After so many releases, nobody’s going to question where the Mountain Goats’ John Darnielle finds his inspiration. He explained that Days started as a funny idea: specifically, making a sequel to Goths (2017) set in the 1990s called Grunges, featuring the fictional song “Contemplating Pearl Jam in the Carolina Dawn”. Even though plenty of people probably wish this were true, he conceptualized a broader vision that came together in relatively short order.
At the time, Darnielle had written a poem about Layne Staley that was simmering in the back of his mind. In addition, he found himself spending more time thinking about the past. He acknowledged, “You think about this stuff as you get older, if you’re lucky enough to be getting older.” Along those lines, the record comes across as amusing but also sad and tragic. Darnielle’s ability to bring seemingly conflicting emotions into focus proves to be one of his greatest strengths as a songwriter. The final product might have even been better had he leaned into the original concept wholeheartedly.
While Days is not meant to be nostalgic, it does weave together tales from a bygone era. In an interview for That Station in Raleigh, North Carolina, the singer attempted to separate the 1990s as a period in history from the era as a brand. The genesis for the LP notwithstanding, not everything connects to rock and roll history. More surprisingly, not everything even relates to the 1990s, which is harder to reconcile considering the elaborate set up.
On Days, sentiment takes precedence, and that spirit gets moved forward by stylistic choices that can only be manifested by the Mountain Goats. The single “Charlie Sheen Calls the Feds” flexes some Exile on Mainstreet muscle with horns and backing vocals, but the locomotive energy consists of little more than a few chords and drums. The understated “Best Hard Rock Album 2013” coasts along with Darnielle’s tender vocals and Matt Douglas’ always reliable instrumentation. The upbeat “Crying on Eddie Nash’s Grave” finds the sweet spot between twee and intricate jam-band phrasing without venturing too far afield.
If the title track captures the meaning of the record, which can be summed up by passing thoughts such as “Do you know how short the days are?” and “When they’re gone will you be ready?” (the answers are “no you don’t” and “no you won’t”), the album feels much more personal than at first blush.
The record is not intended to be confessional like The Sunset Tree (2005). Still, it conjures vague, apparently meaningful memories from an obscure time—like Renaissance playing at Carnegie Hall or crying on Eddie Nash’s grave. The songs carry less weight when they shy away from the central premise, such as “Shallow Grave”, a ditty that’s too breezy to pin down, and the lovely “Going to Fennario”, which could be mistaken for an outtake from the musical Through This Fire Across from Peter Balkan (2025).
As can be expected, Days works best when it reimagines key moments enshrined in music lore (a rather imaginative “Behind the Music”). Opener “Song for Layne Staley” probes the pratfalls of fame. We can all remember Staley strung out on their legendary MTV Unplugged set—”I was on the TV / maybe you saw me there / I was in my designer shades / nationwide, live on air”—but can only imagine the isolation he felt prior to overdosing. Staley’s desire to get straight feels all the more tragic when recounted from his first-person point of view.
The power ballad “Candlebox” recounts the story of a fictional band scooped up from obscurity to follow the whims of the entertainment apparatus—namely, opening for the eponymous melodic hard rock band (and if they could just track down one of their members, they’d probably do it again). Serene “Woodstock ’99” reveals the sadness in all the excess from that disastrous experiment: “I’ve heard it said it’s hard to tell when all your love’s in vain / Shirtless before God, yell about cocaine.”
A concept can rarely conjure such strong feelings before the band even recorded a note, but such is the intensity of emotion surrounding that celebrated time. In this season of grunge bands touring like the classic rock acts of yesteryear (as things played out, the group will now open two shows on Candlebox’s “Can’t Quit You Tour”), the Mountain Goats were clearly onto something. Still, one cannot help but feel like they missed a rare opportunity to take a bigger, bolder swing.