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The Crane Wife - The Decemberists
Get it here (needed 2 drops to fit all the files!)
http://drop.io/DecemberistsCraneWife1
http://drop.io/DecemberistsCraneWife2
About the Artist
When I moved to Portland in '08, I was interested in finding out what successful local bands had come from the area. The Decemberists were one of the names that immediately jumped to the top of the list.
I bought the Crane Wife and was not disappointed. Colin Meloy (lead singer) has a very unique style but is able to write both music and lyrics that tell a story (even if that story is not a typical one!)
Review from Amazon.com
Capitol raised a few eyebrows when they signed indie stalwarts the Decemberists. There's nothing blatantly commercial about the Portland quintet, from Colin Meloy's quavery voice and hyper-literate lyrics to the band's wide-ranging music, which encompasses baroque pop, prog rock, and dozens of other styles. Then again, he did once sing, "I was made for the stage," and those who've seen the group live know this to be true. Sure, they're storytellers, but they're entertainers, too--just not in the Top 40 sense. Never ones to play it safe, their major label debut takes its inspiration from a Japanese folk tale. It travels from the Replacements-style balladry of "The Crane Wife 3"--which joins words like "Each feather it fell from skin/'Til threadbare while she grew thin" to the melody from "Here Comes a Regular"--to the ELP hoedown of three-part epic "The Island" to the haunting duet between Meloy and Laura Veirs on "Yankee Bayonet (I Will Be Home Then)." It's an impressively eclectic effort that somehow manages to avoid sounding scattered. Co-produced by Chris Walla (Death Cab for Cutie) and Tucker Martine (the Long Winters), the Decemberists' fourth full-length is richer, less immediately catchy than its predecessor (there's nothing as bouncy here as Picaresque's "Sixteen Military Wives"). It's also a deeper work that resists snap judgments. Some records hit you over the head with their brilliance, others need time to percolate. Time will tell if The Crane Wife is the Decemberists' best album--it's certainly their most ambitious so far. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
Favorite Tracks and My Rating
I think the album flows together very well, even with a couple of the more epic/long songs that you see less of these days. My favorite songs are The Crane Wife, Yankee Bayonet, O' Valencia, The Perfect Crime and After the Bombs.
Get it here (needed 2 drops to fit all the files!)
http://drop.io/DecemberistsCraneWife1
http://drop.io/DecemberistsCraneWife2
About the Artist
When I moved to Portland in '08, I was interested in finding out what successful local bands had come from the area. The Decemberists were one of the names that immediately jumped to the top of the list.
I bought the Crane Wife and was not disappointed. Colin Meloy (lead singer) has a very unique style but is able to write both music and lyrics that tell a story (even if that story is not a typical one!)
Review from Amazon.com
Capitol raised a few eyebrows when they signed indie stalwarts the Decemberists. There's nothing blatantly commercial about the Portland quintet, from Colin Meloy's quavery voice and hyper-literate lyrics to the band's wide-ranging music, which encompasses baroque pop, prog rock, and dozens of other styles. Then again, he did once sing, "I was made for the stage," and those who've seen the group live know this to be true. Sure, they're storytellers, but they're entertainers, too--just not in the Top 40 sense. Never ones to play it safe, their major label debut takes its inspiration from a Japanese folk tale. It travels from the Replacements-style balladry of "The Crane Wife 3"--which joins words like "Each feather it fell from skin/'Til threadbare while she grew thin" to the melody from "Here Comes a Regular"--to the ELP hoedown of three-part epic "The Island" to the haunting duet between Meloy and Laura Veirs on "Yankee Bayonet (I Will Be Home Then)." It's an impressively eclectic effort that somehow manages to avoid sounding scattered. Co-produced by Chris Walla (Death Cab for Cutie) and Tucker Martine (the Long Winters), the Decemberists' fourth full-length is richer, less immediately catchy than its predecessor (there's nothing as bouncy here as Picaresque's "Sixteen Military Wives"). It's also a deeper work that resists snap judgments. Some records hit you over the head with their brilliance, others need time to percolate. Time will tell if The Crane Wife is the Decemberists' best album--it's certainly their most ambitious so far. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
Favorite Tracks and My Rating
I think the album flows together very well, even with a couple of the more epic/long songs that you see less of these days. My favorite songs are The Crane Wife, Yankee Bayonet, O' Valencia, The Perfect Crime and After the Bombs.
What's really interesting about this album is that the songs are crafted around some predictable and sometimes repetitive chord progressions, but the lyrics and melodies are able to keep the music engaging where other writers might fail. I give this album a 4.5 out of 5 and hope you find a few songs that you will enjoy as well.
More about Me
We've got 2 small kids, Justin and Julia who are 5 and 3 years old and are a huge joy in our lives. Since they have been born, it's been harder to stay connected to music both from a listening and playing standpoint. On my drive to and from work each day the past few years, I have also gotten in the habit of listening to NPR and has taken even more time away from listening to music.
This Musooklub has been fun for me because it's forced me to listen music outside of my normal habits and has also inspired me to find more artists that I can look forward to sharing back with the group later on.
Although I've not met most of you in the Klub, if any of you are ever in the Portland area, please let me know and we could connect for lunch/coffee/food carts (they are amazing here), etc. In fact, if you even needed a place to stay in the area for a night, you'd be welcome to stay at our house as we've got extra space for guests!
Good pick, dude - love this one!
ReplyDeleteOoh, good band!!
ReplyDeleteI only discovered them last year and got right into the two albums before this one. I'll have to check this one out before I go back to Oz and my access to Spotify disappears :-(
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ReplyDelete4.5. great pick andy! i really enjoyed this one (i had almost completely forgotten about the Decemberists)
ReplyDeletethe opening track ("the crane wife 3") starts out strong and somber. "yankee bayonet", "o valencia!" (a particular favorite) and "the perfect crime #2" kept me humming along, bobbing my head and tapping my feet at work.
good mix of weaving in + out of folk-lethargy and upbeat tempos (not just from track-to-track, but within songs themselves) kept me interested all the way thru. where was this album when i was driving thru ireland country roads?
and nothing seals the deal for me on an album like a strong closer (just like a strong opener; in a completely different genre/sound weezer's "blue album" is a great example of this - look it up). "after the bombs" delivers here and gently puts me to bed.
...and i'll definitely be taking you up on your offer in portland andy!
I've never heard of the Decemberists before (what Raman lacks in cool I lack in hip) but I really enjoyed this album. I'm giving it 4.5.
ReplyDeleteI like the ballad-iness of the music ("The Island" was one of my favourites...I love the feel at [6:15]), I always find story-telling albums fun.
I've been listening to this album quite a bit driving to and from work so it's been looping around endlessly. I thought it was cute that the last song ends with "Starts over again..." and then it joins seamlessly with the first song.