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Words & Images by: Eric Zimmermann
The Mountain Goats :: 02.29.08 | Bimbo's 365 Club :: San Francisco, CA
Sing-a-longs don't usually focus on existential crises. But, when John Darnielle of The Mountain Goats reached the climactic lyric of "Dance Music," the audience at Bimbo's 365 Club suddenly cried in unison, "I don't want to die alone!"
If it seems strange that the audience knew this was coming, that's because The Mountain Goats have an unusually cultish following. Darnielle – the only permanent member of the "band" – started recording 17 years ago with only a Panasonic boom box and an acoustic guitar. Spreading his recordings via word of mouth, Darnielle nurtured an underground fan base that eagerly sought out his albums from friends and used record stores. This devotion has continued through the digital age. The teenage girl standing behind me knew absolutely every word to every song, including those released before she was born. As the encore began, one fan handed Darnielle a bracelet with the image of the Virgin Mary. "I love the Virgin Mary," exclaimed Darnielle as he slipped on the bracelet. Smiling, he thanked the fan with a kiss on the top of her head.
Darnielle ditched the lo-fi sound and moved into the studio in 2002, and has released five albums since. His latest is Heretic Pride, released by 4AD on February 19. Fans and critics alike have measured Darnielle's studio work against his earlier, bare bones recordings. Lyrically, his recent albums have focused less on fictional narratives and more on personal catharsis. For example, The Sunset Tree (2004) recounted Darnielle's childhood at the hands of an abusive stepfather. With Heretic Pride, however, Darnielle is once again focusing on the outside world, weaving tales of dark, mysterious life forms. "Sax Rohmer #1" finds the protagonist struggling to find his way home in a world filled with drunken sailors, secret agents and "spies from Imperial China." In the closing track, "Last Man on Earth," the narrator imagines himself in a post-apocalyptic future, finally able to play the hero and save his love interest: "Just when the last of the smoke subsides / You'll see my fingers hoisting my body atop the charred debris." Throughout the album, characters try to deal with a chaotic and unwelcoming world, whether through desperate seclusion or resolute triumph.
Peter Hughes - The Mountain Goats :: 02.29
In fact, resolve and triumph characterized Darnielle's performance on Friday. He began the show with a round of high-fives to the front row, a moment that epitomized the fever pitch enthusiasm of the evening. Though clad in a black suit, Darnielle was anything but somber. He exuded as much joy as one can while singing lyrics like "tell your lawyer to go to hell!" During the title track to Heretic Pride, he sounded positively gleeful as he belted, "And I feel so proud when the reckoning arrives!"
Taking part in San Francisco's annual Noise Pop Festival, The Mountain Goats played three shows over the weekend, of which Friday's was the first. Darnielle performs with a rotating cast of backup instrumentalists. On Friday, the other Goats were bassist Peter Hughes and drummer Jon Wurster (also of Superchunk). The trio complemented each other almost perfectly, producing a volume loud enough to match Darnielle's energy without drowning out his trademark nasal croon. This balance might also be due to a slightly anal sound technician, who pestered the three opening acts with constant questions about the mix. Wurster's performance was particularly versatile, ranging from brief bass drum accents on "Michael Myers Resplendent" to the no-holds-barred, raucous rock beat of "Lovecraft in Brooklyn."
With a back catalog of over 400 songs, it must be difficult for Darnielle to decide on a setlist. It's a testament to his prolificacy that even though the breaks between songs were filled with fans' perpetual shout-out requests, no two fans asked for the same song. Darnielle sang a few touchstones from his almost two-decade career, reaching as far back as "Sinaloan Milk Snake Song" from 1994's Zopilote Machine. The trio also covered Nothing Painted Blue's "Houseguest," which Darnielle introduced with the disclaimer, "If this is your idea of love, seek professional help."
John Darnielle - The Mountain Goats :: 02.29
What characterized the night most was Darnielle's humanity. From his perpetually goofy grin to the way his voice broke while singing "the moonlight soaked the branches," he made himself personally accessible to the audience. It was even slightly endearing when he forgot the opening chords to "Marduk T-Shirt Men's Room Incident." After two false starts, he simply gave up and moved onto the next song. "Sometimes the new ones haven't worked into your circuits yet," smiled Darnielle. Hey, everyone fucks up, right? As his eyes wandered off during "You or Your Memory," it struck me that Darnielle has the rare ability to lose himself in a song without losing the audience. He can emote in a social manner, a "happy catharsis" that results in some of the strangest feel good songs you'll ever hear. You're not supposed to smile when you hear a lyric like, "Well they come and pull me from my house / And they drag my body through the streets," but the audience at Bimbo's cheered with fiery resolve.
Despite a three-song encore, the audience would not relent. A few more minutes of boisterous applause brought the trio back for "California Song" from 1995's Sweden. "I got joy, joy, joy in my soul tonight," cried Darnielle. Count The Mountain Goats among the few indie artists who make live performances seem like neither a frustrating chore nor a self-absorbed meditation. Darnielle had joy in his soul at this show, and simply being in his vicinity made it hard not to share in the celebration.
02.29.08 | Bimbo's 365 Club :: San Francisco, CA
Michael Myers Resplendent, Heretic Pride, You Or Your Memory, Hast Thou Considered the Tetrapod, How To Embrace a Swamp Creature, Sinaloan Milk Snake Song, Marduk T-shirt Men's Room Incident (screwed up and skipped), Going to Georgia, So Desperate, Waving At You, November Love Song, In The Craters On The Moon, September 15, 1983, San Bernardino, Lovecraft in Brooklyn,
Encore 1: Dance Music, This Year, Houseguest
Encore 2: California Song
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