The Mountain Goats are an American band formed in Claremont, California, by… Read Full Bio ↴The Mountain Goats are an American band formed in Claremont, California, by singer-songwriter John Darnielle. The band is currently based in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. For many years, the sole member of the Mountain Goats was Darnielle, despite the plural moniker. The Mountain Goats are, for all practical purposes, the endlessly clever and prolific John Darnielle and whatever musicians he surrounds himself with, which means that while the soundscape may change from project to project, the overall tone and feel of Darnielle's work remains remarkably consistent. At his best, he writes finely observed, slightly surreal, impressionistic vignettes that manage to mix life as we live it with life as we wish we could live it, and as such he has more in common with a novelist than he does with the typical singer/songwriter, which is fitting, as he's also a published author. Darnielle's early Mountain Goats releases were lo-fi, cassette-recorded efforts cut with a rotating lineup of musicians, such as 1995's Nine Black Poppies and 2000's The Coroner's Gambit. By 2005's The Sunset Tree, his recordings had become cleaner and less cluttered, but his characters studies were just as vivid, and as the Mountain Goats finally cohered into a stable lineup (with Darnielle joined by Peter Hughes, Matt Douglas, and Jon Wurster), they recorded tuneful, thematically unified albums such as Beat the Champ (2015) and Goths (2017) that ranked with their finest work.
Darnielle began the new millennium with The Coroner's Gambit for Absolutely Kosher before signing to 4AD for the release of the surprisingly polished Tallahassee in 2002. We Shall All Be Healed followed in 2004, and one year later, Darnielle was back with The Sunset Tree. Remaining as prolific as ever, Darnielle turned away from the intensity of The Sunset Tree for a calmer, more reflective set of songs on 2006's Get Lonely. The accessible and assured Heretic Pride appeared in 2008. Next up was the Bible verse-inspired The Life of the World to Come, the group's sixth album for 4AD, in 2010. Switching to Merge Records in 2011, Darnielle released All Eternals Deck, which was recorded in four different studios in Brooklyn, Boston, North Carolina, and Florida with four different producers -- John Congleton, Scott Solter, Brandon Eggleston, and Morbid Angel guitarist and Hate Eternal frontman Erik Rutan -- helming various tracks. That year the band was also handpicked by Jeff Mangum of Neutral Milk Hotel to perform at the All Tomorrow's Parties festival that he was curating in Minehead, England, but they were ultimately unable to appear due to scheduling issues.
Darnielle began the new millennium with The Coroner's Gambit for Absolutely Kosher before signing to 4AD for the release of the surprisingly polished Tallahassee in 2002. We Shall All Be Healed followed in 2004, and one year later, Darnielle was back with The Sunset Tree. Remaining as prolific as ever, Darnielle turned away from the intensity of The Sunset Tree for a calmer, more reflective set of songs on 2006's Get Lonely. The accessible and assured Heretic Pride appeared in 2008. Next up was the Bible verse-inspired The Life of the World to Come, the group's sixth album for 4AD, in 2010. Switching to Merge Records in 2011, Darnielle released All Eternals Deck, which was recorded in four different studios in Brooklyn, Boston, North Carolina, and Florida with four different producers -- John Congleton, Scott Solter, Brandon Eggleston, and Morbid Angel guitarist and Hate Eternal frontman Erik Rutan -- helming various tracks. That year the band was also handpicked by Jeff Mangum of Neutral Milk Hotel to perform at the All Tomorrow's Parties festival that he was curating in Minehead, England, but they were ultimately unable to appear due to scheduling issues.
Tidal Wave
The Mountain Goats Lyrics
One, two
One, two
It's not the barnacles that do all the damage
Figure this out too late
It's not the destination that makes the difference
It's the freight
Everything becomes a blur from six feet away
Get used to this
Every card ever turned over remains in play
Get used to this
Not every wave is a tidal wave
Not every wave is a tidal wave
It's not the mutiny that gets written down in the diary
It's the manifest
Forgotten cargo in obsolete measurements
Anybody's guess
Even the proud, even the very proud
Probably die on their knees
Twin masts out on the open seas
Mistaken for trees
Not every wave is a tidal wave
Not every wave is a tidal wave
One, two
It's not the barnacles that do all the damage
Figure this out too late
It's not the destination that makes the difference
It's the freight
Everything becomes a blur from six feet away
Get used to this
Get used to this
Not every wave is a tidal wave
Not every wave is a tidal wave
It's not the mutiny that gets written down in the diary
It's the manifest
Forgotten cargo in obsolete measurements
Anybody's guess
Even the proud, even the very proud
Probably die on their knees
Twin masts out on the open seas
Mistaken for trees
Not every wave is a tidal wave
Not every wave is a tidal wave
Lyrics © PACIFIC ELECTRIC MUSIC
Written by: John Darnielle
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Sheridan Woika
insane that the goats have been around since the 90s and they still manage to improve and innovate their sound on every. single. album
Andrew Thompson
Yeah, like, I can't deny how important "All Hail West Texas" is to me, but other than that one, "Gettin Into Knives" is my favorite album of theirs! Like, they make me feel optimistic about getting older! (I'm almost 40 now)
Mosscreature
I guess you could say they are the GOAT, bloody gotten
Matthew Spencer
hi, i just wanted to let you know i’m doing a class assignment on you guys. it’ll be my final project as a senior in high school, called the “passion project,” worth the majority of my grade. it’s because of how your music speaks to me that i’ve chosen you for my topic. regardless of the year, genre, instruments being played, or lyrics, your music has always found a way to speak to me, and to hit me directly in my soul. your music taught me it’s ok to be emotionally exposed and vulnerable. in both your actions and words, the mountain goats has changed my life and my outlook on it. i hope i can not only share what you’ve done with others through my project, but also learn through your work how to make others feel just as you made me feel. even if i can only achieve a fraction of what you taught me, i know i’ll have done well. in the kindest words, thank you for what you’ve done. here’s to what has been, what is, and what futures we still have to write. all hail.
Smith Henke
How did it go?? This is so cool of you!
Destiny Aden
I did an important final project on the Mountain Goats too, quite a few years ago at this point. It was titled, "The Mountain Goats and my Soul" and I put a lot of effort into making my connection with tmg make sense to other people. Best of luck to you and your senior project! <3
ReginaldMusgrave
Please Lord, I know I have asked for a lot this year, but I would be overjoyed if we were to get another Mountain Goats live album. Put it next on my list after quick vaccinations, and just before world peace.
Will Shogren
You're in luck.
Patrick Sharkey
They announced it today!!!
GlowingBlueIris
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