The Mountain Goats played Baltimore Soundstage – 9/4

John Darnielle and company hit the road in support of their new LP Bleed Out, with support from Lightning Bug. 

First off no, the blog has not moved to Baltimore, but I’m entitled to a field trip every now and then. My partner and I had planned a family visit earlier in the summer that overlapped with the Boston date on our mutually beloved Mountain Goats’ latest tour, but conveniently had us in Maryland the night they played Baltimore, so off to an uncharted venue we raced (alongside a battalion of cyclists participating in a day-long race that ended 50 feet from the club doors, but that’s a saga for a different time).

I’m always keen to catch a Mountain Goats show, but fresh off the release of last month’s Bleed Out, this seemed like a particularly good time to check in with the band. Following a pair of largely downcast studio records (the titles Getting Into Knives and Dark in Here were definitely indicative of the moods therein), Bleed Out finds main man Darnielle charging up his sound again for a set inspired by classic action films, chock full of fistfights, hostages, revenge declarations and looming guys (on every corner). In some ways the record feels like a spiritual sequel to Beat the Champ, Darnielle’s 2015 love letter to low-budget semi-pro wrestling; lurid and action-packed, but still weirdly moving in that way his songwriting is so adept at.

I wagered this would be a fun mode to see them in on tour, and that was undoubtedly the case. From the jump (a full band take on 2020’s boombox-recorded “Aulon Raid” into a spirited “Make You Suffer,” which I probably don’t have to tell you originated from the new record), the band were all pep and vigor. Darnielle – energized and flashing a near-constant smile – and longtime cohorts Peter Hughes (bass) and Jon Wurster (drums) were as in-tune a power trio as you’ll find in the indie-folk-rock-verse, and somewhat-more-recent addition Matt Douglas’ keys and woodwinds filled out their sound beautifully. The project is Darnielle’s baby, and his lyrics typically the center of the conversation surrounding it, but the players remain underrated as a proper band – particularly evident during this set’s sweeping “Tidal Wave,” or the playfully extended lounge-jazz intro the foursome have worked up for the fan-favorite “No Children.”

That one popped up towards the end of the encore, naturally, joining other staples like “This Year” and “Up the Wolves” as reliable crowdpleasers, but the Baltimore setlist had plenty of depth, too. For an artist as prolific as Darnielle, it can be a losing game to hope for any particular deep cut from his 30-plus year, 20-plus record catalog, but I personally feel like I did pretty well on this night, with a prime pick from 1995’s Sweden (“Going to Queens”) and a hearkening back to the cassette era with “Hot Garden Stomp.” No arguing with two cuts from 2011’s All Eternal’s Deck either – one of my dark horse favorite Darnielle records.

The new songs sounded great too, with lead single “Training Montage” putting an emphatic cap on the night’s encore. If I took any issue with the set, it’s that I could’ve gone for more of the new record, which isn’t something you often find yourself saying about a band that’s been around this long.

Opening the night were NYC dream-folk crew Lightning Bug, who delivered a gorgeous set to an appreciative crowd. I’ve been a fan since the release of last year’s lovely A Color of the Sky and thus far only been able to catch lead singer/songwriter Audrey Kang solo (opening for Squirrel Flower earlier this year), so I was grateful to get the full band experience at last.

Scroll below for a gallery of both bands (aided by Soundstage’s better-than-any-Boston-club-of-this-size lighting) below.