(((O))) Review: The Decemberists – As It Ever Was, So It Will Be Again

I’m thinking it was around the time Arcade Fire first burst onto the scene that my desire for a certain type of indie band led me to Portland’s The Decemberists. Peddling a nice line in baroque orchestral pop while dressed in clothing from a bygone era, the band led by Colin Meloy, also knew their way round a good tune. The Magnetic Fields brand of quirky indie with story themed lyrics would also have been responsible for me purchasing their 2005 album Picaresque. So here they are with album number nine, As It Ever Was, So It Will Be Again, their first in six years.

I’ll be here all day if I list out all the instruments each band member plays so I’ll leave it at telling you that Meloy is joined by fellow Decemberists Chris Funk, Nate Query, Jenny Conlee and John Moen. In his time away from releasing music, Meloy sought solace in other art forms before deciding the time was right to get back into the recording studio.

Opening song ‘Burial Ground’ is a wonderfully chipper tune given the sadness of the location in the song’s title. Jangly guitars and clattering drums combine with the odd wee sprinkle of tambourine for a lovely summery song. Just when you think it reaches it’s peak, a trumpet drops in bringing even more joy. ‘Oh No!’ is a suave little tune that sashays along on a percussive backbeat, and you can just picture ballroom dancers shimmy and shake to its bouncy rhythm. ‘The Reapers’ is full of little kooky percussive elements, it’s almost shanty like in terms of melody.

‘Long White Veil’ is permeated with gorgeous pedal steel guitar bringing a country vibe but the song is an absolute tragedy when you find out in the chorus that “I married her, I carried her, on the very same day I buried her…she looked so pale in her long white veil”. The delightful ‘William Fitzwilliam’ is a folk country tale about a chap who inhibits the song’s title as his name. It’s not entirely out of step with the recent Rufus Wainwright covers album. ‘Don’t Go To The Woods’ brings the listener an icy chill with a haunting melody and sparse arrangement reminiscent of The Handsome Family’s gothic country tones.

Lovely harmonies abound in the deathly ballad ‘The Black Maria’, but it’s a downbeat and ghostly lament. The album got off to a sprightly start but gradually brings the tempo down and the instrumentation becomes more minimalist with each song. This sweet folk ballad is stripped right down to acoustic guitar and brass, but the melody is strong, and the song holds up. There’s a welcome clatter of drums that herald the start to the kooky ‘Born To The Morning’ which bursts with a myriad of pianos and weird noises. In the vein of Belle and Sebastian ‘America Made Me’ is full of little hooks and pumping brass that gives the song a quirky lilt. ‘Tell Me What’s On Your Mind’ shimmers along on a hefty bass groove and a rich organ tone in the glorious chorus. Meloy has a soaring voice and a beautiful melody like the one in ‘Never Satisfied’ finds him effortlessly excel.

Saving the best track for last, the epic ‘Joan In The Garden’ begins with a gorgeous guitar line that sounds a wee bit like ‘Suspicious Minds’. The melody is pure grace and when the host of backing vocals and strings start to filter in you know you’re hearing a special song. I’m hearing a hint of The Hidden Cameras too and that’s not a bad thing as they were very special in their pomp. The next passage ushers in some tympany and chimes as you sense a storm brewing in the distance. An insistent hi-hat shuffle picks up the pace before a blizzard of distorted guitars break the decorum. There’s a nasty undercurrent to the ensuing section where Meloy repeatedly howls “Hosanna!” as electro burbles simmer underneath the cacophony. Inexplicably the final parts of the song veer into prog rock territory and it somehow seems to work as the guitars blaze and the drums boom. Apparently bass player Nate studied Iron Maiden to get the right level of attack! Meloy ends the song belting out the album’s title “As it ever was, so it will be again….hosanna!” over raging guitars and drums.

This is a glorious album of lovingly crafted music that really transports you to fantastical scenarios as detailed in each song. The characters that inhibit some of the songs are uniquely attributable to a writer like Meloy. For once, I actually appreciate the minutiae that has gone into the story telling. In a world of horror, The Decemberists have created a wonderful other worldly collection of enthralling and melodious songs.