“MUD MICE” - Jack Goldstein
Photo Credit: Artist EPK
Jack Goldstein is out here cooking with cosmic fire, and “MUD MICE” is proof that genre is just another sandbox for him to stomp through barefoot and wild-eyed. It’s messy in the best way, emotionally rich, musically fearless, and weirdly, wildly infectious.
Inspired by half-dust, half-flesh creatures from Jewish folklore, “MUD MICE” somehow manages to be both haunting and totally hummable. It’s a track that lives in that uncanny space between power pop perfection and lo-fi folk hallucination. One second you’re vibing with Beach Boys-style harmony bursts, and the next you’re being pulled through a fuzzed-out tunnel of psychedelic dust and emotional teeth-gritting.
This isn’t some TikTok-core trend-chasing track. Goldstein pulls from bedroom pop, country twang, classic rock flourishes, stomp-and-holler rhythms, and drenches it all in lo-fi guitar fuzz and retro-pop sheen. Imagine if The Beatles, The Flaming Lips, and early Beck were on a group acid trip in a haunted barn full of talking mice and reverb pedals — that’s kind of the vibe.
From the washed-out pedal steel that gently introduces the track, to the blood-drip vocal effects and massive, stomping drum kicks, every sonic choice feels intentional and unhinged at the same time. There’s a real pop structure buried beneath the weirdness — you can sing along, shout it in your car, or just let it warp your brain through headphones.
Jack isn’t just playing with aesthetics — “MUD MICE” is loaded with grief, mythology, identity, and straight-up spiritual confusion. But it’s not mopey. There’s resilience in the racket, a defiant joy in wrapping sadness in harmony and distortion.
This is the kind of song that feels like it’s been alive for centuries but also couldn’t exist without the internet age. It’s not ironic or detached — it’s sincere, but scrambled, like a grief ritual done through a karaoke machine at the end of the world.
Photo Credit: Artist EPK
His new album, coming in June, HELLFIRE BUMPER STICKER COWPUNCHING JEWBOY is shaping up to be a mission statement. Goldstein isn’t shying away from the raw, uncomfortable parts of identity, heritage, or history. He’s confronting them — laughing at them, crying with them, and building a sonic universe around them.
This album — from what we hear on “MUD MICE” — isn’t just about catchy songs. It’s about reclaiming, unraveling, and rebuilding. It’s about turning grief into glitter and trauma into technicolor guitar riffs. It’s ambitious in a way we don’t often get anymore — not aiming for the playlist, aiming for the soul.
Think The Beach Boys, Daniel Johnston, The Beatles on mushrooms, Sparklehorse, Alex G, grief bangers, cowboy ghosts, and songs that sound like dreams you can’t quite explain.
It’s got the hooks. It’s got the heart. And it’s got enough musical weirdness to make even the most jaded audiophile raise their eyebrows and hit replay. HELLFIRE BUMPER STICKER COWPUNCHING JEWBOY might just be the album of the year for people who like their pop experimental, their emotions oversized, and their references ancient, electric, and deeply human.
Call it erratic psychedelic country pop. Call it Jewish folklore-core. Call it genre-less brilliance.“MUD MICE” is a should-be smash and Jack Goldstein’s most addictive song yet.
“MUD MICE” is available now on all major streaming platforms
