RECORD REVIEWS IN 100 WORDS OR LESS (give or take 41 words)

THE MOUNTAIN GOATS
HERETIC PRIDE
(7.8)


John Darnielle eschews the autobiography of his last two albums and returns to weaving stories of characters in his imagination. While far superior to his previous outing, Get Lonely, Heretic Pride doesn’t hold up to his masterpieces (see: All Hail West Texas, Tallahassee, Sunset Tree). Of course, it would be unfair to hold him to such lofty standards on every album. The record is full of gems – its title track is one of the best songs of his career. For that matter, every song on the album that’s meant to kick ass, does. I just wish he’d quit with the sappy falsetto crap (feel free to skip “So Desperate.”) He’s so much more effective when he’s angry, sarcastic, or funny. This record also has the heaviest production in his catalog – that’s not always a good thing (but it’s frequently quite good).