The Mountain Goats 08.04.10

The Mountain Goats 08.04.10
Kings Arms Tavern. Auckland, NZ.

Expectations were medium to high when we settled into a nice spot behind the sound desk waiting for John Darnielle and his chums (Peter Hughes on bass and Jon Wurster on drums) to play. Neither Sam or I can remember which song they played first, but I was excited to see that he had taken his keyboard with him to our little part of the world. Darnielle is renowned for his between song banter, and he didn't disappoint. Introducing songs with five minutes stories about his youth, comparing himself to a car wash with "brushes and shit" and telling us about the first time he toured Europe with Chris Knox and how he cried in the back of the van a lot. Even though he talks about sadness, he does it with such wit and light-heartedness, explaining before one song that it was written in a state of profound self-pity "which is okay when you talk about it at a show in a different country but at the time it was pretty heavy."

He is unusually open about the personal nature of some of his songs, talking about adolescent mutilation, "sometimes you just don't feel like you own your own body so you take measures to feel like you do." And mentioned his step-father and how "when you grow up in a violent home, it doesn't mean there's no love, but it's a damaging kind of love." One thing I dislike at gigs is whenever there is any silence between songs people simply must yell out song names. Darnielle didn't seem the least bit annoyed, commenting on song names with things like, "I would love to sing that song" and "I am so fond of that song" and "Well I wasn't going to but I'll see what I can do."

I found that standing at the back gave me perspective about the gig, we still had a good view but didn't have to suffer through the hot, sweaty, rubbing up against strangers part. Last year when I saw them I was right by the stage, so much so that it hurt my neck to look up, however it does give you a bit more detail. For example, there was a great moment when Jon Wurster lost his drumstick, but managed to pick up his spare drumstick for the next beat. I now know when to use "that guy doesn't miss a beat!" Lame remarks aside, it was pretty cool.

A highlight for me was Psalms 40:2, when we see Darnielle as a man possessed, furiously pouring out lyrics with an unrelenting energy. Then there was Genesis 30:3, a love song, when we see a different side of Darnielle, a sweet, introspected man cooing soft words "I will do what you ask me to do, because of the way I feel about you.' The tempo and mood fluctuated, in one song the band would be giving it their all with the whole crowd moving, the next song it is just John and his guitar. They end the set with This Year, which is a toe-tapping, leg-shaking, head-nodding crowd pleaser, a great finish to a perfect set.

Darnielle, to me, is the best kind of musician; unpretentious, genuinely talented, and prolific as hell. From their performance, it is not hard to see why they are one of my favourite bands in the world today.

*Sorry I can't remember more of the songs, I have a pretty bad memory for that kind of stuff yet somehow remember most of his anecdotes.
**Obviously the quotes aren't word for word, but they are pretty close.