outs. They include unresolved notes and chords; the ending of "Seaweed", for example, hangs on a half-step descent. The simplicity of the songs reflects Elverum's wish to move away from his earlier, more "artistically challenging" work, which is characterized by "harsh tones" and "complicated chords". Jayson Greene of Pitchfork explained the contrast to Elverum's earlier work as similar to "the difference between charting a voyage around the earth and undertaking it". Elverum has described A Crow Looked at Me as "barely music". Tracks 1–7 The opening track "Real Death" describes Elverum's shock in the weeks after Castrée's death. He sings accompanied by piano, electric guitar, accordion and drums. The opening words, "Death is Real", reappear throughout the record. The lyrics set out that the album is not intended as an artistic statement about death: "it's not for singing about / It's not for making into art". Elverum has said that although the album is art, the line is about "the difference between the idea of a thing and the actual lived experience of it", and that this line is an example of him "joking around". In "Seaweed", Elverum describes the scattering of Castrée's ashes, his trip to Haida Gwaii with their daughter a month after Castrée's death, and his fear of forgetting the small details of Castrée's life. He concludes the song by saying that he thinks of Castrée as the sunset. "Ravens", which is accompanied by multi-tracked guitar, piano chords and percussion, describes Castrée's last living days and the moments after. He has expressed regret over repeatedly describing and singing about her final days. "Forest Fire" explores themes of death, decay, and the seeming absurdity of life. In the song, Elverum describes his daily routine. The fire represents a sort of "cleansing", but it is unclear what is being made pure. In the song, he writes that he "rejects nature"; he has said that the line is both an acknowledgement of the natural process of death and a protest against it, rather than outright rejection. "Swims" details his experience of grief counseling and the sudden death of his counselor; his vocals are accompanied by a minimal guitar line and simple piano chords. "My Chasm" describes Elverum's isolation from his friends and difficulty in talking about his loss in public. In "When I Take Out The Garbage at Night" Elverum reconnects with the universe, accepting that Castrée still exists somewhere