The Mountain Goats - Heretic Pride

Heretic Pride is a breath held too long and let out all at once, revelling in the resulting noise.

Album Review by Hamza K | 05 Feb 2008
Album title: Heretic Pride
Artist: The Mountain Goats
Label: 4AD

If you're expecting slow acoustic ballads you'll be blown away by Heretic Pride. But really, this album is so well crafted you'll be blown away regardless. The move from vocal-focused lo-fi began on confessional album The Sunset Tree, which brought John Darnielle into the studio for the first time and 2006's quiet Get Lonely slowly let the new sounds settle in, so his liveliness on Heretic Pride is long overdue. Like a breath held too long and let out all at once, he pushes melody and instruments to the forefront and revels in their resultant noise. The lyrics chart the lives of monsters both fictional and existential, imbuing Frankenstein with the same empathy brought to addicts and broken homes. Lovecraft in Brooklyn is the epitome of this new approach, bursting with grungy guitar and halting, panicked singing. Heretic Pride is the first line of a new chapter, which starts and ends in exclamation marks. [Hamza K]

Release Date: 18 Feb

http://www.mountain-goats.com