Alpha Negative

Alpha Negative
Album	The Hound Chronicles
Released	1992
Artist	the Mountain Goats
Length	1:46
Previous track	"Spilling Toward Alpha"
Next track	"Torch Song"

Alpha Negative is the fourth song on The Mountain Goats' second cassette, The Hound Chronicles.

Lyrics

The house was pretty and the yard was wide
And I felt strong with you at my side
Your eyes at night had a beautiful glowing in them
And I knew in my heart just what was growing in them

Ah, but you made me drink poison
It felt smooth running down my throat
I love you, and you made me drink poison
It was cool and smooth and sweet
Do you remember?

We had a bed of daisies thriving in the yard
And I quit my job, so I could hold you all the time
I tried to stop the thing metastasizing in us
But in the warm, slow evening
I could feel it rising in us

Ah, and you made me drink poison
It felt so smooth sliding down my throat
I love you so much, and you made me drink poison
It was cool and smooth and sweet and cool
And smooth and sweet and cool and smooth

Comments by John Darnielle About this Song

• "Well, there was this one guy who always wanted to hear that one. He's been showing up for twenty years. But everybody else was like, 'Wow, that was weird and not like the other songs. It seemed like it was written by a very different person who, you know, had a little more death in his heart than the other one we've come to know, right. That's true.'" -- 2014-04-20 - Old Town School of Folk Music - Chicago, IL

Live Shows this Song Was Played at

• 1994-08-23 - Baystate - Northampton, MA
• 1999-01-29 - Mercury Paw - Louisville, KY
• 2009-03-30 - Oberlin College - Oberlin, OH
• 2010-05-16 - BreastFest - American Theater Company - Chicago, IL
• 2010-11-12 - Chapman University's Memorial Hall - Orange County, CA
• 2013-06-08 - Port City Music Hall - Portland, ME
• 2014-04-20 - Old Town School of Folk Music - Chicago, IL
• 2016-02-27 - Noise Pop 2016 - Swedish American Hall - San Francisco, CA
• 2017-12-14 - Holocene - Portland, OR
• 2023-02-16 - Water Street Music Hall - Rochester, NY

The Hound Chronicles
Side One: "The Garden Song" • "Going to Wisconsin" • "Spilling Toward Alpha" • "Alpha Negative" • "Torch Song" • "שקט (Be Quiet)" • "The Cow Song" • "(Untitled)" • "Going to Chino" Side Two: "Standard Bitter Love Song #4" • "Going to Mexico" • "Lab Rat Blues" • "Going to Kansas" • "The Water Song" • "Going to Spain" • "Keep It on Your Mind"