Author Topic: The Decemberists (Read 29007 times)

ZeppelinDT · « **Reply #105 on:** April 28, 2011, 11:07:16 AM »

They're playing the Prospect Park Bandshell on June 14th. =)

KevShmev · « **Reply #106 on:** April 28, 2011, 11:13:26 AM »

antigoon, you would. I said to my brother after last night's concert, "If you are a fan of this band at all, and don't become a much bigger one after seeing them live, you have no soul." He agreed (and he has been a fan far longer than I have been).

ZeppelinDT, that lottery show had to have been awesome. I remember reading that they played "The Tain" at it. They actually played that a few times in the last week in other cities, so there was a slight possibility that we'd get it last night, but to not avail. But I was more than happy with what they played. I even like some of those songs from the new album quite a bit. The shrieky harmonica stuff is never to my liking, like in "Down by the Water" and "Don't Carry It All," but those songs are upbeat and fun enough to have enjoyed live.

And I hadn't given it much attention before last night, but "January Hymn" is absolutely gorgeous.

antigoon · « **Reply #107 on:** April 28, 2011, 11:38:23 AM »

Quote from: ZeppelinDT on April 28, 2011, 11:07:16 AM

They're playing the Prospect Park Bandshell on June 14th. =)

Oh wow, tickets are cheap, too. Once I get my paycheck I may just buy a ticket.

KevShmev · « **Reply #108 on:** April 28, 2011, 10:15:07 PM »

You should. Immediately. By today's standards, seeing them for that ticket price is an absolute steal.

Quadrochosis · « **Reply #109 on:** April 28, 2011, 10:19:33 PM »

Quote from: skydivingninja on April 28, 2011, 09:36:47 AM

OH GOD I WANT TO SEE THEM SO BADLY

I'm seeing them in June!

bmc · « **Reply #110 on:** April 29, 2011, 02:26:04 AM »

I'm actually just getting into this band now. Any suggestions?

skydivingninja · « **Reply #111 on:** April 29, 2011, 05:46:26 AM »

Crane Wife.

KevShmev · « **Reply #112 on:** April 29, 2011, 11:28:12 AM »

Quote from: bmc on April 29, 2011, 02:26:04 AM

I'm actually just getting into this band now. Any suggestions?

Probably start with Picaresque and/or The Crane Wife. Both are excellent from start to finish. Then again, so are The Hazards of Love, Her Majesty... and Castaways and Cutouts, so, there ya go.

KevShmev · « **Reply #113 on:** May 03, 2011, 11:21:49 PM »

A recent email sent out:

About a month ago, we all at Decemberists HQ got hit with some pretty hard news. Jenny Conlee, our since-the-very-beginning accordion and keyboard player and all-around rad person was diagnosed with breast cancer. If you or anyone in your world has been handed a similar diagnosis, you know what a bolt-out-of-the-blue this news can be.

The good news is that Jenny caught it early. And while the prognosis is very, very good for a full recovery, tackling the disease will mean some intensive treatment for our Jenny as well as a lot of important recovery time.

So I’m writing this to say that, weighing our options, and with Jenny’s fervent blessings, we’ve decided to go forward with our scheduled tour dates this spring and summer.

What we know now: Jenny will very likely miss all nine of our concerts in May and June. We're all hoping that her recovery will be such that she'll be able to get back on board as soon as possible.

And now, a note from Jenny:

Hello to Everyone,

I am very sorry to say that I will be missing a few shows coming up as I go through treatment for breast cancer. It has been great to be on tour these past few weeks. The band and crew are like family to me and have been incredibly supportive and understanding. To be making music with everyone and seeing the fans has helped me to feel more positive and keep my mind off of my diagnosis. But, alas, as the tour winds down, it is time for me to get back to reality. I will try to get into surgery as soon as I can after we return from this leg of the tour so I can begin my recovery. There are still a few unknowns out there concerning my cancer, but I am thinking positive and hope to be back on the road soon. Thanks for all of your support! See you soon!

Lots of love,
Jenny

Thanks for everyone’s understanding during this crazy time.

Yours,
Colin Meloy
The Decemberists

--------

Here's hoping for a speedy recovery!

antigoon · « **Reply #114 on:** May 03, 2011, 11:23:14 PM »

Oh wow, what a bummer! Hope she recovers quickly.

Quadrochosis · « **Reply #115 on:** May 03, 2011, 11:49:01 PM »

Quote from: antigoon on May 03, 2011, 11:23:14 PM

Oh wow, what a bummer! Hope she recovers quickly.

Pirate · « **Reply #116 on:** May 05, 2011, 05:06:36 PM »

I listened to The Crane Wife and she raped me.

KevShmev · « **Reply #117 on:** May 05, 2011, 11:01:54 PM »

Wait, what?

Sigz · « **Reply #118 on:** May 09, 2011, 08:09:58 AM »

My dad got us tickets for the LA show this summer

ShadowWalker · « **Reply #119 on:** May 10, 2011, 11:30:22 AM »

I just picked up tickets for my wife as a birthday present. I saw them the last time they came through town and thought they were decent. Should be a good show...

Gorille85 · « **Reply #120 on:** May 13, 2011, 07:37:13 PM »

I've been listening a lot to The Crane Wife this past week and man, what a fantastic album!

I really love this band! TCW was my first exposure to the band so I can't wait to check their other stuff out!

KevShmev · « **Reply #121 on:** May 15, 2011, 08:27:37 AM »

Quote from: Gorille85 on May 13, 2011, 07:37:13 PM

I've been listening a lot to The Crane Wife this past week and man, what a fantastic album! I really love this band! TCW was my first exposure to the band so I can't wait to check their other stuff out!

Get ready for a helluva ride!

ZeppelinDT · « **Reply #122 on:** May 16, 2011, 09:04:41 AM »

Apparently I was not meant to see these guys live this year.

I had tickets to go see them in January, but then we got hit with a brutal snowstorm making it impossible for me to make it to the show...

Then I was gonna go see them at Bonnaroo, but then all my friends backed out of the trip...

Then my backup was to see them in Brooklyn on July, but by the time I knew Bonnaroo was cancelled the Brooklyn show was sold out.

Triple bummer! :/. Oh well... maybe next tour...

KevShmev · « **Reply #123 on:** May 16, 2011, 12:19:46 PM »

That's a bummer, but if you have seen them before, all you are probably missing is stuff from the new album (assuming you have already seen all or most of the other stuff they are playing this year), so no big loss there

, except for maybe "January Hymn," which is great.

At this rate, here is how I'd rank and rate the six studio albums.

1. Picaresque 4 1/2 stars
2. The Crane Wife 4 stars
3. The Hazards of Love 4 stars
4. Castaways and Cutouts 3 1/2 stars
5. Her Majesty: The Decemberists 3 stars
6. The King is Dead 2 1/2 stars

skydivingninja · « **Reply #124 on:** May 16, 2011, 12:28:55 PM »

You've been a fan for what, a month and you already have everything? I still don't have C&C or HM:TD.

KevShmev · « **Reply #125 on:** May 16, 2011, 12:31:13 PM »

Two months, technically.

And besides, my brother had three of the first four, so I borrowed those from him (but will be buying them very soon), bought a physical copy of THOL, and got the other two from amazon downloads for very cheap.

Gorille85 · « **Reply #126 on:** June 20, 2011, 04:25:55 PM »

So I just got the new album and I'm listening to it pretty often! It's good stuff. I prefer Crane Wife though (I only have those two albums).

ZeppelinDT · « **Reply #127 on:** June 20, 2011, 06:16:39 PM »

Well Crane Wife is a monster. But I do love the new one. Saw these guys last week and they played most of it. 'twas excellent.

D_Halco · « **Reply #128 on:** June 20, 2011, 08:31:23 PM »

I think their new record is their best since Picaresque and their most charming since Castaways And Cutouts. I thing The King Is Dead is a very charming and I like their return to a simpler format. Now, I love Picaresque, but it did mark the transition from their simple stuff to their more bombastic, overtly proggy stuff on The Crane Wife, which was a good, not great record. Then Crane Wife begat Hazards Of Love which is where I feel they blew their load and swung too far into the pompous and overblown category. I dont like concept albums much anyway (Metropolis Pt 2 being the exception) and didnt feel the story on Hazards was decent enough to warrant an hour-long album. A noble failure in my view.

They are still one of my favorite bands of the last decade and I really want to see them live in the near future, which shouldnt be too hard considering I live in Portland!

Quadrochosis · « **Reply #129 on:** June 20, 2011, 08:59:31 PM »

I pretty much agree with you. The new album is my favorite one, and easily their best one.

D_Halco · « **Reply #130 on:** June 20, 2011, 09:09:49 PM »

It is a great album, I could see, with time, it becoming my favorite. There is no weak track.

KevShmev · « **Reply #131 on:** June 20, 2011, 09:18:41 PM »

I still think the new one is easily their least best one. Easily. If I had to do a top 25 songs list, the only song from it that might make it would be January Hymn. And it would be near the bottom of the list. Overall, I like it more than I did at first, but it is still easily my least favorite of theirs.

Also, I definitely don't agree about there being no weak tracks. All Arise! is very poor, IMO. The intro alone makes me want to hurl, as I hate that country-sounding fiddle.

As for best songs overall, it is hard to put them in an exact order, but right now my absolute favorites would be:

The Mariner's Revenge Song
The Crane Wife 3
The Crane Wife 1 & 2
Annan Water

D_Halco · « **Reply #132 on:** June 20, 2011, 10:00:03 PM »

I hated All Arise! at first but now I really enjoy it, actually.

Although my personal favorite Decemberists song is Grace Cathedral Hill, I will concede my argument to you because I trust anybody who's favorite Decemberists songs include Mariner's Revenge Song...that's just a classic!

bmc · « **Reply #133 on:** June 20, 2011, 10:13:51 PM »

The Rake's song is disturbing and amazing. That was the first song that got me into the Decemberists...

ZeppelinDT · « **Reply #134 on:** June 21, 2011, 08:13:24 AM »

Mariner's Revenge Song! - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Sw61oITuts

skydivingninja · « **Reply #135 on:** June 21, 2011, 08:14:43 AM »

KevShmev · « **Reply #136 on:** June 21, 2011, 11:40:09 PM »

Quote from: D_Halco on June 20, 2011, 10:00:03 PM

I hated All Arise! at first but now I really enjoy it, actually.

Although my personal favorite Decemberists song is Grace Cathedral Hill, I will concede my argument to you because I trust anybody who's favorite Decemberists songs include Mariner's Revenge Song...that's just a classic!

Interesting pick for favorite song. I like it, but Odalisque has grown to be my favorite from Castaways and Cutouts.

Quote from: bmc on June 20, 2011, 10:13:51 PM

The Rake's song is disturbing and amazing.

Yep. It almost seems wrong to sing along to lyrics that disturbing, but it is just so damn catchy!

zxlkho · « **Reply #137 on:** October 01, 2011, 09:22:45 AM »

https://pitchfork.com/news/44167-the-decemberists-reveal-details-of-forthcoming-ep/

Quote

The Decemberists are having a busy release year-- in January they put out a full-length, The King is Dead, and in August they released an iTunes session. Now, they've announced a six-track EP to follow up The King is Dead, appropriately titled Long Live the King, out November 1 via Capitol. It'll include acoustic songs recorded alongside material from The King is Dead and a cover of "Row Jimmy" by the Grateful Dead. Above is the cover art. Here's the tracklist:
01 E. Watson
02 Foregone
03 Burying Davy
04 I 4 U & U 4 Me
05 Row Jimmy (Grateful Dead cover)
06 Sonnet

KevShmev · « **Reply #138 on:** October 01, 2011, 10:05:10 AM »

Interesting. I am hoping the country vibe isn't as strong, but given that they were recorded at the same time as The King Is Dead, it probably will be.

KevShmev · « **Reply #139 on:** December 07, 2011, 08:31:20 AM »

I still need to check out this EP.

And time for the new fans to talk about them a lot in here.

News: BREAKING NEWS: Dream Theater reunites with drummer Mike Portnoy (10/25/23)

Author Topic: The Decemberists (Read 29007 times)