Merge Records turns 20 this year and the celebration is well underway. Last week we told you about the five-day summer fest in North Carolina with Superchunk, Spoon, Conor Oberst, M. Ward, Destroyer, and others. If that's a party you can't attend, there are some birthday souvenirs you can enjoy without leaving home. Namely 20 Years of Merge Reco...

Photo by Jason BergmanThe biggest Mountain Goats fan I know, Pitchfork contributor Zach Baron, is also the guy I know who gets the most pissed off whenever lead Goat John Darnielle adds another layer of orchestration to his songs. The Mountain Goats started out as just Darnielle, recording innumerable limited-edition cassette-only EPs on his boo...

Mac McCaughan photo by Will Marsh; Clint Conley photo by Jen ReelWhen all is (hopefully) said and done early in the morning on November 5, let no one claim Merge Records head honcho and Superchunk/Portastatic frontguy Mac McCaughan didn't do his part to get Illinois Senator Barack Obama elected the next president of the United States. Mac, who ...