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...

Joining a better-known performer on stage to help sing one of their songs can be a risky move when you don't know all the words. Just ask Art Brut's Eddie Argos, who joined the Mountain Goats onstage during a London show about a year ago. "I'd forgotten that when I was drunk on the Hold Steady tour in the U.S. that I'd told John I'd sing 'The Be...

Two new EPs offer John Darnielle in ways we've never heard him before: with distinct, independent supporting actors (the pointillistic, vivid guitar work of Kaki King); and solo, with piano.read more

SCORE!? You can say that again. The brass at Merge Records have revealed quite a few more of the folks laying covers and remixes of their favorite Merge catalog classics on subscribers to the label's 20th anniversary SCORE! box set series-- which, to recap, is due to include 14 celeb-curated comps of Merge favorites, a covers disc, a remix colle...

Actually, you have three pricing options, but "devotee level" is the most appealing from a Satanic standpoint (go less for "congregant level," gets you "acolyte"). The four-song EP exists in physical form as a double 7" limited to 666 copies. You'll only find it at Mountain Goats live shows, but the download, just below Aeron Alfrey's fiery art...