Beat the Champ

Beat the Champ is the fifteenth studio album by The Mountain Goats, released on April 7, 2015 on Merge Records. The release is a concept album on professional wrestling, though frontman John Darnielle has stated that several of its songs are "really more about death and difficult-to-navigate interior spaces than wrestling."[1]

Beat the Champ
Studio album by
The Mountain Goats
ReleasedApril 7, 2015
Recorded2014
Genre
Length45:51
LabelMerge
Producer
  • Brandon Eggleston
  • Scott Solter
The Mountain Goats chronology
Transcendental Youth
(2012)		 Beat the Champ
(2015)		 Goths
(2017)

Release

The album was announced by Merge on January 20, 2015, after which the second track, "The Legend of Chavo Guerrero," was released for streaming on the label's SoundCloud page.[2] Shortly afterwards it became available for pre-order, where the large number of orders caused the site to crash. The song received praise from Guerrero[3] as well his son Chavo Guerrero Jr.,[4] and Guerrero also appeared in a music video for the song alongside wrestlers Ray Rosas, Joey Ryan and Ryan Nemeth.[5]

The second single, and sixth track of the album, titled "Heel Turn 2" was released on Merge Records' SoundCloud page on February 28, 2015. The following day, it officially premiered on an episode of the podcast Welcome to Night Vale.[6]

The album was released in Australia and New Zealand on April 3, 2015 on Merge Records and distributed by Remote Control Records, in the United States and Canada on April 7, 2015 on Merge Records, and in Europe on April 13, 2015 on Merge Records.

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic79/100[7]
Review scores
SourceRating
Rolling Stone Australia[8]
Alternative Press
The A.V. ClubB[9]
Consequence of SoundB[10]
Pitchfork Media6.6/10[11]
Los Angeles Times[12]
Anthony FantanoLight 8[13]

Beat the Champ received largely positive reviews from contemporary music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 79, based on 24 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews".[7]

Several critics praised Beat the Champ for providing an accessible interpretation of professional wrestling, such that listeners not interested in the sport could still enjoy the album.[8][12] Writing for Exclaim!, Jer Fairall called the record "yet another highlight in a career overflowing with them," in large part due to the group's "sonic adventurousness, matched with Darnielle's singular presence as a storyteller and a songwriter."[14]

Track listing

All tracks are written by John Darnielle.

No.TitleLength
1."Southwestern Territory"4:14
2."The Legend of Chavo Guerrero"3:00
3."Foreign Object"2:51
4."Animal Mask"2:54
5."Choked Out"1:42
6."Heel Turn 2"5:58
7."Fire Editorial"3:22
8."Stabbed to Death Outside San Juan"3:48
9."Werewolf Gimmick"2:34
10."Luna"3:27
11."Unmasked!"3:28
12."The Ballad of Bull Ramos"2:53
13."Hair Match"5:40
Total length:45:51
Deluxe edition bonus 12"
No.TitleLength
14."Blood Capsules"3:25
15."Dub Capsules"4:05
Total length:53:21

Personnel

References
  1. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2015-02-05. Retrieved 2015-02-05.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. https://pitchfork.com/news/58158-mountain-goats-announce-pro-wrestling-themed-lp-beat-the-champ-share-the-legend-of-chavo-guerrero/
  3. Chavo Guerrero Sr. tweet on Twitter. "Not obsessed # the mountain goats just appreciative #thelegendofchavoguerrero want to see it at#1"
  4. Chavo Guerrero Jr. instagram post on Instagram. ""The Legend of Chavo Guerrero " by The Mountain Goats. Pretty Cool when people write songs about your Dad & Family."
  5. Ben Kaye, "The actual Chavo Guerrero stars in Mountain Goats’ video for “The Legend of Chavo Guerrero” — watch". Consequence of Sound. May 20, 2015.
  6. https://pitchfork.com/news/58677-the-mountain-goats-share-heel-turn-2/
  7. "Beat the Champ". Metacritic. Retrieved 2016-04-05.
  8. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2015-04-10. Retrieved 2015-04-06.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  9. http://www.avclub.com/review/mountain-goats-latest-takes-tuneful-moving-look-pr-217238/
  10. http://consequenceofsound.net/2015/04/album-review-the-mountain-goats-beat-the-champ/
  11. http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/20381-beat-the-champ/
  12. http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-et-ms-mountain-goats-beat-the-champ-pop-review-20150406-column.html
  13. Fantano, Ant (April 17, 2015). "The Mountain Goats - Beat the Champ". Anthony Fantano. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  14. Fairall, Jer (April 7, 2015). "The Mountain Goats - Beat the Champ". Exclaim!. Retrieved April 9, 2015.
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