Live Review: The Mountain Goats, Catherine Traicos & The Starry Night - Metro Theatre

Despite the shadow of winter hanging 'round, the Metro's air-con system was in overdrive, prompting singer/songwriter Catherine Traicos of Catherine Traicos & The Starry Night to have to re-tune her Gibson, just before the first song. Settling in to a set of slow folk and alt.country, it may have been nerves but a couple of moments were marred by some missed notes, which she managed to overcome during the quaint set.

Sunday night's show with The Mountain Goats was worth the admission fee ten times over. The place was packed and the show must have been close to sold out, with the band taking the stage more or less right on time to a rapturous applause. Cult-status legend John Darnielle, sporting a new hairstyle (as some diehards noted), accompanied by longtime bandmate Peter Hughes on bass and drummer Jon Wurster (of Superchunk fame), set the venue abuzz with his mostly semi-autobiographical accounts of his life, told through the sound of his acoustic guitar. With the majority of the audience singing almost all the words at the top of their lungs, Darnielle couldn't help relaying his appreciation more than once, claiming that this was the best audience he had ever played before – and it looked like he genuinely felt it, supplementing each comment to this effect with assurances that he didn't say this sort of thing to other crowds he played for. By the looks of things, you'd have thought you were at a Slayer concert, given the reaction from dudes front of stage.

Mid-set, Darnielle took some time to kick into solo mode, followed by time behind the keys and with the recent addition of Wurster for the live stuff, it made for a fuller 'band' sound. The setlist too allowed for a thumbs-up mix of old and new, a number of choice moments included You Or Your Memory, In Memory Of Satan and Damn These Vampires.

Just when you thought the audience couldn't get any more nuts, the band returned to the stage to play This Year and No Children and while fanaticism generally speaking is concerning in any format, it worked to everyone's advantage on the night and this will remain one of the most memorable gigs The Metro has ever hosted.