You read that right: the Mountain Goats are coming back to the Showbox (yay!) and we've got a pair of tickets to give away (double yay!) to one lucky winner.

Lucky enough to have a Seattle stop on the schedule in the middle of a smattering of dates -- there's less than two dozen stateside shows on the docket from now until early August -- our fair city will be seeing some of our favorite boys down on 1st Ave. this coming Thursday, June 16th. They're this leg of the tour with openers Midtown Dickens, who are promised to be a stomping good time. And whether you're a fan of the recent release All Eternals Deck, or if your heart belongs to 2009's The Life of the World to Come -- from our experience, the show promises to bring a great cross-section of the Mountain Goats' current and back catalog to the gritty dirt of the stage.

But enough waxing on -- here's the details on how to win!

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Cross country for now, and Seattle in May!

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Merge has done it again! For their 20th anniversary, a part of the brilliant subscriber only compilation series SCORE, the Chapel Hill label (run by none other than members of my favorite indie rock band, Superchunk) is releasing a compilation of covers of Merge bands by a ton of non-Merge artists.

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at The Showbox at the Market

One girl in particular became so incredibly ecstatic she whirled around and made out with a young lady behind her. It was rad to see someone experience music so completely they lose their minds for a moment.

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Is this just promotional hype that will result in each artist playing their own sets, or will there be on-stage collaboration?

With Superchunk playing Bumbershoot, does this mean more tour dates from that amazing band are forthcoming, and Jon Wurster won't be part of this iteration of The Mountain Goats?

Is anyone else as confused as I am at Darnielle's choice of opening acts through the years?

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John's prose is as perfect as the lyrics to his songs, and his love for Judas Priest and Mercyful Fate translates even if you don't listen to anything heavier than Death Cab.

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I got a book you need to read! I'm not selling it, but I'm recommending it.

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Just because you can't find a way to relate to some of the songs doesn't mean you can't still sing along.

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Two of my favorite live bands are in town on Saturday and I'm so torn!

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The Magnetic Fields and the Mountain Goats, along with fellow notables Cursive, and a new Greg Dulli/Mark Lanegan project titled The Gutter Twins will be making appearances and wowing indie-rock masses in San Francisco.

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