John Darnielle’s Mountain Goats Easily Climb Up to Live Perfection at The Gothic

Story and Photos by Cameron Wallace

One could use a good number of words to describe the music of The Mountain Goats. Frenetic, somber, personal. John Darnielle and his extensive posse of bandmates past have certainly traversed the spectrum of inspiration, from professional wrestling to Dungeons & Dragons, and they also bring to life powerful reflections from the past with albums like The Sunset Tree and We Shall All Be Healed. Darnielle’s lyrics run the emotional gamut, and as varied and contrasting as they can seem, he and his band have a masterful way of stringing these moments in time together in a way that feels natural – and fun as hell. Such was the case last Thursday at Englewood’s Gothic Theatre.

The troupe seemed to bounce through time, breathing new life into songs of the past…

After a slow, tempered opening with “Maybe Sprout Wings” (from 2006’s Get Lonely), the talent of Darnielle’s accompaniment went on full display. Joined on keys and guitar by Matt Douglas and Erin Mckeown, respectively, the band’s mellow mood notched up briskly with a lively rendition of “You or Your Memory” (The Sunset Tree, 2005). Jon Wurster kept his drumming subtle for the moment, calmly setting the pace for the loud and eccentric fun he would have later in the performance. Peter Hughes, with the bass, added a solidity that belied the lo-fi sound that The Mountain Goats bring to mind.

Carrying on, the troupe seemed to bounce through time, breathing new life into songs of the past. Despite the recent release of the band’s twentieth studio offering, Dark In Here, the band opted to craft their setlist with songs from as early as 1995’s Sweden. Following the song “Tollund Man,” from that early record made new by Matt Douglas’s subdued but rich saxophone, the band began bouncing across their discography up to their most recent batch of tracks.

John Darnielle and his extensive posse of bandmates past have certainly traversed the spectrum of inspiration, from professional wrestling to Dungeons & Dragons…

Though Darnielle’s lyrics and voice can at times be shaky, vulnerable, and timid, the way he moves about the stage and approaches the microphone makes it clear that he is a seasoned professional. This may have been shaken momentarily on the two-or-so occasions at which lyrics didn’t immediately come to him, asking Douglas and even a few members of the audience for help with jogging his memory.

At no point did Darnielle seem out of his depth – even though he later said as much about himself, before going on to play “Lizard Suit” (from Dark In Here, 2021). This apparent contradiction, to me, embodied just what I think of when I listen to The Mountain Goats’ music. Every bit as chaotic as it is refined, every bit as impassioned as it is imperfect – at all times a display of complete honesty and transparency. It seems the inability to tour for a year and a half has only served to make the band’s performances even more natural, fluid, and fun.