In a world full of violence, it’s easy to lose track of what happens when people really die. Recording under the name Mount Eerie, Phil Elverum released “A Crow Looked at Me” in 2017. Released months after the death of his wife, Geneviève Castrée, Elverum reminded its listeners what real-life death is like: unrelenting grief, pain and sorrow. These “death songs” (as Elverum called them) are sparse, featuring only a lonely voice and quiet guitar.

Elverum followed up “A Crow Looked at Me” with the album “Now Only,” which released in March of this year. A companion album to “Crow,” “Now Only” explored the same ideas: Castrée’s death, Elverum’s new single-fatherhood and devastating grief. Both LPs are uniquely heartbreaking and absolute must-listens.

In 2017, Elverum performed at the Le Guess Who? music festival. He played songs from “Crow” and the then unreleased “Now Only.” What resulted is Mount Eerie’s newest release, “(after)”.

“(after)” is unlike most live albums- first of all, it’s recorded in a 13th century church in the Netherlands called Jacobikerk. This gives the tracks a beautifully spiritual echo that makes the subject matter hit so much harder. Elverum and his lone guitar fill up the space with pure sorrow.

Another unique feature of “(after)” is its recording process. The album was recorded in secret by one of Elverum’s crew members. It gives the record an undeniable authenticity that can be rare in a planned live album. In the track “Remarks,” Elverum speaks to the audience, “This is intense / This is an amazing show.” I think that intensity would be lost if this was a planned recording.

The audience’s reaction to Elverum is one of pure gratitude. Many times, the concertgoers seem unsure whether clapping is the appropriate response to the “death songs,” but when they eventually do applaud, you sense warmth and appreciation. At the end of the last song “Tintin in Tibet,” the audience explodes with their biggest applause of the night, and then return to near silence, no doubt pondering the starkness and brutality of what they just heard.

Elverum manages to maintain the rawness of the original tracks, but adds a new sound and dynamic that is impossible in a studio recording. “(after)” is one the best live albums I’ve heard in a long time, and it’s an another must-listen from Mount Eerie.

_Edited by Siena DeBolt | sdebolt@themaneater.com_