"Goat" is one of those animal words like "rabbit" or "trout" or "hawk" that's just fun to say. (Not so much "anemone" or "poodle.")

Musically, my theory is that folks are predisposed to enjoy or at least express curiosity about bands that have good sounding animal words in their names, though in the case of country singer Eddie Rabbitt, that was his birth name and it wasn't as though he was born Eddie Chilcoate and, seeking musical fame, tossed a coin between Eddie Goat and Eddie Rabbitt ...

Anyway, Throw the Goat are old-school in that they realized "goat" is cool. Then, to take band name-ness even further, they employed a great concept utilizing indefinite article "the" in equidistant fashion — which we've enjoyed in such bands as Crack the Sky, Foster the People, Mott the Hoople and Pedro the Lion.

Why is all of this important? Because A) it's not that easy to throw a goat and B) Throw the Goat, a California stoner/pun/thrash act, is on tour and perform Friday in New London at 33 Golden Street. For a taste, give an ear to their seven-tune "Vote Goat" release from last year, then hit the club for what should be a pleasingly agitated performance. Rictus Grin and I Have No Eyes are also on the bill.

Throw the Goat, 9 p.m. Friday, 33 Golden Street, 33 Golden St., New London; $5; (860) 443-1193.