'Beat the Champ' is about professional wrestling, which was an avenue of escape for me when I was a kid. Wrestling was low-budget working class entertainment back then, strictly UHF material. It was cheap theater. You had to bring your imagination to the proceedings and you got paid back double. I wrote these songs to re-immerse myself in the blood and fire of the visions that spoke to me as a child, and to see what more there might be in them now that I'm grown."  -  John Darnielle.2LP - Black Vinyl with Download.3LP - Deluxe vinyl pressed on gold (LP1), green (LP2) and red (bonus 12") with Download.