Jeff Mangum At Occupy Wall Street: Neutral Milk Hotel Singer Plays Impromptu Show At Protest (VIDEO)

Jeff Mangum of Neutral Milk Hotel made a surprise appearance at the can't-stop-won't-stop Occupy Wall Street protest Tuesday evening. The movement, which is currently based at Zuccotti Park in New York, has now spread to cities across the U.S., from Washington, D.C., to Los Angeles.

According to music blog You Ain't No Picasso, after Mangum played his first song, he said the words concertgoers dream of hearing: “I’m here to serve you. What do you want to hear?” This footage from Global Revolution begins part way through a song that a commenter pointed out is "Themselves" by Minutemen -- from the lyrics, it was clearly sung to resonate with Mangum's audience:

"They keep themselves hidden away
They keep themselves hidden away upon the hill
Afraid of the day they'll have to pay
For all the crimes upon their head
And all those men who've learned to hate them"

The rest of the evening went like this:

"Holland, 1945"
"Ghost"
"Song Against Sex"
"Two Headed Boy, Pt. 2"
"In the Aeroplane Over the Sea"
"King of Carrot Flowers"
"Oh Comely"

Tune in at 32:07 to hear the crowd sing their hearts out with Mangum on "Oh Comely" to the words, "We know who our enemies are."

WATCH:

Watch live streaming video from globalrevolution at livestream.com

 

Comments

[cameron d]

05:46 PM on 10/11/2011

In the Aeroplane Over the Sea is the single greatest album of the 1990's. No if's, and's or but's.

[Ezekiel James]

06:06 PM on 10/05/2011

BOOOOBZ!

[Help USA Taxpayer]

05:27 PM on 10/05/2011

Jeff Mangum please release another album

[Help USA Taxpayer]

04:49 PM on 10/05/2011

i'd pay a thousand a ticket to watch him live

[Porbin]

02:56 PM on 10/05/2011

And one day we will die
And our ashes will fly from the aeroplane over the sea
But for now we are young
Let us lay in the sun
And count every beautiful thing we can see
Love to be
In the arms of all I'm keeping here with me,

[Ann Imel]

01:29 PM on 10/05/2011

This is awesome, wish I would have been there. I just started listening to NMH a lot and want to see Jeff Mangum perform! It's great he was there for this! Makes me like him even more.

[FormerlyTCnSRQ]

12:07 PM on 10/05/2011

this thing has legs

[peachpage01]

11:58 AM on 10/05/2011

I guess this issue isn't big enough for 99.999 percent of the so called social justice celebrity musicians who are sitting at home with their inflated incomes ($200 a seat types). Hey Bono, where's your big mouth now?

[FormerlyTCnSRQ]

12:07 PM on 10/05/2011

resting

[chrispychilla28]

01:32 PM on 10/05/2011

we don'y need anyone except the 99%. People with millions are not the enemey. It's the corporations with BILLIONS that are in the 1%. The most elite of the elite. Those that influence and control EVERY piece of legislation that has passed through our government. Bono, is not the enemy, those that stole our middle class are! Occupytogether.org

[nomoredead]

11:45 AM on 10/05/2011

I'm sure a lot of big names are testing the winds right now to see what this is all about then will come forward in support.

[robjh1]

11:43 AM on 10/05/2011

Michael Franti also did an impromptu concert Tuesday evening at Liberty Plaza:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9C2Ucveg6k
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wCEVvz2Tb1U

[Nicko Duchesne]

09:55 AM on 10/05/2011

Finally! Some support from any artist. Upon first hearing the early reports of the Radiohead concert, I got really excited thinking of how these protests could hugely benefit from exposure through the work of artists with large followings. It's time music protested again, like it had the last time a cultural revolution took place. While this movement isn't at even close to this point yet, all it takes as a couple big names to play a show or even just express support and this movement will get the attention it hopes for and deserves.

[NYC07]

09:22 AM on 10/05/2011

Peter Yarrow has also been there leading the protesters in song.

[batnammy]

01:55 AM on 10/05/2011

That was beautiful.

[Mantan]

01:22 AM on 10/05/2011

Jeff Mangum is an amazing songwriter and performer and it's just wonderful that he showed up to support & entertain the gathered heroes of Occupy Wall Street.
Best feel-good news item of the night!

[DCvote]

01:07 AM on 10/05/2011

this is amazing. mangum is the dylan of our time.