Customer Reviews

The Crane Wife

5 star:		(93)
4 star:		(26)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

The Decemberists' fourth full-length album, and their first for a major record label, is, in my opinion, their best album to date. What's great about "The Crane Wife" is that it has a major record label sound without sacrificing the style that made The Decemberists the great, unique band that they are.

The album begins slowly, with the haunting acoustic ballad turned full-speed solemn sing-along, "The Crane Wife, Pt. 3." The song is classic Decemberists, but accessible enough that you'll undoubtedly find yourself singing "I will hang my head, hang my head low" with Colin, even if it's only your first time listening to the song. It's a great lead-off track, and really builds the momentum that lasts through most of the album. That momentum runs head-on into "The Island," a three-part 12 1/2 minute epic that instantly captivating and enjoyable.

"Yankee Bayonet (I Will Be Home Then)" is one of my favorite tracks on the album, as it features a beautiful duet between Colin and Laura Veirs. Of course, when I say beautiful, I'm not speaking of an R&B/Whitney Houston type of duet. Despite what many will undoubtedly say of them, The Decemberists have not "sold out" on this album. They've simply refined their sound, and made it more pleasant, with the help of Death Cab for Cutie guitarist Chris Walla, who serves as producer on this album. But I digress...

Moving along, the next two tracks on the album have a great chance of launching The Decemberists into levels of fame that they have not yet experienced. The first of these, "O Valencia!" is an upbeat, love song that features a nice Meloyian twist. Colin laments "O Valencia with your blood still warm on the ground, Valencia! And I swear to the stars I'll burn this whole city down!" It's initially a fun song, but after taking a look at the lyrics, you realize that it's actually quite sad. Regardless, it's fantastic. The next song, "The Perfect Crime No. 2" is by far my favorite track on the album. In it, Meloy discusses, as the tile suggests, "The Perfect Crime" over an almost funk-ish bassline. Then new Decemberist sound is in full-force here, and it's an absolute joy to listen to.

"When the War Came" is the next track, and it will blow you away with the sheer amount of energy that it forces out in its 5 minutes. Unlike most songs by The Decemberists, this one features an incredibly angry sounding electric guitar and equally as aggressive drumming. At the end of the song, they syncopate as Colin echoes forcefully "With all the grain of Babylon..." It is without a doubt the most angry song to come from the band, but it's also one of the best.

For classic Decemberists fans, "The Shankhill Butchers" will be a favorite. It's really the only time that the album dies down for an entire track, but it is still a really great song. Like almost all of the band's songs, it tells a story. In this case, it takes the form of an English murder ballad. If any song on the album could be considered a "shout out" to the band's longtime fans, its this one.

The album wraps up fairly nicely. "Summersong" once again picks things up a notch, but the real standout is "The Crane Wife, Pts. 1 & 2," which obviously tell the first two parts of the story of The Crane Wife. Pt. 1 is more of a celebration over the crane whom the narrator marries, while Pt. 2 laments his treatment of her. Each part is brilliant in its own right, but Pt. 2 stands out as the most beautiful part of the album and poignantly renders the last song on the album, "Sons & Daughters" negligible. It's a great track, and well suited as a closing song, but it's place as a follow-up to "The Crane Wife, Pt. 2" is a tough one.

Overall, I'd say that The Decemberists have really made the transition onto a major record label quite flawlessly. They have crafted an album that stands out as one of the best albums of the year and probably their own personal best. For Decemberists fans who are a bit worried about what kind of difference the leap has made, stop. The fantastic storytelling is still here, only with more heart, and Colin Meloy's unique form of sensationalist lyrics are still here as well. This is, after all, an album by The Decemberists. Only now, more people will know that. And I couldn't be happier!

Key Tracks:
1. "The Island"
2. "Yankee Bayonet (I Will Be Home Then)"
3. "O Valencia!"
4. "The Perfect Crime"
5. "The Crane Wife, Pts. 1 &2"


5 out of 5 Stars

The Decemberists make that riskiest of leaps in "The Crane Wife" -- to a major label, away from Kill Rock Stars. Hopefully that will get this beloved indie band the attention they deserve.

But a major label jump doesn't matter if the end product isn't good. And the Decemberists' fourth full-length album not only preserves their melodious sea-chanty sound, but it is also probably the best work this band has ever done, topping their previous album "Picaresque." From start to finish, this music is warm and enchantingly imaginative.

"And under the boughs unbound/All clothed in a snowy shroud/She had no heart so hardened/All under the boughs unbound," Colin Meloy murmurs in the opening song. The wintry lyrics make a stark contrast to the strummy little tune, fleshed out with intermittent piano. It's catchy and melodious, but much in the way that their previous songs were.

It's a good song, and a solid introduction to a string of similarly good songs, like the folky "Yankee Bayonet (I Will Be Home Then)," rollicking acoustic marches, and dreamy nautical-summer ballads. The Decemberists also dabble a bit in rock in the middle of the album, like the fast-moving riffs of "Perfect Crime #2," before switching back to familiar territory.

The Decemberists started off being good, but rapidly ascended to indie-rock greatness as they grew into their sound and made it more robust. "The Crane Wife" is just the natural progression of that, and it's hard to see how anyone could not like these jolly, catchy songs, with the charming lyrics and poignant imagery. Well, maybe if you don't like the sea.

They take some musical risks as well, with two songs clocking in at over ten minutes apiece. One is a meditative ballad, and the other is a sprawling, solid experimental-folk song with lots of ringing strings and epic piano. But at its heart, "Crane Wife" is all about the solid, catchy folk melodies, made of acoustic guitar and bits of keyboard and piano as well. And, of course, the ol' reliable accordion, which gives it the feeling of sailors standing on a harbor, making music to pass the time.

Colin Meloy has the same odd, a-melodious voice, which becomes more endearing as the album goes on. His lyrics are probably the best aspect of the entire album -- Meloy has a knack for strange, fitting turns of phrase. "Folks bobbing in the blue of the bay/in deep, far beneath/all the dead sailors slowly slipping to sleep... and summer blows away/and quietly gets swallowed by a wave..."

"The Crane Wife" is the best album the Decemberists have done to date, and certainly promises that they will only be getting better. A must-buy for 2006.

The first thing that may strike you about the new Decemberists album is the shift in their sound, from a more folk-rock style to a definite prog-rock sound. They have always been an art-rock outfit, but on this CD they recall the heyday of Yes and early Genesis, complete with multi-part song suites, up-front organ solos, and the lot. It's rich and excellent stuff. Colin Meloy still loves to spin a dark tale with esoteric lyrics, but there is also a fair amount of musical brightness, including "O Valencia!" and "Summersong" (only Meloy can turn an ostensibly upbeat summer-at-the-beach tune and give it a morbid spin). There is also a sprightly duet with Laura Veirs, "Yankee Bayonet (I Will Be Home Then)". The centerpiece song, "The Crane Wife", is presented in three non-consecutive parts and is based on a Japanese folk tale, and is told with spare, haiku-like lyrics. Musically, it's a stunning work from beginning to end, an album that demands to be heard in its entirety. Those who may have worried about this, their major label debut, needn't be concerned about the "sellout factor". This is easily the Decemberists' best work to date, and quite possibly the best rock album of the year.

I haven't heard any of the Decemberists' previous albums all the way through, so I'm not prepared to debate how The Crane Wife stacks up to any of them. What I can say, though, is that this is one enjoyably bizarre and quirky listen. These guys didn't leave anything on the field for their major-label debut--this is about as ambitious an album as you'll hear from a band with corporate backing. The band draws from an expansive range of seemingly disparate influences and incorporate all kinds of non-rock instrumentation (just check out the liner notes and see who plays what), and though not everything works equally well the overall result never fails to be distinctive or interesting. I've heard very few bands that could bring together so many different elements and make them all fit together into catchy, highly accessible songs. Their eclectic approach and occasionally daunting song lengths will probably prevent these guys from ever attaining "Indie Band Everybody Likes" status like the Shins, but it should be just the thing for those seeking something outside the indie-music norm.

For the most part, the album sees relatively straightforward, foot-tapping pop tunes splitting time with more spacious, epic balladry, all of it highlighted by Colin Meloy's emotive brogue and intricate arrangements underlain by the rock-solid drumming of John Moen. The highly poetic lyrics, which often seem taken from an anthology of 19th-century Irish literature, deal heavily with themes of love, loss, and misfortune, but with none of the triteness or sap that so frequently accompany such subjects.

Probably the best example of the band's musical mission is the second track, The Island-Come and See/The Landlord's Daughter/You'll Not Feel The Drowning, which actually manages to be as long and sprawling as its name suggests, with a twelve-minute running time that sees it move from infectious folk-rock to aggressive guitar riffage to a hard-charging, synth-backed climax that wouldn't sound out of place on a Yes album. The album's other centerpiece, the Crane Wife 1 & 2, similarly builds from a quiet beginning to a stirring midtempo gallop about halfway through, though it sort of runs out of steam in its slowed-down second half.

The rest of the album doesn't take aim at anything quite so grandiose as the two longest pieces but that's not to say The Crane Wife doesn't have plenty of other worthy material to offer. Yankee Bayonet (I Will Be Home Then) is a disarmingly pretty duet that sees Meloy's vocals intertwining with the more ethereal voice of Laura Veirs, while the electronics-heavy The Perfect Crime boasts jagged, danceable rhythms worthy of The Talking Heads. And you've got to admire any band that would follow the dense, chugging metal of When the War Came with the spare, horn-accented folk of the eerily melancholy Shankill Butchers. And The Crane Wife 3 and Sons and Daughters bookend the album with the band's own brand of swinging baroque-pop goodness, providing an excellent introduction and summation to an album you should find hard not to like despite (or perhaps because of) its idiosyncratic sound.

This album completely surprised me. Initially, I gave it a cursory spin and it didn't get me too excited and I put it away for a while. Finally gave it a good/thorough listen... I completely agree with others that didn't warm up to it right away, but did later. This is a solid album, great musically and lyrically. It is one of those that will continue to be one of my favorite, oft-played albums. Seems that many of the albums I liked immediately, grew tiresome quickly and don't get listened to much, if at all, anymore. This is not one of them. Excellent!

I noticed that the overall rating for this album had dropped to only 4 stars, so I felt I had to write a positive review for it. Lately, good bands' new releases have tended to fall short of their previous splendor, but The Crane Wife restored my faith in good music. The Decemberists are one of the few bands that made the jump to major record label with flying colors, and this CD is, in my opinion, their best. They managed to keep their sound but still change it up a bit and produce something new, which is something you can't say for a lot of bands.

I'm not going to sit here and rate each and every song on a scale of 1 to 10 because I would agonize over which tracks to give a 9 to and which to give a 10. I will, however, say that the presentation of this album is phenomenal. It opens and closes with 2 great songs that you'll find yourself singing along to on the first listen, but also leave you wanting to listen again. On the next layer in, you'll find two epic 12-minute ballads, the first a set of three songs called The Island and the second a retelling of the Japanese story of the Crane Wife that was the inspiration for the album. Usually I get bored with really long songs, but I am happy to say that these are by far the best on the album. Next you'll find some vintage Decemberist songs, such as the beautiful duet Yankee Bayonet and Shankill Butchers, which gives me the chills every time I listen to it. O, Valencia and Summersong are more upbeat, even though the subject matter doesn't reflect that. The middle two songs, The Perfect Crime #2 and When the War Came, are where they try something new. Many may have different opinions on these tracks, but personally I think they work really well and I'm glad the Decemberists took the risk to put them on here.

In short, if you are a fan of indie or alternative rock, you should definitely pick up this CD. If you're a fan of the Decemberists already, what are you waiting for? Get it while it's still cheap!

i was first turned onto the decemberists through colin meloy's literary obsession with the sea and traditional folk music influences. this album is more rock and roll. for starters, the epic track two starts off with electric guitar rock reminicent of wish you were here era pink floyd. if you liked songs likes 16 military wives and reminice often of the apology song, then you'd like this album a lot. if you're looking for the folky tunes like mariner's revenge or a cautionary tale, then you might want to prepare yourself for a slightly different listening experience.

I have not been this enthusiastic about an album in quite some time. I probably have a good 20 to 25 years on these guys, but every once in a while I will take a foray out of my comfort zone of progressive rock and old 70's stuff and try something new. "The Crane Wife" won Album of the Year from the indie magazine, Paste, and the reviews sounded interesting, so I picked it up.

I will say that that it required multiple listens before it clicked with me. On first listen, I thought, "Here we go again, another critical favorite that makes me wonder what the big deal is." After twelve listens, I bought another copy and mailed it to my 23-year-old daughter for Valentine's Day.

Maybe the reason I fell for this album is because it seems a little retro to me. The focus here is on singer-songwriter Colin Meloy and his acoustic guitar backed by a solid, if not virtuosic, band.

The songs are extremely well written melodic gems that beg you to sing along, that is, until the lyrics start sinking in. Lyrically, the album is Meloy's interpretation of an old Japanese folk tale of which I have no familiarity. It must have a lot to do with war, death, bones and bile, though. Sound depressing? It could be, but the melodies, instrumentation and the intelligent manner in the way the lyrics are written take this production to a higher level. It plays like a novella put to music - a sort of folkie opera.

Anyway, for me, the lyrical content of vocal music has always been secondary. The melodies and instrumentation are what do it for me. And this album really delivers in that regard. Not only is the acoustic guitar prominently featured, but cello, piano, pump organ, and all sorts of other acoustic instruments add richness to the basic format of drum, bass and electric guitar. The acoustic instruments give the music a very warm feel that I find missing in modern music but with which I grew up in the singer-songwriter heyday of the early 70's.

Some critics have spoken almost favorably of the progressive rock elements in the music. I do hear some of that, especially in the second track, "The Island". I hear more than a little Jethro Tull and some early Genesis on this piece, which is just fine by me. Progressive rock music has been vilified by mainstream music critics over the years and it is nice, if surprising, to see it get a bit of appreciation now, if only indirectly. Nevertheless, don't you anti-proggites let this scare you away. Have no fear of these guys becoming heirs apparent to Emerson, Lake and Palmer or Yes. I don't think that is where their interests lie.

All in all, this is some of the best music I have heard in a while. I highly recommend it and look forward to exploring some of their earlier music.

In a world of cookie cutter American Idol-wanna-be singers and supposedly cutting edge bands who merely ape the sounds and styles of past greats, the Decemberists stand out as one of the true originals in music. Their songs are by turns tuneful, eccentric, amusing, moving, literate, obscure and most often just plain memorable - unlike anything you're likely to hear on the radio or as background for a car commercial.

"The Crane Wife" is, as all the reviews note, their major label debut. But I wouldn't make too much of that, since the Decemberists have far too much integrity (or maybe it's just stubbornness) to modify their sound in an attempt to reach a mass audience. Although I must admit I don't love this record quite as much as I love "Picaresque," there are still plenty of lovely tunes that showcase the band's strengths.

All three "Crane Wife" songs are standouts - telling a sad and gentle fable that begins as something of a lark but ultimately gains power and momentum and becomes quite moving. It's a pure demonstration of what makes this band so unique: their ability to tell amusing or affecting stories within the context of a pop song (and to find endless ways to work in crossword puzzle words like "parallax," "ziggurat" and "fontanele").

Other highlights include the lovely duet "Yankee Bayonet," the extended three-part track "The Island" (which midway through features an appearance by what is apparently the ghost of Emerson, Lake & Palmer) and "The Shankhill Butchers," which could easily be an outtake from "Sweeney Todd."

Co-produced by Death Cab's Chris Walla, "The Crane Wife" finds The Decemberists maturing and gaining confidence as artists. My hope is that it also helps them find a wider audience.

Very simply the best band currently operating, and one which owes its oeuvre to a wealth of literary and rock traditions--and to brilliant frontman Colin Meloy. Decemberists lay the foundations of rock and roll structure beneath an array of American 19th century literary themes by the likes of Nathaniel Hawthorne and Herman Melville, AND IT WORKS. Amazing. Ishmael fronting Pavement in the shadow of a more orchestral, Village Green-era Kinks, with a dash of Mekons for flavor.

I'll spare you the track-by-track analysis, and leave you with eye contact, a firm handshake, and a recommendation to check out this terrific band.