The Mountain Goats - Transcendental Youth
 

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1. Amy aka Spent Gladiator 1
2. Lakeside View Apartments Suite
3. Cry For Judas
4. Harlem Roulette
5. White Cedar
6. Until I Am Whole
7. Night Light
8. The Diaz Brothers
9. Counterfeit Florida Plates
10. In Memory of Satan
11. Spent Gladiator 2
12. Transcendental Youth

I'm refraining from voting until the initial excitement about having a new Mountain Goats album to cradle in my arms wears off and I've had a chance to listen to it a bit more objectively.

Link available if you need it.

Maybe if I keep talking to myself someone will become interested in what I'm talking about.

I think the album is great, definitely one you need to listen to more than once to really "get." Standout tracks for me at this point are Harlem Roulette, White Cedar and Transcendental Youth. I'm really enjoying the use of horns and it seems as though John Darnielle's songwriting on this album is pulling from his earlier influences, and I'm glad it doesn't sound as overproduced as their other recent albums do. Right now I'm ranking this as my third favorite tMG album (nothing will top Sweden and this still doesn't beat the lo-fi storytelling rawness of All Hail West Texas).

Okay, okay, shut up already.

I also feel that this is the best Mountain Goats album in a long time. I've been waiting years for some music of his to move me like it used to do. I've always liked or loved John's music but this album may be the first one to speak to me directly.

And you're absolutely right about the production values. Excellent.

I completely agree. I posted something similar on Lastfm saying that you know an album is brilliant when you feel like it was written with the intention of letting you hearing it. The "stay alive, just stay alive" refrain hits close to home for me right now, I feel like the release couldn't have come at a better time. All of that is very egocentric, of course, but even on an objective level I think their work on this album is solid. It just starts feeling more personal the more you listen to it.

Blah, blah, blah fangirl blather.
The title track continues to blow my mind.

Yes! He even chose to write about my preferred suicide method (hit by train) and made it feel like a positive affirmation of life.
:love:

I have never listened to the mountain goats before now, but the first track has got me hooked, I hope the rest of the album is as strong as this. His vocal is great.

I think it's cool that he's been trying different things. I just haven't really been liking them. I wish he'd put out a full length of just him and a piano like some of the stuff on Satanic Messiah.

I gave it four but I can see a 5 in the near future. The title track gives me chills.
hail satan

Are there any instrumental tracks or ones with different singing styles? I like it but the halting vocals don't quite do it for me.