Fresh off the Coachella Ferris wheel in Indio, CA, Jeff Mangum is ending his North American leg of his tour with a stop in Denver at the Ogden Theater, before heading to Austin and then Europe for a handful of festival appearances. Mangum is the singer-songwriter behind Neutral Milk Hotel, whose In the Aeroplane Over the Sea is a critically acclaimed album which may be considered one of the top artistic accomplishments of the decade, and forever the staple of anyone’s top ten albums’ list who has appreciated solid pop music.



Mangum is no stranger to Denver; he recorded Neutral Milk Hotel’s On Avery Island with Apples in Stereo’s Rob Schneider in Denver. In a 1996 interview, Mangum described the peculiar recording environment: “It was January in Denver, freezing cold and snowing all over. I moved into a friend's house and was living in a closet and it was cold, not only because of the weather but because it was a haunted house. The closet I was living in was haunted.” Mangum’s relationship with Schneider’s band continued to grow as the songs that would become the second full-length release from Neutral Milk Hotel were honed in Athens, GA in the late 90’s. In the Aeroplane Over the Sea was recorded in Denver in a makeshift studio that was demolished right after the album was released in 1998.

Mangum’s Denver appearance is also special in the sense that he has not done a proper tour since 2001; his appearances in general are rare. Mangum's website reports that a portion of the proceeds from ticket sales is going to support the Children of the Blue Sky charity, a nonprofit “on a mission to help abandoned Mongolian street kids rebuild their lives by placing them with foster families, providing them with livestock, and giving them a chance to go school” (as quoted from Mangum’s website). Elf Power’s website reports that members of the Gerbils and Elf Power will be performing songs from their own bands as well as some covers in support of Mangum’s set this Thursday.

The Ogden Theatre doors open at 7:30PM and the music starts at 9:00PM. The show is 16+ and tickets are $36 dollars at the door. Tickets and more information are available online here.