Cartoonist Larkin Ford’s 2018-published Birdcage Bottom Books mini, Goat Song, isn’t just a curious beast in and of itself — it’s also, at least partially, about a curious beast. Who’s brought into the world by an even more curious birth. And if you’re getting the distinct vibe that we’re kind of in Eraserhead territory here, pat yourself on the back because you’re absolutely right.

In purely physical terms, it’s sort of a gorgeous-looking little comic : riso-printed in rich black ink on aesthetically pleasing cream-colored paper stock and featuring coolly intriguing shades of blue on the cover, it’s a suitably raw and unvarnished item to hold in your hand, but it’s quality is also such that it almost borders on the lavish, the overall sensation not being all that unlike riding around a worn and scuffed old Rolex or Omega watch on your wrist. It’s rough around the edges…