from "this is heartbreaking" to "please God I don't want this to end"

[@flipburger2000]

Once I saw it was 18 minutes I knew we were in for a strong 9

[@henrykincaid6821]

flipburger2000 that or a strong/weak 1

[@karu6111]

I was kinda surprised... I mean he's not wearing that yellow checkered shirt...

[@reveloharry]

Isn't the yellow flannel only for 10s?

[@elsiemabel]

Harry Revelo nah it's 10s and 9s but he's probably not wearing it because sad

[@duke86fan]

Karl Glenn he wore this shirt on the swans review that got a 10

[@airplaneoverthesemen]

1 minute in and I can see the respect you have for the man, good job melonhead ❤️

[@boyo7918]

airplaneoverthesemen 10/10 profile pic

[@Bandstand]

whaaaaaa

[@firstnamelastname3435]

can I steal your profile pic

[@arthive2435]

death grips

[@Neel-ff4mn]

death milk hotel

[@rayrayrules11]

I personally think this is a 10 but numbers are really arbitrary when you think how pivotal this album is (or will one day be) in the folk music genre

[@Quebedify]

how so?

[@aidanhinkson9804]

He didn't give it a 10 because any album he gives a 10 becomes a meme,and an album so grim doesn't deserve to be a meme

[@necrotickiss]

Nah its trash

[@minkstar9021]

@@necrotickiss And you're a shit stain.

[@TheGameVerse]

@@minkstar9021 lets be real, anyone who says shit like "Its trash" did not listen to this album.

[@sim12563]

I think the reviewer on Pitchfork put it in a very interesting way, that despite the fact that death is the centre-point of this album, and tragedy underpins every song - this album is teeming with life. The sounds, smells, sights of nature along with the youthful innocence of their child really stood out to me in the lyrics. It's as if Phil experiencing this loss has altered his perspective of life, and that the loss of one of the biggest focal points of his existence has allowed him to view the world in a slightly different way, to ponder sights and sounds that would have passed him by had Genevieve still been alive. While I think this album is of course devastating, I don't believe that Phil wants us to think that life and death is all there is.

[@JoshActionReplay]

Honestly one of your best reviews Anthony. This album (even more so than Phil's previous releases) feels like an intrusion on someone's physical and mental state. Like you acknowledged, it feels almost gross or perverse to over-analyze this record from a robotic pov or to approach it with any sort of upbeat energy even if you come away from listening to the album thinking it's fantastic and worth other people's time. If "It Was Hot..." made me immediately picture a sun-bathed valley and the eponymous "Mount Eerie" album took me on a surreal journey through the mountains, "A Crow Looked at Me" immediately had me picturing Phil in a bleak, grey room singing and strumming his guitar as memories of better times flashed through his head. Great review man! Keep doing what you're doing you melon.

[@seanmurray7659]

I don't even want to make a melon joke. Very insightful and respectful. Good Job Anthony

[@ACOsec]

This album feels like a breach of privacy when I listen to it. Like I feel like I'm reading someone's diary without them knowing. Within the first 15 seconds of the first track I was crying.

[@gavinhayes12312]

if I literally know nothing about this person or album, is it still worth the listen. EDIT: it was worth it

[@mbotela9979]

That wasn't an edit

[@hhhl942]

Most depressing albums of this decade: 1. A crow looked at me 2. Benji 3. Carrie & Lowell

[@Max-oh8fk]

Héctor Hernández López thanks mr. obvious

[@MyNameIsGhost]

Héctor Hernández López Ruminations should be in there

[@jajassa1]

4. Birds in the trap sings mcKnight

[@Armkinda]

5. Angelic 2 the Core

[@mildmagician2764]

Héctor Hernández López And Flockaveli

[@DVBIO]

And there she was...

[@cellchirp]

):

[@shawnmalone4697]

When that line closed the album,,, i smiled and cried a tear both at the same time. I Concluded that this was an incredible album.

[@dopamine_27]

I almost cried just from watching the review so I'm not sure that I can bear to listen to the actual album...

[@aidancoll919]

lol a single tear just fell already idk man

[@kolbykauffman4180]

It's been years. And I can't sit through it. After dealing with these emotions with my siblings passing and a girlfriend, I just cannot try to soak it in. But I come back for pieces of it because the poetry is breathtaking.

[@markjackson1152]

Same, I'm sitting here, totally unfamilair with this record, watching the review for the first time, reading some of the lines for the first time, and already I feel like crying.

[@mitch5944]

I'm sure you listened to it by now but you will cry. Alot. Lol

[@davidleahy2633]

Soria Moria has always been my favorite song off of A Crow Looked At Me. The song not only ties together the whole album, but Phil Elverum's whole career. By progressing through different points in Phil Elverum’s life, he contextualizes his feelings of grief in the grand scope of his life’s journey. Soria Moria by Mount Eerie examines how the speaker's feeling of yearning remains constant throughout life even as things change around him. It accomplishes this by contrasting the unchanging traits of a character as he progresses through three settings. The song opens with the lines “Slow pulsing / Red tower lights / Across a distance / Refuge in the dust”. The tower lights function as a metaphor, representing a feeling of yearning to go somewhere else, to a place where you can achieve true happiness. The lights are seen across a waterway, likely somewhere in the Puget Sound. The fact that the lights are so distant and otherworldly defines the metaphor. After this, the first setting in the song is introduced: in the San Juan Islands during Elverum’s childhood. Here, Elverum contextualizes the metaphor by mentioning the feeling of yearning: “Reaching for an idea of somewhere other than this place / That could fold me in clouded yearning / For nowhere actually reachable, the distance was the point”. This line introduces one of the central ideas of the song: the distance. Elverum feels he will never reach his destination, which indicates that he is referring to enlightenment or transcendence. The function of this setting is to introduce the yearning in Elverum’s life. Then, the setting shifts to Elverum’s twenties in Norway. This setting is significant because Phil finally follows the yearning as he comes of age: “I followed this ache to an Arctic Norwegian cabin / Where I said ‘fuck the world’ in a finally satisfying way / I stayed through the winter and emerged as an adult”. Although Elverum has now followed the yearning, it is still ever present. His journey towards transcendence fails, because the destination is not reachable, as he previously established. However, the journey towards his goal results in growth into a more mature person. This setting establishes the feeling of yearning as a constant in Elverum’s life, as it has now spanned across two separate settings into his adulthood. The ache was not just a childlike phase. However, as the feeling remains the same, the setting has drastically shifted. Elverum is now across the world, in Norway. He is grown up, embracing his solitude and independence. In the previous setting, he was in the home of his youth and still felt childlike ambitions. Although the settings are extremely different, the feeling of yearning stays the same. Some feelings never change, even as the world around you does. Next, the song flashes to the present. Elverum is dealing with his wife’s terminal cancer, but the yearning continues: “Well I tore through the dark on the freeway / The old yearning burning in me”. In this passage, Elverum utilizes an internal rhyme to highlight the word “yearning”. The fact that yearning rhymes with burning while there are no other rhymes in the line draws attention to that section. This redirects the listener to the feeling of yearning and reminds them that it is still present in his life, even years later into his life. At this point, the yearning has taken a new form. Instead of searching for enlightenment, Elverum is merely seeking solace. The grief of his wife’s dying has put his life in perspective and all he wants is the end of his pain. However, the yearning continues, even if it has shifted. It is still a constant feeling of yearning, just embodied in a different goal. This setting is as different to the second setting as the second setting was to the first. Now, Elverum is well into adulthood and fatherhood. He is dealing with something that he has never experienced to this extent: the death of a loved one. This draws a sharp contrast to the last setting, where he was in blissful independence. Again, Elverum utilizes this to highlight his unchanging character because the yearning remains constant even as his life drastically changes. At the end of the song, Elverum introduces the final setting: Soria Moria. Soria Moria represents enlightenment. This is an allusion to a painting that Elverum saw during his time in Norway. The painting depicts a person holding a walking stick and carrying a pack as they look across a valley filled with fog. On the other side of the valley, the viewer can faintly see a bright structure of some sort. Elverum describes it as “a lit-up inhuman castle”. Elverum uses this allusion to represent the journey towards enlightenment. The castle of light represents the achievement of enlightenment, but there is an almost unfathomable distance to cross. There is also fog in between, which could represent grief. The picture is comparable to Elverum’s metaphorical image of the red tower lights: a steady beacon of brightness across a distance. Then, the song concludes with a connection between this allusion and Elverum’s life: “the distance from this haunted house where I lived / To Soria Moria is a real traversable space / I'm an arrow now / Mid-air". This indicates the largest shift in Elverum’s character yet. Now Elverum believes that enlightenment and solace is reachable. He uses an arrow as a metaphor for himself. The arrow’s flight represents Elverum’s journey to transcendence. As the arrow flies towards its target, Elverum grows closer to his Soria Moria. Although his idea of enlightenment has now changed, and it is no longer “nowhere actually reachable”, his yearning is still present. With this, the element of his character that is his yearning has stayed constant all throughout the song, and thus his life. This unchanging character functions to point out the constancy of some feelings, but also highlights the impermanence of others. The use of constantly shifting setting communicates this impermanence, while the yearning feeling reveals the stagnant nature of Elverum’s character. This creates a multi-layered and complex portrait of life. One way that Elverum complements the concepts of the song is through his musical ideas. In the third setting, he alludes to one of his earlier songs that he released under the moniker The Microphones on the album The Glow Pt. 2. Elverum alludes to third track on the album, The Moon, when he sings “I went back to feel alone there”. This is the same line as one that appears on The Moon. It also mirrors the original melody exactly. The Moon is a song about a lost relationship. It evokes coming of age themes, as it tells a story of youthful adventures and love. Elverum references this at a spot in Soria Moria where he is singing about dealing with his wife’s death, which takes place years after the events of The Moon. He uses this melodic and lyrical allusion to reminisce about his past innocence, contrasting his adult grief with his young indifference to the world. He is mourning the way things used to be. This goes hand in hand with the changing settings by pointing out the changes that happen over the course of life. Another way that Elverum uses musical concepts is through key and dissonance. The song is in B minor. The minor feeling evokes a feeling of darkness, which complements the mood of grief. After each verse, there is a guitar interlude. Elverum purposefully lets his strings ring, which creates dissonance between the notes because they are only a few steps apart. This gritty sound makes the listener slightly uncomfortable but contributes to the melancholic atmosphere. Soria Moria is a complex mash of emotions, exploring the patterns throughout Elverum’s life. Tackling huge themes like enlightenment and life, the song ties together Elverum’s career. His body of work is a fascinating one, as most of his songs are autobiographical or based on his experience. This results in not just a musical career, but a life story. Soria Moria is one of the most important additions to this story.

[@davidleahy2633]

Disclaimer this is for my English class so if it sounds like an essay that’s because it is

[@wholefoodstm4790]

Hope you got a good grade :)

[@misterbuckethead]

it's weird, i lost my dad in late december of last year and i find the feelings of loss on this album easy to relate to. i couldn't bring myself to tell my mom about this album. it makes me feel sad for her. i love these thoughtful reviews though.

[@RRomKY]

I feel the same

[@matttisdell2455]

Maxwell Henley that’s the exact way i am with it, i don’t think i’ve ever mentioned it to anyone because of how powerful it is to me

[@astro5842]

Exactly the same, lost my mom

[@Clint_Timbuck]

Dude i dont know if i could ever show this album to my mom. My stepdad who i consider a very influential and close fatherly figured died from cancer only 3 months after being diagnosed. My mom went through this exactly he was diagnosed and then he lost weight and he was skinny and quiet and gone

[@mordagok]

man, I teared up just listening to you review this. my heart goes out to Phil Elverum

[@asukas666]

Skeleton Tree, Blackstar, Benji, You Want It Darker, Stage Four, Carrie & Lowell. All beautiful and sad albums about death. But this...man this is something different. Probably the most saddest album I've ever heard. And what a respectful and good review from Anthony :')

[@maazwaseem8313]

Hospice by The Antlers and Have A Nice Life by Deathconsciousness would also count as two absolutely stellar but heart-wrenching albums about death.

[@brettveldboom2296]

I thought hospice was a metaphor for a toxic relationship, I thought that was the official meaning front who antlers or was that just a fan theory

[@bravelittlepod]

@@maazwaseem8313 Telephony is so fucking sad :(

[@featherycoffee1401]

Seeing Beter Griffin pfps with Anime eyes talk about how difficult it was to stomach and talk about how much they appreciated this album in such a heartfelt manner gave me whiplash.

[@tyler3876]

the internet truly is disturbing beautiful

[@josef5288]

"the last time it rained here you were alive still" made me break down on the bus

[@obam6832]

Understandable

[@soulmoney119]

Lmao

[@rossorange2592]

@@soulmoney119Not funny

[@soulmoney119]

@@rossorange2592 pipe down lib

[@rossorange2592]

@@soulmoney119 I ain’t a lib retard

[@moonmonk7]

I lost my best friend/love of my life Tuesday morning after an extremely long battle with brain cancer. We met when I was 14 and she was 16 and I loved her the moment I saw her.. I moved away a year or so after for about 3 years and moved back when I was 18. Was at a friends house for about 30 mins and she just happened to stop by randomly for like 5 minutes. She yelled ''Hey Rob!'' We were so excited to see each other. I told her I was looking for a job and she said come apply at bagelheads where she worked. I did and that kick started the rest of our saga.. I often think about the odds of seeing her that day since she never went over there.. and how it altered our lives for years to come. I'm 35 now and discovered this album a few years ago and it has been therapy for me. She's been battling it since 2012.. I always thought she'd get better and I'd have more time. i felt his lyrics before and would weep,.. but I never fully understood how dark and purely horrific it is until now. The world is hollow and I feel like I'm in hell. The waves of sorrow are so intense that my soul feels like it is being ripped from my body. She made me see things I couldn't . She made me love more. She was literally part of me.. my other half.. my baby. Now I wake up hoping this is a nightmare looking for her texts everyday and it is only to be back in the bad dream again. I truly weep for anyone who has lost someone real close to them. It is the worst thing I've been through. I can not bear it. Bless Phil Elverum for making this record. p.s. I've watched you for about a decade Anthony and have seen your evolution. I gotta say I love you bro and so happy for your success over the years from your consistency and devotion. You've definitely helped brighten up my world with your humor and introduced me to life changing music through out the years. This record being one of them. Thank you brother.

[@camerontaylor9808]

I hope you’re doing better now. Hang in there

[@jacobrivas4748]

Sending love to you and your remembered.

[@manifestitbby1004]

[@apothecurio]

Man just the album title "A crow looked at me" already had such a striking and peaceful/melancholic image.

[@cailinbrett2630]

this album is literally too sad to be played for sad hours

[@Adderfern]

glad you were respectful about this, thank you

[@charmicarmicat2981]

I’ve never once made it through this record. As a married man who my wife is my best friend, the very thought of something like this happening sends me into anguish. I can’t even wrap my head around how Phil was able to move on after something like this happening. It feels like an injustice to even try to review something that is this personal and cathartic like this. I commend you Fantano for trying your best to explain this to people. There’s simply no words to express something like this happening to some one which is why I think there’s no metaphors or allegory or shit like that in the lyrics. It’s very straightforward and direct... Phil is a much stronger man than I, I don’t think I’d be capable of doing the same thing that he did after his wife’s passing.

[@l2andom]

I've had a hard time getting past the first track. I finally made it half way through the 3rd track after a few weeks of trying and I had to turn it off. I've broken down and cried so many times trying to listen to this as it hits home. My wife died of cancer the 10th of Oct 2021 and my children were 3 and 6 at the time. We've just gone past year 1 after her passing, and during that first year I kept finding all the little things she hid around the house as future presents. She liked having presents and gifts far in advance for everybody. Every time I find something I break down. I'll make it through this album sooner or later.

[@neconeconeco]

I'm so sorry. the only way I could touch this album at first was to listen to the live album "after" where he plays these songs and some from Now Only. his songs are like poetry, they touch your heart but they can also help you to heal and know you are not alone. stay strong friend.

[@anonymousposter6461]

This is like a glimpse into my fathers's mind after my mom died as a toddler. He's gone too now. I'm sorry you're going through it; the grief never really goes away but it becomes a smaller part of you as you continue through life. All the best.

[@collinharmon3207]

❤

[@pitboy6301]

I actually met Phil at a record store in Anacortes. He is such a sweet, talented, and humble man, and I hope things get better for him and his daughter.

[@azirsamson6977]

This album broke my heart. Especially the callback to "the moon" with "I went back to feel alone there"

[@ilovecody7514]

How many times did you cry listening to this album? Honestly I couldn't make halfway.

[@MightyAmygdala]

Tha Swami It took me many tries because this hit way to close to home

[@willpowerbroken]

Not once, but I suppose it's because no one close to me has died yet. Although I still can't judge.

[@ilovecody7514]

Franz Grím Yeah, sometimes you think after time you would get over a significant death, but in reality all you can do is live with it and hope for things to feel better.

[@TheNukeGeneral]

See hearing that from you makes me scared to listen to it.

[@TheNukeGeneral]

I've never lost anyone close to me but god damn I hate hearing other people struggle.

[@veniknv6316]

When he called back to "The Moon" on "Soria Moria" I broke down holy shit.

[@viviondioline]

That was a gut punch within a gut punch within a gut punch. Holy shit is right.

[@skaixx1864]

Kevin Malenich what's it referring to?

[@jakobsanchez738]

Skaixx The line "I went back to feel alone there" calls back to the song "The Moon" from Phil's former band The Microphones. That song is about trying to erase memories of Phil's previous failed relationship. There's a bit of similarity there, as the album is about trying to move on from Genevieve's death, another "failed" relationship, in a sense. What strikes me the most about that callback though, is another line on "The Moon", which is "There's nothing left except certain death." So another interpretation through that reference could be that Phil felt that he was ready for certain death when he was younger. Now that he's older and finally experienced it through the one he loves most, he realizes that he wasn't ready.

[@b.l.o.o.d.m.o.s.e.s.]

fuckkk nigga i think im actually sobbing high af rn

[@Jack-hx5hr]

fk same

[@jxomxo]

I'm seeing all these comments complaining about meme comments but I don't see any

[@XanderYTV]

This album ruins your day. It leaves a pit in your stomach that stays even until you wake up the next day. I'm not exaggerating. This album is extremely intense.

[@Pretzels722]

"Death is real Someone's there and then they're not And it's not for singing about It's not for making into art When real death enters the house, all poetry is dumb" that line hit me like a tonne of bricks. i had to turn this album off after 2 tracks. couldn't handle it.

[@ChampionGold]

i held it together this album. yeah it was sad, heartwrenching, and gut punching, but i was fine. and then he sang about that cold october wind that slammed a door shut behind him and made him look for his wife i cried.

[@DONTMEETYOURIDOLS]

My grandfather passed away last January on my mother’s birthday. This album is soul shatteringly sad, but incredibly beautiful nonetheless. It has assisted me in processing his death. I love you, Papa. I hope you’re not in pain anymore.

[@aR0ttenBANANA]

This album was beautiful. Probably one of the saddest album in history.

[@Brytons_Thoughts]

No glimmer of hope? Especially for the albums ending? The fact that Phil would like to think that crow was actually his wife looking on him and his daughter? I think that showed that he had some form of optimism to move on.

[@andreas0101]

I hate you stupid kids so much... no "thedurf" and "Zoey", you or anyone else don't knows what happens after death. Believing in reincarnation or some sort of world couscious or whatever is no more or less "rational". You need to grow up

[@Brytons_Thoughts]

+thedurf18 Well there was that whole two Ravens bit in Ravens made me make the connection. That's just my take though.

[@Brytons_Thoughts]

+thedurf18 Oh no dude, I wasn't getting mad at you or anything. I actually think you brought up a really good point in my opinion. I was just clarifying what I meant.

[@Brytons_Thoughts]

My apologies. :]

[@broadcastdadgelow]

He always compared her to animals! Its really not a weird thing that he might think that, i read the words he wrote for her at the funeral and he said she thought of her as a "skunk, a panda, and an orca". He said this because he always thought she had a contrast between her dark and light sides. Now, thinking of her as a raven, a fly, and a crow, makes me think that he could possibly be referring to her as losing her light side upon her last days. But is just a conjecture! The album doesnt leave many things to personal interpretation.

[@SavanDePaul]

You can really tell Fantano has such an immense amount of respect for Phil, it's actually touching. I hope he's doing alright.

[@kristenwalmsley5177]

This album is incredible. It is a fully embodied account of grief and despair. This is music that expresses the raw nature of what it means to be mindful watching someone die. It is an astounding vulnerable achievement. I've never heard anything like it. I'm not sure I ever will.

[@evanguffey507]

I think he would've given it a ten in most circumstances, but when an album becomes a ten it gets spotlighted in a light that would also just bring Fantanos annoying ass memer fanbase to the serious comments of this album. If you go to 12:42 he clarifies that he doesn't want a pedistal for death and he doesn't want to promote this mood out of respect for Phil. If he gave it a ten he would be ignoring the point of the album, and most people wouldn't understand that this ten would be/is different

[@nicke.424]

I'm glad he didnt give it a ten for the reason you said although I believe it is one. He does give a good reason though as to why it's held back in that way; it's not entertainment, it's more art than anything else, you know? You can't play any song off the record for any other reason than to experience it again

[@koobyn]

he said that the instrumentals were a bit bland at the end so. that may be a reason for strong 9 instead of 10

[@tvvvha384]

This album emotionally crushed me 3 tracks in, and I haven't touched it since. Don't know if I'm ready for the whole thing 😭

[@Jeremiah15100]

tvvvha bawled during every single track

[@nobodyburgen4594]

Just wait until your ready for it. It does take a lot of emotional commitment

[@diegomo1413]

It certainly doesn’t get any easier 🤕

[@Fanchus_English]

I can't make it past track 2. I won't even try, it's too brutal.

[@samuelmercier3635]

Never listened to mount eerie before, this was my first experience with his music. I can tell you I cried like hell. It's so hard to listen to, I never felt this with music ever. It's so deeply human, it's scary. Jesus Christ...

[@elzz3]

This album gave me depression, guess my depression is worth a 9

[@aidsan6950]

noice

[@gr8m873]

el zz your depression is worth a STRONG 9

[@noahalexander1743]

great pfp

[@Chuggsbigman]

This album helped me come to terms with my childhood friends death. Relating a lot of the emotions and realizing youre not the only one to hurt like that really can help.

[@jvictor3048]

This album fucked my shit up. Goddamn.

[@littleboy129]

Since I seen some guy complaining about commenting memes and not discussing music therefore I will give my opinion on this record: it is good.

[@outbacknoir]

I swear every single comment here has been written by 16 year olds.

[@littleboy129]

Adam . G cool

[@amirpalamar7133]

Adam . G Age doesn't matter, some people simply react one way or another to this album. I'm 16 and this album broke my heart, and making a meme out of it just seems ignorant and pointless. It's a matter of how you deal with serious issues rather than age, though overtime that can change it's still not definitive. Ik you didn't mean what you said literally but I've already typed all of this now and for some reason felt a need to type it when I started so I'm just gonna leave it as is.

[@mememan3799]

Before Listening to the album: Geez this seems pretty sad. After Listening to the album: *jesus christ*

[@canadianpoptarts54]

To me I think there was something fascinating about when he talks about the actual crow looking at him, and trying to assign some sort of significance to it relating to her death. When my great grandfather died, a lot of my family members starting talking about seeing hummingbirds after it, trying to find a similar significance in that. Hearing Phil talk about that made me think of that and see how real of a way that is that people deal with grief.

[@jukaa1012]

almost cried watching this review

[@gskull705]

This album crushed me as soon as Phil sang “all fails”

[@gaast9548]

I'm three years late but I've only listened to The Glow pt. 2 before listening to this album for the first time this morning. It left my crying at work (at home, during the quarantine). The part that hit the hardest is when Phil sings about how he can't get the image out of his head of when he held her and watched her die ("Swims"). It's like he knew in the moment he needed to see it because he couldn't bear to live without having seen it. Like he preferred to be haunted by presence instead of haunted by absence. And that's all over the place--he sees her in the window, in the trash, in the forest fire, in the sunset, in the jar (but not in the ashes in the jar). He talks about being haunted--she's there, but an impossible distance away, but one that is also "real" ("Soria Moria"). It makes sense that he would release this album. He wrote that he did it to declare that he loves her. But if he hadn't watched her die, I don't think he would have released it. He would have haunted us with its absence; as it is, he haunts us with its presence. I know fuckall about music and my words mean nothing. All I know is this album is music.

[@MightyAmygdala]

I usually only listen to Hip/Hop and only occasionally branch out into other genres. I heard about this album yesterday and have been listening to it non stop. I have been mesmerized by every song on this album. Again, I only listen to Hip/Hop, but this may be my album of the year.

[@ilovecody7514]

Daniel Hughson It happens, I personally think this might be my new all time favorite album. Even though I can't bring myself to listen to it all the way through. It just has such a painful relatablity that it feels horrible, and I admire that.

[@rahrahamunrah1]

Listen to more music, man. There's so much incredible stuff out there. People are so obsessed with genres. They define their entire identity by a genre of music they listen to. There is something valuable in every genre for every one of us, from ska to jazz to J-pop to experimental ambient music. When you find that something and connect, there's nothing like it. It's like a whole new world opens up. It's a dragon worth chasing.

[@nick-kd2yx]

listen to carrie and lowell

[@basedasuka]

Check out his other stuff under The Microphones

[@MrBeastknows]

asukas Honestly, I don't like his stuff under The Microphones. I don't think they're bad. As someone like Daniel who mainly listens to rap, A Crow Looked At Me is probably the only album I genuinely love from Mount Eerie for some reason. I love a couple songs from random albums, but this shit is just amazing song to song.

[@mr.bluesky4130]

Still one of the most potent pieces of art in any genre I’ve experienced in my entire life. It’s not cathartic, it’s not melancholy, it’s not a “tear-jerker.” It’s a pure and brutal depiction of grief. The first time I heard Seaweed all the way through I had to put the album down for the rest of the day. Every time I try to come back to it it still tears me apart inside. All I can think about when I listen to it is what my mom went through when my dad passed. What my sister went through. What I didn’t let myself go through. Thank you Phil, I’m so sorry you had to go through all of this suffering, but thank you for sharing your experience with all us. What you did on this album goes beyond anything most people can ever dream of creating. This album is one of the few things I can call a masterpiece in terms of emotional weight.

[@zackrussell2194]

It is a testament to how sad the latest from Mount Eerie is that my English teacher used some songs as examples of eulogy for a poetry unit.

[@steliosp1770]

i think Anthony finally realized that music (or any art form) and entertainment are separate entities for the first time. Music is art, entertainment is industry.

[@SirBumRush]

This is the music form of Grave of the Fireflies.

[@iansalinas412]

SirBumRush spot on mate, both gave me a new form of crippling depression

[@Jordan-eg9em]

I own this album. I have never been able to get passed seaweed. Remarkable piece of work. This is not music. It is an extract of pain and grief

[@strangebrew1231]

This is music. This is not entertainment

[@nickfromCO]

I've listened to too many albums to count...I've never cried so hard after listening to one quite like this one. Gut wrenching.

[@Megallicafan18]

That was so classy and amazing. You should be proud of yourself Anthony.

[@davidrothschild8913]

That was an outstanding review and like you I really felt for Phil. I met him once at a show in DC and he could not have been a nicer man and his music has always touched my heart with its naturalness and willingness to explore both reality and metaphysics in someway. The fact that he wrote and recorded this so close to her death is in it of itself a remarkable artistic achievement.

[@eliasmsv3156]

Already on the second line of the opener I had tears in my eyes. The way his voice quivers sent me tears

[@Brytons_Thoughts]

I can tell you that for the past almost 21 years I've been on this planet. I've listened to a lot of music, only a handful of songs can make me cry. This along with The Final Cut (sometimes), is an album where it literally makes me cry when listening to it. Reviewing this album in general, was one of the hardest I had to do. Now, I know some people will have some criticisms with this album. One of those being the fact that Phils lyrics are off key or don't follow the formula towards standard songwriting. I'm sorry to say this, I just feel those who say that just don't get it, but I absolutely don't mean that in a condescending way. Why? Because, well, it's because Phil doesn't care. And I don't mean that in a bad way, at all. Phil is spilling out his emotions and does not care about chopping it down to make it into a standard folk song, it's raw and wants it that way to show true feelings and emotions. No sugarcoating or anything. Which, in my opinion of course, is very brave and is very rare for an artist to showcase to the public. In general, if you have gone through a similar thing like Phil has in your own life, you will notice that he hits the exact emotional chords and notes that how a person would feel in that moment. This type of connectivity will (at least it did for me) will comfort you knowing your not alone when it comes to these feelings of losing somebody who guided you through life and that was close to you to make life worth living. If somebody hasn't been though that, I can understand why they may not praise the record as highly. The coda of this album shines a light, not just for Phil, but for all of us who knows through out the devastation we as human beings go through, that we will overcome our sorrows together and will find the light at the end of the tunnel. How I can sum it up with this record is this. Blackstar talks about dealing with yourself dying and how your death will effect others when you pass. A Crow Looked At Me talks about dealing with somebody else's death and how their death effects you. This record will not only go down as the best record of the year or even possibly of the decade, but probably one of the greatest of all time.

[@HiMom1311]

Bryton Cherrier the final cut is whack

[@danielcoats9281]

I tried to get past the first track, but wow. I've felt lonely and isolated for awhile, but hearing about that kind of a loss makes me not want to fall in love.

[@Erisblackstone]

i have two comments on this video and now a third. my fiancee died of COVID this past winter and this album genuinely helped me through some tough times.

[@DoctorLazertron]

I don’t know if prayers mean anything to you but I’m going to pray for you anyway. I hope you’re getting by okay. Best to you and yours.

[@kevinmalone584]

Hope you’re ok

[@brechthuysman]

I haven't listened to the album yet, but this is so sincere and so dignified that although I didn't want to listen at first because I knew what it was about, I am going to listen for sure now. I'm afraid, because I don't know what the impact on me is going to be but damn, if you can review such a difficult album in such a beautiful way, I just know it's going to be life-changing. Thanks Fantano. You made me cry during a review.

[@yambarkan5386]

I love your emotional reviews. I can really feel myself your emotions about this album just like the album it self made me feel. All in all. One of my favorite reviews

[@squeezemyparticiple]

There are tons of albums that we CAN listen to all the way through in one sitting, but this album requires it. I lost both of my parents to cancer, most recently in 2018, and it took two and a half years for me to be able to listen to A Crow Looked At Me all the way through again. While this is without a doubt my all-time least favorite album, it's also my all-time favorite.

[@antonibastyla818]

I've heard all Mount Eerie's albums today. Chronologically. And the fact that this one made me cry has to be prove enough that we are currently facing one of the most emotionally moving records in history. All thanks to Phil for the record. I think we all are gonna wish him the best.

[@cinestyle4001]

Thank you so much, Anthony, for exposing me to this wonderful album. Such a harrowing, depressing experience, but so beautiful. I can already tell this will be in my top 5 of the year.

[@danielmcburney4563]

This album is emotional crushing, in the most realistic and vulnerable way possible. I also appreciate how he did choose to end many of the songs abruptly, as I see it as symbolic of the abruptness of death itself. Great review and great album.

[@ToLWaM]

this is the most depressing album ever made

[@HumansFreshlyBorn]

The “Chorus” on Ravens is one of the most haunting yet beautiful things I’ve ever heard

[@findlayrutherford]

idk if I would feel confident giving this any rating. it's perfect at what it does, and what it does is not what everyone wants to hear

[@user-pz4bt5bc3d]

Get me drunk enough and I can’t even watch melon’s review explaining the album without tearing up. I can’t think of an album that can make me more easily cry than A Crow Looked at Me. I’m a guy, and I’m an adult, and unfortunately I feed into a lot of the toxic masculinity that’s been perpetuated forever. But man, this album. The way it makes you think about the impermanence of life and the ones you love, as well as yourself. God, I can’t help but cry like a baby lol

[@OscarGeronimo]

If you somehow know this dude, melon, call him or write him.

[@Princeps32]

the part with the counselor dying was such a gut punch this whole album was such a gut punch

[@wwxxww6289]

Nice job Anthony, thoughtful, respectful and pragmatic; it felt like a eulogy for a loved one more than a review. I pretty much endured a similar situation as poor Phil and his kiddo (except no kid: she was too sick) and your words def brought all that stuff back but not in a bad way, though (it was a long while ago. i did choke up some haha) So good on ya, AF; that u have pieces like this in you are a big part of why i follow the channel. Now im gonna buy the record on vinyl, put it on the turntable and cry my eyes out in sympathy. Peace man....

[@tomquirke9302]

i cant finish this album, its so emotionally draining i just cant handle it, its absolutely beautiful

[@fatsucker8836]

I'm really into sad indie music ( I mostly listen to Manchester Orchestra and Right Away Great Captain) and my friend just showed me this album today and I've got to say, in my opinion it wasn't easier listening to mount Eerie for the first time. This album and his new one that he released recently really got to me.

[@joshuamichel533]

Just imagine seeing him play a set live with songs strictly from this album. It was really beautiful, yet even more uncomfortable. Especially when the girls standing next to me were talking the whole time.

[@GuysOfFilm]

Gotta rip em a new one right there and then

[@MrRager96]

7:32 such beautiful lyrics. jesus christ

[@tjdriii]

MrRager96 I know this is not the appropriate video but I've been looking for the video that your profile picture is from for like 3 years

[@MrRager96]

wish i could tell ya man, i don't even know

[@WatchTheThrone23]

When he read the first set of lyrics, I got hit right in the feels. I haven't listened to the album, but hearing that alone, I will now.

[@IIMALTEASERII]

This was my introduction to Mount Eerie and Phil's other work, and what an introduction it was.

[@chrilborn4138]

For the first time ever this album didn't completely fuck me up emotionally today and I was really able to listen to the instrumentals and this album is really beautiful from both a lyrical AND musical standpoint. The guitar and piano layering is some of Phil's most tasteful imo

[@april3534]

I know!! People ignore how well crafted the album is in terms of guitar and percussion. The guitars do so much to the mood and atmosphere

[@kingpin1118]

I gotta say. I came across this review on accident while listening to your channel while cooking. I figured I'd check it out and holy shit. Its heart wrenching. I agree with you, I dont want it. I hope him and his daughter are okay going forward.