When John Darnielle played a solo set this past February at UWs Meany Hall, the performance harkened back to the singer-songwriter and head Mountain Goats not-so-distant live-performance past: a performer wowing a crowd with just his guitar and a microphone. Of course, Darnielle expanded the Mountain Goats to a full band several years ago, and its an ideal configuration. The extra support gives Darnielle the freedom to let loose, the clarity and precision of his lyrics nearly equaled by his frenetic energythe Mountain Goats recently chose to cover Jawbreakers 1994 punk classic Boxcar when they played the A.V. Clubs Undercover web series, and the pairing was hardly as incongruous as it might seem. If Darnielles performance at UW was any indication, Thursday nights show should be nothing less than cathartic. ANDREW GOSPE
Thu., June 16, 7 p.m., 2011
