THE MOUNTAIN GOATS
photo by Jeremy M. Lange

The Mountain Goats announce 'Goths,' share "Andrew Eldritch Is Moving Back to Leeds"

The Mountain Goats have announced their follow-up to 2015’s Beat the Champ and fourth album for Merge. Goths is out on May 19 and its lead single, staying on point with the LP title, is “Andrew Eldritch is Moving Back to Leeds.” Eldritch, if you don’t know, is the frontman of goth icons Sisters of Mercy (and who said before the 2016 election he might finally make a new LP if Trump won). Anyway, the song has John Darnielle’s typically strong, vivid lyrics fleshed out by horns and woodwinds. You can stream it, and check out the cover and tracklisting for Goths, below.

Peter Hughes of The Mountain Goats has this to say about Goths:

The theme this time around is goth, a subject closer to my heart perhaps than that of any Mountain Goats album previous. And while John writes the songs, as he always has, it feels more than ever like he’s speaking for all of us in the band, erstwhile goths (raises hand) or otherwise, for these are songs that approach an identity most often associated with youth from a perspective that is inescapably adult. Anyone old enough to have had the experience of finding oneself at sea in a cultural landscape that’s suddenly indecipherable will empathize with Pat Travers showing up to a Bauhaus show looking to jam, for example.

But underneath the outward humor, there is evident throughout a real tenderness toward, and solidarity with, our former fellow travelers—the friends whose bands never made it out of Fender’s Ballroom, the Gene Loves Jezebels of the world—the ones whose gothic paths were overtaken by the realities of life, or of its opposite. It’s something we talk about a lot, how fortunate and grateful we are to share this work, a career that’s become something more rewarding and fulfilling than I think any of us could have imagined. We all know how easily it could’ve gone the other way, and indeed for a long time did.

The band also points out, via bandcamp, that Goths was made with

NO COMPED VOCALS
NO PITCH CORRECTION
NO GUITARS

Speaking of Sisters of Mercy and Merge Records, you may remember label head (and Superchunk frontman) Mac McCaughan covered “First Last and Always” a few years back.

The Mountain Goats are also going on tour. They’ll be in Australia in April, and they return to North America in May for more dates, including some opening for Jason Isbell (Beacon Theatre in NYC included). All upcoming dates are below.

John Darnielle also recently published his second novel, Universal Harvester.

The Mountain Goats - Goths

Tracklist
1. Rain in Soho (4:46)
2. Andrew Eldritch Is Moving Back to Leeds (4:18)
3. The Grey King and the Silver Flame Attunement (4:54)
4. We Do It Different on the West Coast (5:20)
5. Unicorn Tolerance (5:24)
6. Stench of the Unburied (4:29)
7. Wear Black (4:10)
8. Paid in Cocaine (3:57)
9. Rage of Travers (5:53)
10. Shelved (4:01)
11. For the Portuguese Goth Metal Bands (4:09)
12. Abandoned Flesh (3:41)
13. For the West Coast Dark Ambient Bedroom Warriors (Bonus Track) (4:36)
14. Scaling the Well (Bonus Track) (4:54)
15. Vanishing Act (Bonus Track) (4:05)
16. Grave Dust (Bonus Track) (4:22)

The Mountain Goats – 2017 Tour Dates
Apr 01 Bond Brothers Beer Company Cary, NC
Apr 06 Badlands Perth, Australia
Apr 07 Fowler’s Adelaide, Australia
Apr 08 The Grace Emily Adelaide, Australia
Apr 09 The Factory Theatre Marrickville, Australia
Apr 11 The Toff Melbourne, Australia
Apr 12 Corner Hotel Richmond, Australia
Apr 13 Bluesfest Byron Bay Nsw, Australia
Apr 14 Bluesfest Byron Bay Nsw, Australia
May 22 Terminal WestAtlanta, GA
May 23 Cannery Ballroom Nashville, TN
May 25 Saturn Birmingham, AL
May 26 The Republic New Orleans, LA
May 27 White Oak Music Hall Houston, TX
May 28 Trees Dallas, TX
May 31 Mayan Theater Los Angeles, CA
Jun 01 The Fillmore San Francisco, CA
Jun 02 The Fillmore San Francisco, CA
Jun 04 Crystal Ballroom Portland, OR
Jun 05 The Showbox Seattle, WA
Jun 23 Beacon Theatre (w/ Jason Isbell) New York, NY
Jun 24 Beacon Theatre (w/ Jason Isbell) New York, NY
Jun 26 College Street Music Hall (w/ Jason Isbell) New Haven, CT
Jun 27 Blue Hills Bank Pavilion (w/ Jason Isbell) Boston, MA
Jun 28 Columbus Theatre Providence, RI
Jun 30 Merriweather Post Pavilion (w/ Jason Isbell) Columbia, MD
Jul 01 PNC Pavilion at Riverband Music (w/ Jason Isbell) Cincinnati, OH
Jul 02 Rose Music Center (w/ Jason Isbell) Huber Heights, OH
Jul 05 Sumtur Ampitheatre (w/ Jason Isbell) Papillion, NE
Jul 06 Wooly’s Des Moines, IA
Jul 07 The Palace Theatre (w/ Jason Isbell) Saint Paul, MN
Jul 08 Majestic Theater Madison, WI
Jul 09 The Castle Bloomington, IL
Jul 11 The Washington Pavilion (w/ Jason Isbell) Sioux Falls, SD
Jul 12 Peabody Opera House (w/ Jason Isbell) Saint Louis, MO
Jul 13 ACM@UCO Performance LAB Oklahoma City, OK
Jul 14 ACL Live at the Moody Theater (w/ Jason Isbell) Austin, TX

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