Volume I: Phil Elvrum

I saw Mount Eerie a few weeks back and a friend who was with me told me afterwards that he didn't understand what I saw in their music. Trying to defend a musician who has probably been your favorite artist over the last decade or so is very difficult to do, especially given his recent proclivity to make music influenced by black metal. It made me think of why Phil Elvrum, in his projects of the Microphones and Mount Eerie, has so consistently been a mainstay on my stereo. The sound, I think, is completely his own, but beyond that I think his lyrics and voice are the perfect mix of honest, profound and simple. Most if not all people may disagree, but for me, there's no artist that puts all of the elements that make a musician together better than Phil Elvrum.
Phil Elvrum has been a fairly prolific artist over the years. The songs that appear on the mix span 15 albums or singles, which I think show his development as a songwriter over the last decade. Given how many songs he has recorded over time, though, this by no means gives you a full picture. Often, the songs aren't meant to stand alone musically or lyrically, so they can sound awkward or out of place at times on the mix. That's my way of saying, if you enjoy the songs in this form, definitely check out the albums.

Trying To Figure Each Other Out (Phil Elvrum)
1 (0:00). I Want the Wind To Blow (Glow Pt. 2, 2001)
2 (5:33). What? (Lost Wisdom, 2008)
3 (7:35). Antlers (Lanterns/Antlers 7", 2002)
4 (10:04). Mt. Eerie (Mount Eerie, 2003)
5 (13:23). I Hold Nothing (No Flashlight, 2005)
6 (18:22). Sand (It Was Hot, We Stayed in the Water, 2000)
7 (20:12). The Moon (Glow Pt. 2, 2001)
8 (25:07). Anacortes Has a Secret Love (Tests, 1998)
9 (28:01). Solar System (Mount Eerie, 2003)
10 (31:35). Wooly Mammoths Absence (7 New Songs, 2004)
11 (36:17). The Glow Pt. 2 (Glow Pt. 2, 2001)
12 (41:15). The Glow (It Was Hot, We Stayed in the Water, 2000)
13 (50:19). Who? (Dawn, 2008)
14 (52:23). Heart Lake Rd. (Window, 2000)
15 (55:18). Let's Get Out of the Romance (Singers, 2005)
16 (60:48). I've Climbed Mountains (Little Bird Flies Into a Big Black Cloud, 2002)
17 (63:55). Ocean 1, 2, 3 (Don't Wake Me Up, 1999)
18 (66:32). The Moon (The Moon 7", 2001)
19 (71:44). I Lost My Wind (Moon Moon 7", 1999)
20 (74:11). I Felt My Size (Glow Pt., 2, 2001)
21 (76:13). With My Hands Out (Dawn, 2008)