2008 Woodie Awards
Music Review: Mountain Goats have Heretic Pride
By Jake Rezac
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In 1991, John Darnielle began recording folk-rock songs, under the name The Mountain Goats, which sounded like they were recorded on a boom box (as some of them were). However, strikingly intelligent and poignant lyrics, coupled with Darnielle's urgent, bleating vocals, have created a cult following around The Mountain Goats (in which Darnielle is the only consistent member). In each of the nineteen albums released by The Mountain Goats, Darnielle explores the intensity of emotion experienced by people in desperate situations, while describing the human condition with marked accuracy. The Mountain Goat's newest album, Heretic Pride, is no exception.
The three Mountain Goat albums released before Heretic Pride were all heavily influenced by Darnielle's life - the only autobiographical work in Darnielle's extensive catalogue. Heretic Pride, however, returns to traditional Mountain Goats fare, focusing on overarching themes and expertly crafted characters. Despite the album's fictional nature, the songs on Heretic Pride describe characters who very well might exist on Earth somewhere. In each track, Darnielle turns a three minute song into a story which would take a less talented writer ages to tell.
Heretic Pride begins with "Sax Rohmer #1" - a song named after writer Arthur Ward, whose novels describe master criminal Dr. Fu Manchu. This is the first song of many in the album which reference monsters and evil characters from literature and movies - H.P. Lovecraft's monster Cthulhu, the mythical Tianchi Monster, a swamp creature, and Michael Myers are all mentioned in songs. "Sax Rohmer #1," along with all those songs with evil characters in them, creates a pressure-filled atmosphere, with pulsing drums and minor chords issuing from the guitar.
These songs are sharp contrasts to the second song on the album, "San Bernadino." It is one of a number of songs contently describing a failing relationship. In the song, a violin and viola emit graceful, melodic notes which contrast a constant, pizzicato plucking of the guitar. This juxtaposition provides an excellent background to the lyrics of the song, which are those of a man recounting the good moments of a failed marriage. "Heretic Pride" and "So Desperate" are particularly good tracks on the album. The former, after which the album takes its name, is a reconciliation of the album's two themes, which involve both monsters and the satisfaction which comes from ending a failing relationship. The song is told from the perspective of a heretic who is being burned for his sins. This narrative is told over relaxing, even uplifting instrumental music, and the words said by the heretic are even inspiring: "I felt so proud to be alive," he says in the refrain. "So Desperate," on the other hand, seems - rightly - out of place on the album. It is the only track which contains no instruments other than guitar - which plays very melodic arpeggios behind Darnielle's warm, longing vocals. The song, though dissimilar to others on the album, provides an emotional climax to the album.
It's been over five years since the last lo-fi Mountain Goats album - something which longtime fans occasionally deplore. Heretic Pride could very easily silence those complaints. Although the album was recorded in a modern studio and edited for audio quality, the emotional impact is just as significant as any earlier Mountain Goats albums and Heretic Pride is one of The Mountain Goat's best.
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