Similar to its devastating predecessors A Crow Looked at Me and Now Only, Mount Eerie’s Lost Wisdom Pt. 2 charts Phil Elverum’s emotional journey through dealing with the death of his wife and now the falling apart of his second marriage to actress Michelle Williams.
Lost Wisdom Pt. 2 does have a part one, unlike the Elverum’s most famous work, The Glow Pt. 2. Its themes tie presciently well into the life events he’s grappling with right now, and a comparison between the two albums shows massive growth as a songwriter and a person. His worldview has entirely shifted in the 11 years between, and it’s difficult to listen to songs like “You Swan, Go On” knowing the grief coming for Phil and the subject of the song, Geneviève Castrée. Instrumental and melodic hallmarks from A Crow Looked at Me are evident on Pt. 2, but Elverum also stays true to Lost Wisdom, acknowledging that despite his world being shaken up and torn apart, there’s still some things that are worth salvaging.
One of the major shifts in Elverum’s music since the death of his first wife is lyrics that have become highly literal and very direct. In the face of complete desolation, he sang “words fail” after making a career based on the power of words combined with music. Lost Wisdom Pt. 2 definitely has some of this minimal, anti-metaphorical style of lyricism attached to it, but other songs on the album discuss more than just the mundanities of life. “Real Lost Wisdom” has more of a sense of the mystical with Elverum singing about the nature of knowledge being passed down to future descendants- a theme he’s previously explored. In stark contrast, the next track “Widows” discusses small and tragic yet evocative details of the singer’s life, describing more of a narrative than a philosophy.
Despite the constant hardships in his life, it seems like Phil is continuing to evolve as an artist and human being. Musically, his writing has become less stark and more expressive. Julie Doiron’s vocal presence lends to a feeling of companionship- it curbs some of the loneliness in Elverum’s words. Although there are many hard-hitting moments throughout the album, they’re undercut by a recurring sense of hopefulness. It’s easy to feel like there’s no point in trying to find and maintain something as elusive as love, especially when there’s a distinct possibility of immense pain. Instead of shying away, Phil implores us and himself to “look into the fire” and love intensely. Mount Eerie has become synonymous with grief in recent years, but Lost Wisdom Pt. 2 suggests that this image of pain and sadness might be shifting towards one of tentative hope.
