Finally, here is the last CD on shelf 2 of my collection. The third and final shelf awaits, and the end of this project is tantalizingly near.
Transcendental Youth - The Mountain Goats
I’m seriously considering putting this on my playlist for my upcoming half-marathon. It’s got a fair number of slow songs, which could be a count against it, but for long distances sometimes it’s wise to give yourself reminders to pace yourself. Besides, it opens with one of the most encouraging lyrics ever:
do every stupid thing that makes you feel alive
do every stupid thing to try to drive the dark away
let people call you crazy for the choices that you make
find limits past the limits, jump in front of trains all day
and stay alive
just stay alive
I can’t think of a better way to begin a long run.
As with all other Mountain Goats music, each song is a goldmine of poetic analysis, promising years of meaning to be gleaned gradually over many many listenings. I could picture myself in ten years still learning new things from this album. That’s another of the traits that mark my favorite music, aside from the emotional complexity that I mentioned in the last review.
One more such trait is a defiance of conventional genre distinctions. Many Mountain Goats sound like acoustic folk music, others like rock or jazz or even metal. None are strictly classifiable as any one thing. I like that.
Next: I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got
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