Everything Is

Everything Is was the first recording mass-released by Neutral Milk Hotel, which at this point was largely still an outlet for the songwriting of Jeff Mangum, instead of a fully formed band. The recording was originally the second release on the fledgling Seattle label Cher Doll Records in 1994. The label in the form of a 7", with “Everything Is” as the A side, and “Snow Song, Pt. 1” as the B side. The first 50 7"s pressed also featured different artwork, with each sleeve being personally xeroxed by Mangum. The Cher Doll edition is now out of print.

The British label Fire Records re-released the record in 1995, on CD and 7", with the 7" retaining the same A and B sides, and the CD version featuring an extra track, “Aunt Eggma Blowtorch”, a five-minute sound collage by Mangum. Both CD and 7" featured different artwork (which can be seen to the right). The Fire version is also out of print,[6] though not as collectible as the Cher Doll version.

In 2001, the recently founded Orange Twin Records (owned by members of Elephant 6 luminaries Elf Power) re-released the single, this time on CD only, adding the extra track “Tuesday Moon”. The artwork remained the same as was previously seen on the Fire release. This version is currently in print.

Everything Is was recorded between 1991 and 1993 on Jeff Mangum’s four-track recorder, still using the name to branch out with his musical projects instead of forming an actual band. Throughout the recording of the EP, Jeff featured many friends and fellow musicians on the recordings on several songs, while Robert Schneider proceeded to master the album from the original cassette recordings.

The sound of Everything Is differs from his work from On Avery Island onwards, as it was still a projection of his experimentation and lo-fi outlet. The bulk of the album includes lo-fi, fuzzy, and psychedelic-influenced songs that range from being closely related to his acoustic-based work to punk-like rhythms and psychedelic tones. Before Everything Is, Jeff experimented with noise and tape loops, and after the EP he began working with acoustic melodies and horn sections. This is often seen as the bridging point between his two styles.

(The original Everything Is 7" cover)