{"id":4942,"date":"2026-08-20T16:52:54","date_gmt":"2026-08-20T20:52:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/?p=4942"},"modified":"2026-08-20T16:52:56","modified_gmt":"2026-08-20T20:52:56","slug":"how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\/","title":{"rendered":"How Anne Frank Inspired Neutral Milk Hotel\u2019s Classic Album \u2018In the Aeroplane Over the Sea\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In 1998, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/songs\/neutral-milk-hotel\">Neutral Milk Hotel<\/a> released their landmark second and final album, <em>In the Aeroplane Over the Sea<\/em>. It&#8217;s remembered as not only one of the best indie albums of the &#8217;90s but of all time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While the lyrical content is often vague, it explores a variety of themes, one of its major inspirations was Anne Frank&#8217;s <em>Diary of a Young Girl<\/em>, which chronicled her experiences while her family was in hiding during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;A lot of the songs are about her,&#8221; <a href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/features\/interview\/7471-neutral-milk-hotel\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Mangum told <em>Puncture<\/em> in 1997<\/a>, before the album was released.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Neutral Milk Hotel - In the Aeroplane Over the Sea (1998) [FULL ALBUM~vinyl] {not a meme}\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/vKq2N6zk-ds?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Influence of Anne Frank<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;I was walking around wondering, \u201cIf I knew the history of the world, would everything make more sense to me or would I just lose my mind?\u201d And I came to the conclusion that I\u2019d probably just lose my mind,&#8221; Magnum told <em>Puncture<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When he was in a book store the next day, he came across Frank&#8217;s diary and spent the following two days reading it. He was haunted by dreams of using a time machine to rescue her and admitted Frank&#8217;s writing &#8220;stuck with me for a long, long time.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;While I was reading the book, she was alive to me,&#8221; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newsweek.com\/neutral-milk-hotel-anne-frank-diary-aeroplane-sea-815303\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">he once said<\/a>, calling to mind the line &#8220;In my dreams, you&#8217;re alive and you&#8217;re crying.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She&#8217;s never mentioned by name, but songs like &#8220;Holland 1945&#8221; present more overt references to Frank\u2014Mangum seems to be addressing her spirit directly. In &#8220;Oh Comely,&#8221; he mentions her death and his dreams of saving her, singing, &#8220;I know they buried her body with others\/Her sister and mother and 500 families\/And will she remember me 50 years later\/I wished I could save her in some sort of time machine.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Other songs, however, are open to interpretation or have multiple meanings. &#8220;Ghost,&#8221; for example, came from Mangum&#8217;s belief there was a ghost in the house, but he has also said the song &#8220;ended up being more of a reference to Anne Frank.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Frank&#8217;s influence continued even after the album was finished. The track &#8220;Untitled&#8221; has become known as &#8220;The Penny Arcade in California&#8221; because the band saw a girl in an arcade who resembled Frank.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Even when Mangum isn&#8217;t referencing Frank directly, many of the album&#8217;s themes, such as youth, trauma, and the loss of innocence, are still tied to her. The fact that the album&#8217;s inspiration is so specific but with themes that are so universal is part of its unwavering appeal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Photo by Merrick Ales\/FilmMagic<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In 1998, Neutral Milk Hotel released their landmark second and final album, In the Aeroplane Over the Sea. It&#8217;s remembered as not only one of the best indie albums of the &#8217;90s but of all time. While the lyrical content is often vague, it explores a variety of themes, one of its major inspirations was [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":547050,"featured_media":5018,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"byline":{"profiles":[{"type":"byline_id","atts":{"term_id":19,"post_id":80}}]},"savage_platform_role_ideator":[],"savage_platform_role_editor":[],"savage_platform_role_senior_editor":[],"savage_platform_role_photographer":[],"savage_platform_role_illustrator":[],"savage_platform_role_translator":[],"savage_platform_role_as-told-to":[],"savage_platform_role_reviewed-by":[],"savage_platform_disable_recirculation":false,"savage_platform_article_type":"news","savage_platform_vice_article_type":"article","savage_platform_article_intent":"","savage_platform_show_affiliate_disclaimer":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"wp_curate_deduplication":false,"wp_curate_unique_pinned_posts":false,"savage_platform_featured_image_caption":"","_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"savage_platform_subheadline":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[152,200,499],"byline":[19],"class_list":["post-4942","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","tag-1990s","tag-indie-rock","tag-neutral-milk-hotel"],"savage_platform_primary_term":{"category":{"term_name":"Features","term_id":12,"term_link":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/category\/features\/"},"post_tag":{"term_name":"1990s","term_id":152,"term_link":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/tag\/1990s\/"}},"hide_from_homepage":false,"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>How Anne Frank Inspired Neutral Milk Hotel\u2019s Classic Album \u2018In the Aeroplane Over the Sea\u2019 - Songfacts Articles<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"After reading Anne Frank&#039;s diary, Jeff Mangum was haunted by dreams of her, inspiring Neutral Milk Hotel&#039;s &#039;In the Aeroplane Over the Sea.&#039;\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How Anne Frank Inspired Neutral Milk Hotel\u2019s Classic Album \u2018In the Aeroplane Over the Sea\u2019 - Songfacts Articles\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"After reading Anne Frank&#039;s diary, Jeff Mangum was haunted by dreams of her, inspiring Neutral Milk Hotel&#039;s &#039;In the Aeroplane Over the Sea.&#039;\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Songfacts Articles\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-08-20T20:52:54+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-20T20:52:56+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/08\/JeffMangum.jpg?w=1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"675\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Janelle Sheetz\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Janelle Sheetz\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\\\/\"},\"author\":[{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/?post_type=profile&#038;p=80\"}],\"headline\":\"How Anne Frank Inspired Neutral Milk Hotel\u2019s Classic Album \u2018In the Aeroplane Over the Sea\u2019\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-08-20T20:52:54+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-08-20T20:52:56+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":454,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/JeffMangum.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"1990s\",\"indie rock\",\"Neutral Milk Hotel\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Features\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\\\/\",\"name\":\"How Anne Frank Inspired Neutral Milk Hotel\u2019s Classic Album \u2018In the Aeroplane Over the Sea\u2019 - Songfacts Articles\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/JeffMangum.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-08-20T20:52:54+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-08-20T20:52:56+00:00\",\"description\":\"After reading Anne Frank's diary, Jeff Mangum was haunted by dreams of her, inspiring Neutral Milk Hotel's 'In the Aeroplane Over the Sea.'\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/JeffMangum.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/JeffMangum.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":675,\"caption\":\"AUSTIN, TX - NOVEMBER 09: Jeff Mangum of Neutral Milk Hotel performs in concert during Day 3 of Fun Fun Fun Fest at Auditorium Shores on November 9, 2014 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Merrick Ales\\\/FilmMagic)\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"How Anne Frank Inspired Neutral Milk Hotel\u2019s Classic Album \u2018In the Aeroplane Over the Sea\u2019\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/\",\"name\":\"Songfacts Articles\",\"description\":\"Better understand and enjoy the songs you love\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Songfacts Articles\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/songfacts-logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/songfacts-logo.png\",\"width\":575,\"height\":180,\"caption\":\"Songfacts Articles\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/?post_type=profile&#038;p=80\",\"name\":\"Janelle Sheetz\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/author\\\/janelle-sheetz\\\/\",\"description\":\"For over a decade, Janelle Sheetz has worked extensively as a freelance writer, and her writing about movies, music, and pop culture has been featured across the web, including with Collider, Mental Floss, Paste, and more. She is an elder emo who takes pride in her eclectic taste in music, as well as the extensive [&hellip;]\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/IMG_9039.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.songfacts.com\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/IMG_9039.jpg\",\"width\":500,\"height\":500}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"How Anne Frank Inspired Neutral Milk Hotel\u2019s Classic Album \u2018In the Aeroplane Over the Sea\u2019 - Songfacts Articles","description":"After reading Anne Frank's diary, Jeff Mangum was haunted by dreams of her, inspiring Neutral Milk Hotel's 'In the Aeroplane Over the Sea.'","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"How Anne Frank Inspired Neutral Milk Hotel\u2019s Classic Album \u2018In the Aeroplane Over the Sea\u2019 - Songfacts Articles","og_description":"After reading Anne Frank's diary, Jeff Mangum was haunted by dreams of her, inspiring Neutral Milk Hotel's 'In the Aeroplane Over the Sea.'","og_url":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\/","og_site_name":"Songfacts Articles","article_published_time":"2026-08-20T20:52:54+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-08-20T20:52:56+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/08\/JeffMangum.jpg?w=1200","width":1200,"height":675,"type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Janelle Sheetz","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Janelle Sheetz","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\/"},"author":[{"@id":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/?post_type=profile&#038;p=80"}],"headline":"How Anne Frank Inspired Neutral Milk Hotel\u2019s Classic Album \u2018In the Aeroplane Over the Sea\u2019","datePublished":"2026-08-20T20:52:54+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-20T20:52:56+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\/"},"wordCount":454,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/08\/JeffMangum.jpg","keywords":["1990s","indie rock","Neutral Milk Hotel"],"articleSection":["Features"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\/","url":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\/","name":"How Anne Frank Inspired Neutral Milk Hotel\u2019s Classic Album \u2018In the Aeroplane Over the Sea\u2019 - Songfacts Articles","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/08\/JeffMangum.jpg","datePublished":"2026-08-20T20:52:54+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-20T20:52:56+00:00","description":"After reading Anne Frank's diary, Jeff Mangum was haunted by dreams of her, inspiring Neutral Milk Hotel's 'In the Aeroplane Over the Sea.'","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/08\/JeffMangum.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/08\/JeffMangum.jpg","width":1200,"height":675,"caption":"AUSTIN, TX - NOVEMBER 09: Jeff Mangum of Neutral Milk Hotel performs in concert during Day 3 of Fun Fun Fun Fest at Auditorium Shores on November 9, 2014 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Merrick Ales\/FilmMagic)"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"How Anne Frank Inspired Neutral Milk Hotel\u2019s Classic Album \u2018In the Aeroplane Over the Sea\u2019"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/","name":"Songfacts Articles","description":"Better understand and enjoy the songs you love","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/#organization","name":"Songfacts Articles","url":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2025\/12\/songfacts-logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2025\/12\/songfacts-logo.png","width":575,"height":180,"caption":"Songfacts Articles"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/?post_type=profile&#038;p=80","name":"Janelle Sheetz","url":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/author\/janelle-sheetz\/","description":"For over a decade, Janelle Sheetz has worked extensively as a freelance writer, and her writing about movies, music, and pop culture has been featured across the web, including with Collider, Mental Floss, Paste, and more. She is an elder emo who takes pride in her eclectic taste in music, as well as the extensive [&hellip;]","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/01\/IMG_9039.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/01\/IMG_9039.jpg","width":500,"height":500}}]}},"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"How Anne Frank Inspired Neutral Milk Hotel\u2019s Classic Album \u2018In the Aeroplane Over the Sea\u2019","url":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/08\/JeffMangum.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/08\/JeffMangum.jpg"},"articleSection":"Features","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Janelle Sheetz"}],"creator":["Janelle Sheetz"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Songfacts Articles","logo":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2025\/12\/songfacts-logo.png"},"keywords":["1990s","indie rock","neutral milk hotel"],"dateCreated":"2026-08-20T20:52:54Z","datePublished":"2026-08-20T20:52:54Z","dateModified":"2026-08-20T20:52:56Z","custom_metadata":[],"section":"Features"},"rendered":"<meta name=\"parsely-title\" content=\"How Anne Frank Inspired Neutral Milk Hotel\u2019s Classic Album \u2018In the Aeroplane Over the Sea\u2019\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-link\" content=\"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/how-anne-frank-inspired-neutral-milk-hotels-classic-album-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-type\" content=\"post\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-image-url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/08\/JeffMangum.jpg?w=150&amp;h=150&amp;crop=1\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-pub-date\" content=\"2026-08-20T20:52:54Z\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-section\" content=\"Features\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-tags\" content=\"1990s,indie rock,neutral milk hotel\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-author\" content=\"Janelle Sheetz\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-metadata\" content=\"Array\" \/>","tracker_url":"https:\/\/cdn.parsely.com\/keys\/articles.songfacts.com\/p.js"},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/08\/JeffMangum.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4942","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/547050"}],"version-history":[{"count":25,"href":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4942\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5024,"href":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4942\/revisions\/5024"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5018"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4942"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4942"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4942"},{"taxonomy":"byline","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.songfacts.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/byline?post=4942"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}