“Blueberry Frost” is a short song with a simple chorus, but it really goes to a sincere place as a love song.

Track: “Blueberry Frost”
Album: Nothing for Juice (1996)

Just before playing “Blueberry Frost” in Chicago in 2006, John Darnielle said it “is a love song that I don’t think [we’ve] played together before.” He had played it solo, though fewer times than other similar songs. It’s just one of those straightforward-style love songs that can be extra beautiful on the right night where you can see yourself there, down by the water where so many Mountain Goats narrators find themselves. It’s 103 seconds long, over and done before you have a chance to think about anything more than that.

“Full moon // deep grass // cold water” is an odd chorus, even among other odd choruses at the time for the band. Contrasted with lines like “when I said your name out loud // something broke inside me,” it stands out even more. It really forces you to imagine this setting. I joked earlier about the ubiquity of water, and John Darnielle has made the same joke about his early songs, but here it occupies even more of the lyrics than usual. We aren’t just asked to picture it, we’re made to by the lack of other details. That phrasing really is the standout part, too, especially if you allow yourself to take it somewhat literally. Obviously the “broke inside me” isn’t right, but picture the mere act of saying a lover’s name out loud really knocking you emotionally down. It’s a level of seriousness and sincerity we don’t often allow ourselves outside of songs like these.