[4] Mangum is characterized for his complex, lyrically dense songwriting, exemplified on the critically lauded album In the Aeroplane Over the Sea,[5] as well as for his public image as a recluse associated with his extended periods of musical inactivity and minimal press interaction.

[7] Mangum was born in Ruston, Louisiana, where he met the other co-founding members of Elephant 6, Robert Schneider, Will Cullen Hart, and Bill Doss.

Following the album's release, Mangum expanded Neutral Milk Hotel to include his friends Scott Spillane, Julian Koster and Jeremy Barnes.

[11] Mangum disbanded Neutral Milk Hotel following an extensive tour of North America and Europe, culminating in a solo set on New Year's Eve 1998 at the 40 Watt Club in Athens.

Allegedly suffering from poor health and a nervous breakdown, Mangum made few public appearances until February 2001, when he performed a one-off show in New Zealand at the request of Chris Knox.

[13] In February 2002, Mangum was interviewed by Pitchfork where he discussed his emotional response to In The Aeroplane Over The Sea, his recent interest in Buddhism and Eastern thought, travelling across Europe, and working on new field recordings and sound collage pieces (under the name Korena Pang).

These included Curse Of The Seven Jackals (with Laura Carter, Eric Harris, Chris Jolly & Heather McIntosh), Major Organ and the Adding Machine (with Julian Koster, Kevin Barnes and Will Hart, amongst others), Circulatory System's self-titled debut, Signal Morning and Mosaics Within Mosaics, the Apples in Stereo's New Magnetic Wonder, the Music Tapes' Mary's Voice and Jeremy Barnes' A Hawk and a Hacksaw.

He made no further public appearances until October 2008, when he took part in the Elephant 6 Holiday Surprise reunion tour, performing the Neutral Milk Hotel song "Engine" at several shows accompanied by Julian Koster on singing saw.

[19] This was followed by an appearance at a Knox benefit show on May 6, 2010 at Le Poisson Rouge, where Mangum performed a number of acoustic Neutral Milk Hotel songs.

[22] In August 2011, Mangum launched the website Walking Wall of Words,[23] through which he self-released a vinyl box set of Neutral Milk Hotel recordings and previously unreleased material.

He also curated a series of downloadable 'radio broadcasts' and sold one-of-a-kind drawings, with a portion of proceeds donated to charities including Children of the Blue Sky.

[26] In March 2012, he curated the ATP festival in Minehead, England, inviting a number of Elephant 6 groups including The Apples In Stereo, The Music Tapes, Olivia Tremor Control and A Hawk and a Hacksaw.

[32] In April 2015, Neutral Milk Hotel embarked upon their "last tour for the foreseeable future" including dates with Dot Wiggin and Circulatory System.