What started as a MySpace page for Elephant 6 news just a few days ago is now its own blog. Not that it was very popular or anything. But now that we're breathing free of the constraints of Rupert Murdoch (unless he owns this too, which he probably does), here's what you can look forward to:

• Elephant 6-related blogging updated (nearly) daily
• Rare MP3s from all your favorite Elephant 6 bands
• News
• Tour Dates
• Record and Show Reviews
• Photos, Artwork, and much more
  

I have no idea what “and much more” could possibly entail, but it sounds enticing, doesn’t it?

For those unfamiliar with Elephant 6, briefly: it's a collective of musicians initially spawned from Ruston, Louisiana, but now primarily based around Athens, Georgia, inspired by the psychedelic creativity and spirit of music of the late 60's (though bands from the 60's hardly form the sole inspiration for this diverse collection of artists). Robert Schneider (The Apples in Stereo), Bill Doss and Will Cullen Hart (The Olivia Tremor Control), and Jeff Mangum (Neutral Milk Hotel) are generally considered the founders of the movement, using a logo designed by Hart to stamp the backs of their self-released cassettes and records: The Elephant 6 Recording Company. As other musicians of a like mindset collaborated with them, a genuine movement was born. Surrounding the Apples, the Olivias, and Neutral Milk Hotel were bands such as Elf Power, the Gerbils, and Secret Square, and eventually Of Montreal, The Minders (out of Portland), Beulah (San Francisco), and The Essex Green (Brooklyn).

While "Elephant 6" is less concrete than it's ever been (I believe the last release to feature the logo was the Gerbils' Battle of Electricity in 2001, and there's never been much of an "Elephant 6 Recording Company" proper), the term is still actively in use, and happily promoted by many of the musicians. Robert Schneider still copyrights his songs to this mythical recording company--although probably more out of consistency's sake than anything else--and critics and fans use it as an easy shorthand. Which it can be, provided one understands there's a great range to the styles of music in the bands considered Elephant 6, and a wide berth between, say, Neutral Milk Hotel's In the Aeroplane Over the Sea, and The Minders' Hooray for Tuesday, both of which were recorded concurrently in Mr. Schneider's old "Pet Sounds" studio in Denver...which is now in Lexington, KY...or where he happens to be. So don't be reductive. Elephant 6 can be as big as your imagination.

For a more precise history of Elephant 6, please refer to the excellent website Elephant6.com, a valuable resource this site will not attempt to replace. Another superb source is Kim Cooper's book In the Aeroplane Over the Sea, part of the 33 1/3 series that examines important rock albums. Cooper's book, though focusing on Neutral Milk Hotel, also provides the most detailed history of Elephant 6's origins yet.

Optical Atlas was really launched as a supplement to the Elephant 6-related messageboards at E6 Townhall. To browse this blog will often just be a way to grab a shortcut to those posts at the Townhall that provide news about our favorite bands, their albums, and their tours. We'll also hopefully provide some interviews, and we'll certainly provide some out-of-print MP3s and other goodies from time to time. Please post comments to encourage us to maintain the blog, and feel free to point us in the right direction if you come across something we should link to.

"A waterfall fell on an optical atlas/

What was, remains the same/

It took up residence..."