16. Goths / The Mountain Goats

The D Man has never been a member of John Darnielle's literate cult of outsiders, but after The Mountain Goats' last two records (numbers 15 and 16!), it is time to be fully initiated.  On 2015's Beat the Champ, Darnielle penned a rollicking love letter to professional wrestling and the strange allure down-and-out characters from that '70s and '80s scene had in his formative years.  This year Darnielle created a concept record for goths, yes, goths, and the result is an equally enjoyable romp through the underground of that black, pasty, and tear-stained population.

Probably the first Mountain Goats record with grooves, Goths ditches lo-fi in favor of rich bass lines and easy-listening horn accompaniments.  Leaving behind any hint of lead guitar, the record breathes with a more fulsome production, underpinning a spacey and slightly darker vibe which, obviously, befits the black eyeliner of the devoted.  To be clear, however, this is not a goth record; most of the songs would fit comfortably in an adult contemporary bin were it not for their peculiar fascination.

While the record dips into nostalgia, it never loses its footing in sentimentalism, primarily because Darnielle's deadpan wordiness gives life and location to the goths all around us.  These are proximate ghosts.  Haunting us everywhere.  From cities The Cure played on its recent tour, from Leeds to Chicago, from the rain-soaked streets of SoHo to the strip malls in California.  Darnielle's story songs bring vamps of all kinds - working stiffs, wannabes, and warlocks - into the light and up for air.

The D Man's favorite track is "Abandoned Flesh," a send-up of the '80s British goth band Gene Loves Jezebel.  ("Robert Smith is secure in his villa in France / Any child knows how to do the spiderweb dance" and later, "To be fair to Gene Loves Jezebel / Billy Corgan brought them on stage / It was 2011 / It's on their Wikipedia page.")  The song's arty playfulness highlights the sort of yarns Darnielle spins, all of them throbbing with the pulse of the decidedly undead.