2000 Great Songs #1369: The Best Ever Death Metal Band In Denton

Truth be told, I don't spend much time with the early Mountain Goats records, when it was basically just John Darnielle making home recordings with his acoustic guitar--his dark, narrative poetry was always a thing to behold, but it wasn't exactly comfortable listening. Whereas his latter-day recordings, with a little more instrumentation and studio polish, allow him to deliver the same wonderful storytelling while making it more enjoyable sonically.

But that doesn't mean I can't still appreciate the terrifying genius of "The Best Ever Death Metal Band In Denton," from 2002's All Hail West Texas (essentially Darnielle's last solo home-recording project). In an age when school shootings don't even make headlines any more, Darnielle captures disaffected youth in America in just a couple brief minutes; if the Drive-By Truckers brilliantly covered the aftermath in "Thoughts And Prayers," this winds back the clock a few years earlier and imagines what might have come first. Or maybe just captures a couple idiosyncratic kids; who really know until it's too late? "When you punish a person for dreaming his dream, don't expect him to thank or forgive you." 

Live (full band) 2008:

Laura Jane Grace cover:

Nathaniel Rateliff cover:

Safari Room cover:

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