The nature of "novelty music" is an interesting phenomenon related to the way in which we participate as audience to people making music. I tend to be a bit defensive about people dismissing music like the work of They Might Be Giants as "novelty", so what does it mean that I've observed much of the lifespan of The Mountain Goats' discography and wrestled with what I like and don't about the music he's made since the release of Beat the Champ in 2015?
Almost all of these albums have been marketed as having a "gimmick" of some kind, and I think the temptation has been to treat them as concept albums, but I think in general it's still just... John… More