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The Mountain Goats<\/strong><\/a> came all the way from Durham, North Carolina to Santa Barbara, and despite illness and the ill-conceived absences (without leave) of Santa Barbara’s music fans, the band took over Soho<\/strong> and took us to the musical mountaintop.\u00a0 But we were also deftly guided by voice (leader John Darnielle<\/strong>‘s) back to the realities of life at sea level (and some depths further below).<\/p>\n The Mountain Goats 0riginally consisted of only John Darnielle, but now have swelled to a whopping three “permanent members” including Peter Hughes<\/strong> on bass and Jon “Funny Man” Wurster<\/strong> on drums (with Yuval Semo<\/strong> added on tour on guitar and piquant piano).\u00a0 The band has had a cult following for quite some time, but its fan ranks have exponentially expanded since 2002 following album releases such as “Tallahassee,” “The Sunset Tree,” “Get Lonely,” and especially this year’s stellar “All Eternals Deck.” <\/strong>The Mountain Goats have long been universally lauded by rock critics, with the uber-prolific Darnielle (over 600 songs to date) being hailed as one of America’s best lyricists and songwriters.\u00a0 The New Yorker<\/a> <\/strong>went so far as to call Darnielle “America\u2019s best non-hip-hop lyricist.”\u00a0 We agree, but only if the “non-hip hop” qualifier is removed.\u00a0 In addition to being well-crafted, Darnielle never fails to hit a heartstring or twenty with his lyrics, which oft-times sing of good and bad family members (his abusive step-father falling into the latter category and finding his way into Darnielle’s songs).\u00a0 And any band Colbert loves is OK by us.<\/p>\n Having never seen the band before, we were a little concerned when they came on at Soho last Friday and Darnielle let us know that he was sick with a fever.\u00a0 But Darnielle quickly allayed those concerns by slipping into his best “Show Must Go On” guise and giving a particularly strong reading of Liza Forever Minnelli,<\/strong><\/em> and continuing to gather momentum and strength thereafter.\u00a0 Liza Forever Minnelli<\/em> was a great reminder that Darnielle actually grew up in San Luis Obispo<\/strong> and lived in and attended college in Claremont\/Pomona<\/strong> before forming the band and eventually moving to Durham, North Carolina.\u00a0 In Liza, <\/em>Darnielle laments his inability to divorce himself from his California upbringing and some of its trappings (“Never get away never get away I am never ever gonna get away from this place”).\u00a0 And as we have grown so sick of the hoary chestnut, we particularly love the line:\u00a0 “Anyone here mentions ‘Hotel California’ dies before the first line clears his lips.”\u00a0 Absolutely agreed.<\/p>\n Throughout their set the Mountain Goats vacillated between feverish verve and slow, rending rounds of sound that were carried by Darnielle’s impassioned vocals and strident strumming on guitar (despite his fever), Jon Wurster’s drilling drumming, and Peter Hughes’ subtle bass and harmonies. \u00a0 Set highlights included San Bernardino, Southwood Plantation Road, Birth Of Serpents, Damn These Vampires,<\/strong><\/em> Up with Wolves<\/strong><\/em> and Boxcar <\/strong><\/em>(Jawbreaker cover).<\/p>\n But the night was rendered revelatory by a few songs in particular.\u00a0 Darnielle introduced Tyler Lambert’s Grave <\/strong><\/em>by telling the story of a women who had passed away.\u00a0 Tyler Lambert was her homeless son who in turn left far too soon.\u00a0 A poignant song and moment that you can listen to below.\u00a0 Darnielle has said about the song:\u00a0 “In 1993 or ’94, I wrote a song about Dana Plato, who was then a former child star on a downward slide; her story seemed so sad to me. She died young, a few years later, leaving a son behind. His name was Tyler Lambert, and he took his life last year, and the news stories I read ran a picture of this young man looking like young men often look: full of hope and promise, at the beginning of life. My heart broke for all the pain in that family, and I wrote the song.”\u00a0 You can read more about the song, and it’s context and meaning at Seattle Weekly’s Reverb blog HERE<\/strong><\/a>.\u00a0 The lyrics follow:<\/p>\n “Steal the last across the country under moonlight soft and wet Shoplift when you have to, keep your visor low Fall into a pattern, never get unstuck
\nAnd at the dead of night I hear from things you can’t forget
\nspend daylight in dark tunnels where the demons rave
\nOne day closer everyday to Tyler Lambert’s grave<\/p>\n
\nIf your hunger shames you never let them know<\/strong>
\nFeel your sadness lifting, ride it like a wave
\nThat sets you gently down beside Tyler Lambert’s grave<\/p>\n
\nAnyone who can’t relate should thank God for his love
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\nYoung man in a yellow tie, hair gel in his hair
\nNo context for the picture, just kind of standing there
\nTyler, step outside the shadow of your great catastrophe
\nDream all night of freedom, never wake up free”<\/p>\n