Rick Mitarotonda (Goose) with M.C. Taylor (Hiss Golden Messenger)

On this week's Talkhouse Podcast we’ve got what might seem like an unlikely pairing, but one that makes sense when you dive into it: Rick Mitarotonda from Goose and M.C. Taylor of Hiss Golden Messenger.

If you’re not into the jam-band world, Goose might not be super familiar to you yet, but in that world, the Connecticut band is absolutely massive, moving from clubs to amphitheaters over the past few years. And while jam bands themselves are pretty common—the barrier to entry isn’t super high—very few have reached these heights, and after a decade Goose already find themselves in the vaunted company of bands like Phish and Dead and Company. It’s kind of obvious why: They are fantastic players, and their songs offer more than just extended noodling. It makes sense that they’re not influenced just by their jam forebears, but by jam-adjacent indie kingpins like Radiohead. And they’ve even got the stamp of approval of Vampire Weekend’s Ezra Koenig, who asked them to cover his band’s song “2021”—and to stretch it out to 20 minutes and 21 seconds. The latest Goose album is Dripfield from 2022, but as you’ll hear in this chat, they’ve got a couple more in the works. Check out their song “Give It Time” right here.

As the primary creative force behind Hiss Golden Messenger, M.C. Taylor has amassed an incredible catalog over the past 15 or so years. He was initially lumped in with the alt-country scene and later with the likes of Will Oldham and Bill Callahan, Hiss records kind of defy categorization, though I should mention that 2019’s Terms Of Surrender was nominated for the Best Americana Album Grammy. Taylor’s latest album as Hiss Golden Messenger is called Jump For Joy, and the title is reflective of what’s inside: It’s looser and more playful and even groove-oriented at moments, a new move but not an unwelcome one for sure. Check out “Sanctuary” right here.

In this chat, Rick and M.C. chat about making studio records versus playing live, and they get into the fundamental question of how songs are written. Answer: It’s different for everybody. They both reflect, oddly, on the Hare Krishna world, and Rick decides that Goose is more like a sitcom or a sports team than a band. Enjoy.

0:00 – Intro

2:48 – Start of the chat

4:04 – What are you listening to right now?

12:05 – Rick’s musical awakening

19:01 – Long songs versus short ones. “It’d be sick to have some short bangers.”

24:36 – Goose’s recent lineup change and how that might affect things.

36:16 – The difficulty of writing new songs while on tour.

Thanks for listening, and thanks to Rick and M.C. for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by The Range. See you next time!

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