On October 6th, the John Darnielle-led Mountain Goats will release their 17th (SEVENTEENTH!) studio album, a 12 track effort entitled The Life of the World to Come, via 4AD Records. And if not evident by the title above, this particular release will be a bit religulous, as not one, two, or even three of the tracks are named after a verse from the Bible. All 12 are!
Recorded between April and June of this year, The Life of the World to Come will feature the production talents of Brandon Eggleston, John Congleton, and Scott Solter, as well as the inclusion of the newest member of the Mountain Goats lineup, Mr. Owen Pallett. The mind behind Final Fantasy added string arrangements and played on the electrical section. Sounds spiritual already!
So, at this point it sure seems Darnielle went Stephen Baldwin on us…
Well, anticipating the obvious question as to whether a religious awakening led to Darnielle dedicating a record to the Bible, he offered this in response (via the band’s website):
I guess the obvious question is going to be: “John, have you had some sort of religious awakening?” and while I guess lots of people might want to be coy about answering that, that’s never really been my style, so: no. It’s not like that. It’s not some heavy-narrative-distance deal either, though, and it’s not a screed. It’s twelve new songs: twelve hard lessons the Bible taught me, kind of. More than that I’d want to wait to say until some people have heard it, which won’t be long. Will there be more news soon, quite soon? Like, next week, even? Oh yes there will!
Looks like we won’t have to wait for the second coming for more news on TLOFWTC. But for now, enjoy an early preview in the form of track #3, “Genesis 3:23”. Tracklist follows…
Check Out:
“Genesis 3:23”
The Life of the World to Come Tracklist:
01. 1 Samuel 15:23
02. Psalms 40:2
03. Genesis 3:23
04. Philippians 3:20-21
05. Hebrews 11:40
06. Genesis 30:3
07. Romans 10:9
08. 1 John 4:16
09. Matthew 25:21
10. Deuteronomy 2:10
11. Isaiah 45:23
12. Ezekiel 7 and the Permanent Efficacy of Grace
