Mountain Goats proudly release album, head out on tour

For the Mountain Goats fan who has everything: the group’s new album, Heretic Pride, debuts Feb. 19 on 4AD, and lead singer John Darnielle’s 33 1/3 book on the Black Sabbath album Master of Reality will be available on April 15.

You shouldn’t be special enough to have either one yet, though you can download a track from Pride ("Sax Rohmer #1"), or request a sample from the book at sabbathsampler@yahoo.com (hat tip, Pitchfork).

According to the book description, "John Darnielle describes Master of Reality in the voice of a fifteen-year-old boy being held in an adolescent psychiatric center in southern California in 1985. The narrator explains Black Sabbath like an emissary from an alien race describing his culture to his captors: passionately, patiently, and lovingly. This album has a genuinely remarkable historical status: as a touchstone for the directionless, and as a common coin for young men and women who felt shut out of the broader cultural economy."

Amazon.com says it's 114 pages long, and should be bought with Nick Drake's Pink Moon for a discounted combined price of $17.52. Or, you could use your extra money for shows.

Here are some dates to coincide with the new material:

February
19 - Anchorage, Alaska @ Wendy Williamson Auditorium*
22 - Vancouver, B.C. @ Richard's on Richards*
23 - Seattle, Wash. @, Neumos*
25 - Portland, Ore. @ Doug Fir Lounge*
26 - Portland, Ore. @ Doug Fir Lounge*
27 - Eugene, Ore. @ WOW Hall*
29 - San Francisco, Calif. @ Bimbo's*

March
1 - San Francisco, Calif. @ the Independent
2 - San Francisco, Calif. @ Bottom of the Hill (matinee)
4 - Los Angeles, Calif. @ the Troubadour*
5 - Los Angeles, Calif. @ the Troubadour*
13 - Northampton, Mass. @ Pearl Street^
14 - Boston, Mass. @ Museum of Fine Arts^
15 - Boston, Mass. @ The Middle East ^
18 - New York, N.Y. @ Webster Hall ^
19 - Brooklyn, N.Y. @ Music Hall of Williamsburg ^
20 - Philadelphia, Pa. @ First Unitarian ^
22 - Washington, D.C. @ The Black Cat^