In the Aeroplane Over the Sea

In the Aeroplane Over the Sea is the second and final album by Neutral Milk Hotel. It was released in 1998. This record featured a more stable lineup including Jeremy Barnes on drums, Julian Koster on the singing saw and banjo, and Scott Spillane on horns, who would make up the Neutral Milk Hotel live band.

This album is one of the most acclaimed and influential indie rock albums ever made. Many similar artists have sprung up that either claim influence from this record, or have a very similar sound. Such artists include The Microphones, Arcade Fire, Brand New, The Decemberists, The Antlers, Beirut,  and Bon Iver.

The album's iconic front cover, which features a young smiling boy and a lady with a drum potato  tambourine coconut  cutout-hole you know like those things you stick your head into at the beach to take funny pictures with round object for a head, has long been a staple of /mu/ culture and has, in more recent years, become a very widely recognized image across the internet. (The round object in question is actually a drum skin edited over a European postcard in a collaboration of Mangum and R.E.M's staff designer.

Critical Reception

 * Pitchfork - 10/10 (originally a 8.7 before it was removed)
 * Piero Scaruffi - 7.5/10
 * RYM - 4.10/5
 * Allmusic - 5/5
 * Robert 'Ersatz' Christgau - :(
 * The Needle Drop - Classic/10

Track Listing

 * 1) The King of Carrot Flowers Pt. One - 2:00
 * 2) The King of Carrot Flowers Pts. Two & Three - 3:06
 * 3) In the Aeroplane Over the Sea - 3:22
 * 4) Two-Headed Boy - 4:26
 * 5) The Fool - 1:53
 * 6) Holland, 1945 - 3:15
 * 7) Communist Daughter - 1:57
 * 8) Oh Comely - 8:18
 * 9) Ghost - 4:08
 * 10) Untitled - 2:16
 * 11) Two-Headed Boy Pt. Two - 5:13