Rural Alberta Advantage 'Departing' __________ The Mountain Goats  are an American  indie rock  band formed in  Claremont, CA  by singer-songwriter  John Darnielle . In 2005,  New Yorker  critic  Sasha Frere-Jones  praised Darnielle as "America's best non-hip hop lyricist." [1]  In 2006, Darnielle was included in  Paste Magazine 's list of the 100