In the 7 or so years between dgrnx’s wriiteup and the time of this one, the Decemberists have stayed busy releasing three more LP albums, two more EP albums, having a equipment van stolen, signing to a major label, playing political rallies for American President Barack Obama, challenging Steven Colbert to a green screen contest and a shred-off, and continuing to write highly literate music to the point that their latest release is a rock opera based on the folk story Tam Lin.
My personal story of first hearing about the Decemberists is highly boring, I had somehow stumbled across a video for their single from Picaresque titled “Sixteen Military Wives” and quickly fell in love with the music and the “Rushmore” inspired video. As my musical wankery knows no bounds I’ve had the pleasure of hooking multiple friends onto their music, including my current girlfriend. Shara Worden as The Forest Queen seems to just do it for some woman.
Discography
- Five Songs - The first official release of The Decemberists. Originally a independent release, later re-released on Hush Records.
- The Tain - The Decemberists' first attempt at a concept album, the Tain is a 18 minute and some odd seconds song cycle based on the Tain Bo Cuailnge. It is one song broken into five nameless parts.
- Picaresqueties - A EP of five songs recorded during the Picaresque sessions.
- The Hazards of Love - A concept album based on Tam Lin and featuring the guest vocals of Becky Stark, Shara Worden, and Jim James.
For those curious Orangina is still the official drink of The Decemberists.