All Eternals Deck

 (10 customer reviews)

Wow, after all of the innumerable albums John Darnielle has put out, I didn't think that I could be surprised. The rock concept has finally come together. If you are new to Mountain Goats, here is a brief recap. All Hail West Texas is a classic of the boombox era, and cherished by lo-fi heads everywhere. Tallahassee and The Sunset Tree are absolute masterpieces. They captured Darnielle's songwriting and lyrics perfectly, with better production value. Get Lonely is good mood music, but not quite as good as the two previously mentioned. Then, to many Mountain Goat's fan's horror, they started making Rock music. Heretic Pride is great at times, but so inconsistent that I have only listened to it start to finish once. The Life of the World to Come is a good offering, but I didn't feel that it added anything to the catalog, and I almost never listen to it. I bought All Eternals Deck today expecting a similar experience: good, but more of the same. I was wrong. There is a...Read more

Odd that this only has three and a half stars. This is the first album I've encountered by these guys (this guy?), but the lyrics are the greatest thing I've heard since I was a 16 year old kid listening night after night to Pavement's "Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain." The guy really is America's Best Living Non-Hiphop Lyricist, as the New Yorker dubbed him-- usually I would be skeptical, but Jesus, some of his lines are unbelievable. The track that really got me hooked was the second one, with its line about "the rooms with the heat lamps, where the snakes are born." Such a wonderful image; like "Suzanne" or "Stop Breathing" I wouldn't put any money on what the song means exactly, but it is full of mystery and conjures up its own complete world in just a couple of verses.

The music is growing on me, and in fact it gets better with every listen. Like Bob Dylan said in response to an interviewer who criticized his voice, if you listen you'll hear all the right notes. The...Read more

I've been listening to The Mountain Goats for years, and each release has been an enjoyable experience. Darnielle has produced a wealth of musical short stories, and he shows no signs of letting up. At first pass this album may seem a bit forgettable, but repeat listens are highly rewarding - yielding musical depth and fantastic lyrics. "High Hawk Season" is a show-stopper, sporting stirring vocal harmonies. And "Never Quite Free" is musically and lyrically moving. There are some duds ("Age of Kings" and "For Charles Bronson"), but overall this is a solid 4-star album, well worth hearing and owning.