Exposure Therapy

“How does it feel to be called the saddest musician in the world?” I asked Phil Elverum on a Monday morning from his home on Orcas Island. I thought this question, referring to the title of a 2018 Spinoff article, might make him laugh, but instead, he looked at me in seriousness. “I’m not into it,” he said, shaking his head, “It seems shallow to me.” Although Elverum admits he understands why that perception is out there. Under the moniker Mount Eerie,