As a big fan of The Decemberists’ 2009 release, The Hazards Of Love, I was worried by the opening note on their new album, The King Is Dead. The possibility that this album might perhaps be startlingly different than anything previously released by The Decemberists rattled my cage a bit. I was soon relaxed, however, by Meloy’s strong vocals calling forth in his usual operatic style. The King Is Dead is very much different from anything else the band has done to date, and as much as I wanted to see a repeat of their 2009 release, I found myself very much pleased by the sound The Decemberists have created on this album.
The King Is Dead draws heavy influence from the band R.E.M., and even has R.E.M.’s Peter Buck contributing guitar on several tracks. In fact, upon first hearing the new album’s second track, "Calamity Song," I nearly mistook it for a cover of R.E.M.’s "Talk About the Passion." Another one of the albums songs titled "Down By the Water" (which also features Buck contributing), feels a lot like an R.E.M. track as well. If I have one problem with this album it’s that rather than drawing influence from R.E.M. to create something that is wholly their own, The Decemebersits, at times, seem to be simply mimicking R.E.M.’s sound. While I like the new sound on The King Is Dead, I would have rather seen The Decemberists really form the influence R.E.M. gave them into something a bit more unique.
The King Is Dead has a sound that will have a much broader fan base, which is certainly good for the band. I for one am not a believer of good bands staying small so I'm also happy about them appealing to a larger demographic. People should experience all of the greatness they can, and if The King Is Dead helps some more people discover The Hazards Of Love, that will be a great success in itself. Ultimately though, The King Is Dead isn’t starkly brilliant, like it's predecessor. In the end all I found myself doing was dusting off my copy of R.E.M’s Murmur to relive the classic sound from the originators.
Rating 3.5/5
Track Listing:
1. "Don't Carry It All" - 4:17
2. "Calamity Song" - 3:50
3. "Rise to Me" - 4:59
4. "Rox in the Box" - 3:10
5. "January Hymn" - 3:14
6. "Down by the Water" - 3:42
7. "All Arise!" - 3:10
8. "June Hymn" - 3:58
9. "This Is Why We Fight" - 5:31
10. "Dear Avery" - 4:52
As noted above I didn't write this review. If I would have the score would have been higher. I've never really been into The Decemberists but the stripped down nature of The King is Dead is way more appealing to me than the highly theatrical stuff they usually do. It's a great album.
ReplyDelete