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Editorial Reviews
The Decemberists have announced their new album The King Is Dead (Capitol Records, EMI). The album--a set of 10 concise, country-based songs--marks a deliberate turn towards simplicity after the band's wildly ambitious and widely acclaimed 2009 song-cycle The Hazards of Love. Produced once again by Tucker Martine, The King Is Dead features special guest appearances by Americana luminary Gillian Welch on seven tracks and legendary R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck on three tracks.
The King Is Dead showcases the ways in which The Decemberists--Colin Meloy, Chris Funk, Jenny Conlee, Nate Query, and John Moen--sound just as glorious in simple, stripped-down compositions as they do on the elaborate structures that have defined their work for years.
Meloy points out, however, that creating straightforward, unadorned songs can be at least as hard as building complicated musical epics. "For all my talk about how complex those records were, this one may have been harder to do," he says. "It's a real challenge to make simple music, and lot of times we had to deliberately hold off and keep more space. This record is an exercise in restraint."
The album was recorded in a converted barn at Pendarvis Farm, an 80-acre estate of lush meadows, forest, and Mt. Hood views outside of Portland, and it was the concept of the barn--as recording space and as attitude--that informed the making of The King Is Dead. "We wanted that ethos," he says. "That was the color we wanted the record to have."
To Meloy, in some ways The King Is Dead also represents his own musical journey coming full circle. "Over the last eleven years or so, since I moved to Portland, I feel like I've been mining mostly English traditions for influence", he says. "I guess I've kind of come back to a lot of the more American music that got me going in the first place - R.E.M. and Camper Van Beethoven and all these bands that borrowed from more American traditions like Neil Young and the Byrds."
"Sometimes I kind of miss the epic-ness of the other albums," he continues, "but it's nice to get all of the information across in three minutes. It's like going from reading a novel to reading a bunch of short stories."
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
133 of 147 people found the following review helpful
Format:MP3 Download
It took this album to make me admit I haven't loved The Decemberists more recent work as much as I would have liked. For all the great moments on The Hazards of Love and The Crane Wife (and there are many), there were also copious amounts of convolution and sort of awkward prog rock (see: The Island/...). The result was never strong enough to rob The Decemberists of their title as my favorite band, it just left me feeling like I should still be loving them more.
One listen of The King is Dead is all it took for me to remember why I still love this band, and it took none of the effort I had to invest in their bigger albums. The Decemberists, to me, don't write pretty music or clever lyrics as much as they conjure up a portal to somewhere far more romantic and beautifully tragic. Songs like Grace Cathedral Hill or On The Bus Mall still never fail to pull me into their worlds. This time around, things are far simpler than they ever have been, but the effect is similar. There are no long songs, nothing that will require 15 minutes of focus and a dictionary to figure out, nothing set in the late 1800s, and no tragically doomed romance. The result is a beautifully coherent album that may not pull you out of reality like their past works, but it will wrap this world in a gauzy glow for the sublime 40 minutes it sticks around.
I'm once again very excited to see where they go from here, but so grateful to have this in the meantime.
4.5/5
One listen of The King is Dead is all it took for me to remember why I still love this band, and it took none of the effort I had to invest in their bigger albums. The Decemberists, to me, don't write pretty music or clever lyrics as much as they conjure up a portal to somewhere far more romantic and beautifully tragic. Songs like Grace Cathedral Hill or On The Bus Mall still never fail to pull me into their worlds. This time around, things are far simpler than they ever have been, but the effect is similar. There are no long songs, nothing that will require 15 minutes of focus and a dictionary to figure out, nothing set in the late 1800s, and no tragically doomed romance. The result is a beautifully coherent album that may not pull you out of reality like their past works, but it will wrap this world in a gauzy glow for the sublime 40 minutes it sticks around.
I'm once again very excited to see where they go from here, but so grateful to have this in the meantime.
4.5/5
59 of 68 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
"The King is Dead" the new and sixth album by Portland's finest "The Decemberists" sees Colin Meloy and chums return with an album of much more straightforward songs than their previous theatrical concept outing "The Hazards of Love". The consequence for this reviewer is unadulterated pleasure since while Hazards was an impressive piece of work it is the Decemberists of the "Picaresque" era which really starts the pulses racing. Having listened to this album for two weeks streaming on NPR you will find a hugely accessible and accomplished set full of crisp Americana based songs with enough hooks to catch mackerel as evidenced by the thumping opener "Don't carry it all". In the background throughout "TKID" you will also detect the influence of two master musicians namely the jangle guitar miester Peter Buck from REM and one of gods representatives on earth, Gillian Welch the great Appalachian style country singer who sings on seven of the ten tracks.
Listen to the huge alt country ballad "Rise to me" or the gentling rolling "All arise" full of guitars, fiddle, accordion, harmonica and pedal steel to detect Welch's direct influence and it is a force for good. Not that this greater simplicity has blunted Meloy's wordy gymnastics. Anyone who can rhyme "enzymes" with "fault line" deserves a pat on the back as does the use of REM style "Reckoning" era motifs in the brilliant "Calamity song". The rootsy "Rox in the box" sounds like a nod to Mike Scott and his folk fest "Room to roam" and for good measure the Decemberists throw in a snatch of the folk standard "Raggle Taggle Gypsy" to add spice. Meloy's acoustic guitar picked ballads are always lovely and sumptuous and "January Hymn" is one of his finest yet and will one day figure on the "Best of the Decemberists". To add icing to the cake they partly reprise it with the equally sublime "June Hymn" later in the album. Another of the album's many highlights "Down by the water" starts with a haunting Springsteen like harmonica and brilliant backing vocals from Welch and combines with faint echoes of REMs "The One I love" tantalizing in the background. It's stirring stuff and destined to rock summer festivals. Meloy also admits that the excellent "This is why we fight" owes a huge debt to the Smiths with its Johnny Marr guitar lines and rousing pace (perhaps the title of the album also tips a nod to the Smiths epic "the Queen is dead"?). The brakes are put on however for the final track the ever so gentle "Dear Avery" where Welch enlists her musical partners Dave Rawlings and fellow Portlander Laura Viers to provide backing vocals.
"The King is Dead" is an understated album devoid of complexity, twelve minute prog epics and Gentle Giant like chord progressions. As such if this is what attracts you to this great band then some disappointment will follow since the template here is Neil Young's simple wonder "Comes a time" which has provided Meloy with the source inspiration for the mood of the album. This is very much the Decemberists "Americana" roots album, strong on songs, melodies and with choruses designed to infiltrate your head with greater effectiveness than a Paul McKenna hypnotist session. It is a real pearl of an album and proves what a great songwriter Colin Meloy has become. All in all a fantastic opener for 2011.
Listen to the huge alt country ballad "Rise to me" or the gentling rolling "All arise" full of guitars, fiddle, accordion, harmonica and pedal steel to detect Welch's direct influence and it is a force for good. Not that this greater simplicity has blunted Meloy's wordy gymnastics. Anyone who can rhyme "enzymes" with "fault line" deserves a pat on the back as does the use of REM style "Reckoning" era motifs in the brilliant "Calamity song". The rootsy "Rox in the box" sounds like a nod to Mike Scott and his folk fest "Room to roam" and for good measure the Decemberists throw in a snatch of the folk standard "Raggle Taggle Gypsy" to add spice. Meloy's acoustic guitar picked ballads are always lovely and sumptuous and "January Hymn" is one of his finest yet and will one day figure on the "Best of the Decemberists". To add icing to the cake they partly reprise it with the equally sublime "June Hymn" later in the album. Another of the album's many highlights "Down by the water" starts with a haunting Springsteen like harmonica and brilliant backing vocals from Welch and combines with faint echoes of REMs "The One I love" tantalizing in the background. It's stirring stuff and destined to rock summer festivals. Meloy also admits that the excellent "This is why we fight" owes a huge debt to the Smiths with its Johnny Marr guitar lines and rousing pace (perhaps the title of the album also tips a nod to the Smiths epic "the Queen is dead"?). The brakes are put on however for the final track the ever so gentle "Dear Avery" where Welch enlists her musical partners Dave Rawlings and fellow Portlander Laura Viers to provide backing vocals.
"The King is Dead" is an understated album devoid of complexity, twelve minute prog epics and Gentle Giant like chord progressions. As such if this is what attracts you to this great band then some disappointment will follow since the template here is Neil Young's simple wonder "Comes a time" which has provided Meloy with the source inspiration for the mood of the album. This is very much the Decemberists "Americana" roots album, strong on songs, melodies and with choruses designed to infiltrate your head with greater effectiveness than a Paul McKenna hypnotist session. It is a real pearl of an album and proves what a great songwriter Colin Meloy has become. All in all a fantastic opener for 2011.
34 of 43 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
That this album sounds a bit different from the last few Decemberists albums is only to be expected. Colin Meloy has stated explicitly that this album takes some of its inspiration from the band R.E.M, with R.E.M band member Peter Buck guesting on three tracks. As a change in direction, I was, I'll admit, a bit skeptical of an R.E.M infused Decemberists album; I didn't see that mix coming at all. But change is not necessarily bad change, and I have to this moment been a loyal fan, so I got this album today as it came out and dutifully listened to it front to back. While there are a few standout tracks on this album, I couldn't help but feel a bit let down. Much of what made the Decemberists so unique, the tone and feel, the epic stories as per "Mariner's Revenge Song" or "the Crane Wife" the clever lyrics and song structure, have been intentionally stripped down. What is left is a set of pared down, and to my ears, fairly standard songs. Not bad, but not what I've come to expect from the Decemberists, a band whose every album up to now I have loved.
If the Decemberists have excelled at anything, it is creating a world for their songs to occupy. Listening to their first three albums, the real strength was in the relation of the music to the lyrics. "Legionnaire's Lament" did a wonderful job of conjuring up images of a dejected French foreign legionnaire stranded in the desert longing for his home. "On the Bus Mall" similarly brought to mind the teenage runaways of the song's lyrics. The beauty of these songs was the images and feelings they could conjure. On "The King is Dead" I struggle to think of an example of a song that quite is able to conjure up images like those previous albums. Songs like "Don't Carry It All" and "Calamity Song" sound so ordinary in comparison to what was practically musical storytelling in earlier albums. Another element that I loved so much in older Decemberists albums was the feel. Even when they contained upbeat songs, the feel of their earlier albums was undeniably darker: some songs overtly so, but even their most upbeat songs, "July, July" and "16 Military Wives", had lyrics at least hinting at something deeper and unsettling at the heart of the music. That tone is almost lacking entirely from this album. Perhaps some may be fine with that. I lament the loss of what was I think relatively deep music.
Luckily, there were a few choice cuts that really rose above the rest of the album. "Rise to Me", "January Hymn" and "June Hymn" are all great ballads in classic Decemberists style, the successors, perhaps, to "Right Red Ankle". Chris Funk adds some excellent steel pedal guitar flourishes on "Rise to Me". "This is Why We Fight", the closest thing the album has to a real burner, is also excellent, and a showcase for Meloy's guitar work, which I did not know was as good as it is. The album closer "Dear Avery" is in my mind easily the strongest track, recalling the best the Decemberists have to offer. On the strength of those five songs I can say that this purchase was not a waste for me.
"Hazards of Love" was itself a major change in direction for the Decemberists, and a polarizing album for Decemberists fans, so I have chosen not to reference it in this review. I will, however, draw comparisons to to the core collection of Decemberists albums that really represented their style until very recently: "Castaways and Cutouts", "Her Majesty", "Picaresque" and "The Crane Wife". Despite the strength of a few great tracks on "The King Is Dead", I can't but say that each of those albums is superior. Some who were put off by the change of tone in "The Hazards of Love" (I'll say that I loved it, actually) expected this to be a return to form for the Decemberists. Rather, it is yet another direction, but this time, a less unique and, I can't help feeling, a less emotionally powerful one.
If the Decemberists have excelled at anything, it is creating a world for their songs to occupy. Listening to their first three albums, the real strength was in the relation of the music to the lyrics. "Legionnaire's Lament" did a wonderful job of conjuring up images of a dejected French foreign legionnaire stranded in the desert longing for his home. "On the Bus Mall" similarly brought to mind the teenage runaways of the song's lyrics. The beauty of these songs was the images and feelings they could conjure. On "The King is Dead" I struggle to think of an example of a song that quite is able to conjure up images like those previous albums. Songs like "Don't Carry It All" and "Calamity Song" sound so ordinary in comparison to what was practically musical storytelling in earlier albums. Another element that I loved so much in older Decemberists albums was the feel. Even when they contained upbeat songs, the feel of their earlier albums was undeniably darker: some songs overtly so, but even their most upbeat songs, "July, July" and "16 Military Wives", had lyrics at least hinting at something deeper and unsettling at the heart of the music. That tone is almost lacking entirely from this album. Perhaps some may be fine with that. I lament the loss of what was I think relatively deep music.
Luckily, there were a few choice cuts that really rose above the rest of the album. "Rise to Me", "January Hymn" and "June Hymn" are all great ballads in classic Decemberists style, the successors, perhaps, to "Right Red Ankle". Chris Funk adds some excellent steel pedal guitar flourishes on "Rise to Me". "This is Why We Fight", the closest thing the album has to a real burner, is also excellent, and a showcase for Meloy's guitar work, which I did not know was as good as it is. The album closer "Dear Avery" is in my mind easily the strongest track, recalling the best the Decemberists have to offer. On the strength of those five songs I can say that this purchase was not a waste for me.
"Hazards of Love" was itself a major change in direction for the Decemberists, and a polarizing album for Decemberists fans, so I have chosen not to reference it in this review. I will, however, draw comparisons to to the core collection of Decemberists albums that really represented their style until very recently: "Castaways and Cutouts", "Her Majesty", "Picaresque" and "The Crane Wife". Despite the strength of a few great tracks on "The King Is Dead", I can't but say that each of those albums is superior. Some who were put off by the change of tone in "The Hazards of Love" (I'll say that I loved it, actually) expected this to be a return to form for the Decemberists. Rather, it is yet another direction, but this time, a less unique and, I can't help feeling, a less emotionally powerful one.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Best from them yet
Most likely the best album from The Decemberists yet. Nearly every track was high quality. Great lyrics, good fidelity, and good instrumentals.
Published 26 days ago by P. Murphy
Perfect balance
This album is perfectly balanced, It retains the edge, creativity, and imagination of earlier albums, while avoiding some of the excesses of the past. Read more
Published 29 days ago by Jessica from Mirfield
Not sure why I waited so long.
I've heard cuts from various albums by The Decemberists for many years. For some reason I kept thinking that, as much as I enjoyed those cuts, the albums wouldn't live up to my... Read more
Published 1 month ago by J. Beard
great cd
i started listening to the decemberists after it was suggested to me after buying a Mumford and sons cd. I have enjoyed their music sense. Read more
Published 2 months ago by T. M. Edwards
Beautiful record and don't worry about who did it
This is an excellent example of setting aside expectations, past performance, and genre. The King is Dead contains 40 minutes of flat-out, beautiful, delicately-crafted music. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Paul F. Johnson
The King is Dead
Best Album I've bought in years. Can't say enough about the simple folk-rock arrangements and tight harmonies. Read more
Published 4 months ago by pokefandylan
My First Decemberists Album
I stumbled upon the Decemberists quite by accident. I bought The King is Dead after reading the reviews. I was not dissapointed. Read more
Published 4 months ago by C. P. LaVenture
Beautiful
I played this one probably 12 hours a day every day for the first two weeks I had it. That "The King Is Dead" made #1 on the Billboard charts really makes me feel good about... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Sarah Bird
Great album from a great band
This is one of my favorite albums from 2011. The Decemberists really hit the ball out of the park on this one.
Published 4 months ago by Joshua Goodman
My first Decemberists, and I really like!
I recently heard 'The Calamity Song' and 'This Is Why We Fight' on a local indie rock FM station (V107. Read more
Published 4 months ago by CQ DX
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