The Decemberists is a folk rock band which formed in 2000 in Portland, Oreg… Read Full Bio ↴The Decemberists is a folk rock band which formed in 2000 in Portland, Oregon, United States. The band currently consists of Colin Meloy (vocals, guitar), Chris Funk (guitar, mandolin, dulcimer, pedal steel guitar), Jenny Conlee (organ, piano, accordion), Nate Query (electric bass, acoustic bass, cello) and John Moen (drums). Notable former members include Rachel Blumberg (drums, vocals) and Jesse Emerson (bass).
Named both in reference to the Russian Decembrist Revolt (they use the national anthem of the Soviet Union as an introduction at many concerts) and to the atmosphere associated with the month of December, the Decemberists write songs that range from upbeat pop to instrumentally lush ballads. They often employ instruments like the accordion, Hammond organ, Wurlitzer organ, and upright bass. In their lyrics, they eschew the angst and introspection common to modern rock, instead favoring a storytelling approach, as evidenced in songs such as "My Mother Was a Chinese Trapeze Artist" from the 5 Songs EP and "The Mariner's Revenge Song" on Picaresque. Their songs convey tales ranging from whimsical ("Here I Dreamt I Was an Architect") to epic ("The Tain") to truly dark ("Odalisque"). They often invoke historical events and themes from around the world. Early in their career, The Decemberists' musical and lyrical aesthetics frequently prompted critics to compare them to Neutral Milk Hotel. Since their debut, their sound has undergone a consistent evolution, most notably in the direction of progressive rock with a strong folk influence, though they have also been described as indie rock and, by Stephen Colbert, as "hyper-literate prog rock." For example, one song, "When the War Came", uses a little-known story from the Siege of Leningrad to describe the heroism of civilian scientists during warfare. The lyrics state: "We made our oath to Vavilov / We'd not betray the solanum / The acres of asteraceae / To our own pangs of starvation". Nikolai Ivanovich Vavilov was a Russian botanist whose laboratory, a seedbank containing 200,000 types of plant seeds, many of them edible, was preserved throughout the siege, during which hundreds of thousands of people died.
In March 2005, the Decemberists were reportedly the first band to distribute a music video via BitTorrent -- the self-produced "16 Military Wives" (from Picaresque). That same month, the band's equipment trailer was stolen; fans contributed to a replacement fund, and another fund-raiser was organized via an eBay auction, with buyers bidding for copies of Colin Meloy Sings Morrissey and original art work by Carson Ellis. They also received help from Lee Kruger, The Shins, The Dandy Warhols and other musicians. The Martin Guitar Company offered six- and twelve-string guitars on permanent loan. In early April, police discovered the trailer in Clackamas, Oregon, and a fair amount of the band's merchandise, but the instruments and equipment were not recovered.
On 12 December 2005, Meloy revealed to Pitchfork Media that they had signed to Capitol Records, and planned to begin recording their major label debut with producers Tucker Martine and Chris Walla, of Death Cab for Cutie fame, in April 2006. The Decemberists' first album on Capitol, and their first major label debut, The Crane Wife, was released on 3 October 2006. The release was accompanied by an appearance the same day on the world-wide syndicated TV talk show Late Night with Conan O'Brien when the track "O Valencia!" was performed. The Decemberists began their tour in support of The Crane Wife, with The Rout of the Patagons Tour, on 17 October 2006, at Portland, Oregon's Crystal Ballroom. Their opening act was Lavender Diamond. Later on in the tour, Alasdair Roberts opened for the band.
In July 2007 the Decemberists set out on a five-date tour with a full orchestral accompaniment. On 7 July, the tour put the group on the stage of the historic Hollywood Bowl for the first time in their career, and they were joined by the Los Angeles Philharmonic. On 15 July the group performed with The Mann Festival Orchestra at The Mann Center for the Performing Arts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They then played a free concert in Chicago, Ilinois, at the recently developed Millennium Park with the Grant Park Symphony Orchestra. In September 2007 they also played at Austin City Limits Music Festival in Austin, Texas.
In October 2007, they began The Long and Short of It Tour. However, having completed the European portion of the tour and immediately after playing the Chicago dates, the rest of the tour was canceled due to illness.
On 24 March 2009, the band released The Hazards of Love, their fifth album. The album's first single, "The Rake's Song", was made available for free on the band's website. The album featured guest appearances from My Brightest Diamond, Becky Stark of Lavender Diamond, Robyn Hitchcock and Jim James. The album peaked at #14 on the Billboard 200.
On 11 January 2011, the band released their sixth album The King is Dead. The band released the first single "Down by the Water" for free on their website. The album debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 album chart in the United States and is the highest charting album in the band's career. The second single, "This Is Why We Fight" was released on January 25, 2011.
There is another band with the same name:
(2). The Decemberists formed in Liverpool in 1984 when Andy Ford and Tom Gent from Swim Naked hooked up with Colin Pennington, who had just left The Tunnel Users. They played their first show at The Cavern in 1985 and then played extensively in their home city. After recording demo tapes which attracted attention from BBC Radio 1's John Peel and Rough Trade Records, they secured a residency at University Of London Union (ULU). Their first release was James Is (Still The Same) on the Discreet Campaigns compilation cassette tape alongside New Order and Cocteau Twins. After the appearance of Gift Horse on the Ways To Wear Coats compilation LP in 1987, the band changed their name to Hellfire Sermons.
James Is (Still The Same) was included on The Sound Of Leamington Spa Volume 6 in 2009. They are listed as ‘The Decemberists Of Liverpool 1985-87’ on this album to make a distinction from the famous 21st century group of the same name.
Named both in reference to the Russian Decembrist Revolt (they use the national anthem of the Soviet Union as an introduction at many concerts) and to the atmosphere associated with the month of December, the Decemberists write songs that range from upbeat pop to instrumentally lush ballads. They often employ instruments like the accordion, Hammond organ, Wurlitzer organ, and upright bass. In their lyrics, they eschew the angst and introspection common to modern rock, instead favoring a storytelling approach, as evidenced in songs such as "My Mother Was a Chinese Trapeze Artist" from the 5 Songs EP and "The Mariner's Revenge Song" on Picaresque. Their songs convey tales ranging from whimsical ("Here I Dreamt I Was an Architect") to epic ("The Tain") to truly dark ("Odalisque"). They often invoke historical events and themes from around the world. Early in their career, The Decemberists' musical and lyrical aesthetics frequently prompted critics to compare them to Neutral Milk Hotel. Since their debut, their sound has undergone a consistent evolution, most notably in the direction of progressive rock with a strong folk influence, though they have also been described as indie rock and, by Stephen Colbert, as "hyper-literate prog rock." For example, one song, "When the War Came", uses a little-known story from the Siege of Leningrad to describe the heroism of civilian scientists during warfare. The lyrics state: "We made our oath to Vavilov / We'd not betray the solanum / The acres of asteraceae / To our own pangs of starvation". Nikolai Ivanovich Vavilov was a Russian botanist whose laboratory, a seedbank containing 200,000 types of plant seeds, many of them edible, was preserved throughout the siege, during which hundreds of thousands of people died.
In March 2005, the Decemberists were reportedly the first band to distribute a music video via BitTorrent -- the self-produced "16 Military Wives" (from Picaresque). That same month, the band's equipment trailer was stolen; fans contributed to a replacement fund, and another fund-raiser was organized via an eBay auction, with buyers bidding for copies of Colin Meloy Sings Morrissey and original art work by Carson Ellis. They also received help from Lee Kruger, The Shins, The Dandy Warhols and other musicians. The Martin Guitar Company offered six- and twelve-string guitars on permanent loan. In early April, police discovered the trailer in Clackamas, Oregon, and a fair amount of the band's merchandise, but the instruments and equipment were not recovered.
On 12 December 2005, Meloy revealed to Pitchfork Media that they had signed to Capitol Records, and planned to begin recording their major label debut with producers Tucker Martine and Chris Walla, of Death Cab for Cutie fame, in April 2006. The Decemberists' first album on Capitol, and their first major label debut, The Crane Wife, was released on 3 October 2006. The release was accompanied by an appearance the same day on the world-wide syndicated TV talk show Late Night with Conan O'Brien when the track "O Valencia!" was performed. The Decemberists began their tour in support of The Crane Wife, with The Rout of the Patagons Tour, on 17 October 2006, at Portland, Oregon's Crystal Ballroom. Their opening act was Lavender Diamond. Later on in the tour, Alasdair Roberts opened for the band.
In July 2007 the Decemberists set out on a five-date tour with a full orchestral accompaniment. On 7 July, the tour put the group on the stage of the historic Hollywood Bowl for the first time in their career, and they were joined by the Los Angeles Philharmonic. On 15 July the group performed with The Mann Festival Orchestra at The Mann Center for the Performing Arts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They then played a free concert in Chicago, Ilinois, at the recently developed Millennium Park with the Grant Park Symphony Orchestra. In September 2007 they also played at Austin City Limits Music Festival in Austin, Texas.
In October 2007, they began The Long and Short of It Tour. However, having completed the European portion of the tour and immediately after playing the Chicago dates, the rest of the tour was canceled due to illness.
On 24 March 2009, the band released The Hazards of Love, their fifth album. The album's first single, "The Rake's Song", was made available for free on the band's website. The album featured guest appearances from My Brightest Diamond, Becky Stark of Lavender Diamond, Robyn Hitchcock and Jim James. The album peaked at #14 on the Billboard 200.
On 11 January 2011, the band released their sixth album The King is Dead. The band released the first single "Down by the Water" for free on their website. The album debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 album chart in the United States and is the highest charting album in the band's career. The second single, "This Is Why We Fight" was released on January 25, 2011.
There is another band with the same name:
(2). The Decemberists formed in Liverpool in 1984 when Andy Ford and Tom Gent from Swim Naked hooked up with Colin Pennington, who had just left The Tunnel Users. They played their first show at The Cavern in 1985 and then played extensively in their home city. After recording demo tapes which attracted attention from BBC Radio 1's John Peel and Rough Trade Records, they secured a residency at University Of London Union (ULU). Their first release was James Is (Still The Same) on the Discreet Campaigns compilation cassette tape alongside New Order and Cocteau Twins. After the appearance of Gift Horse on the Ways To Wear Coats compilation LP in 1987, the band changed their name to Hellfire Sermons.
James Is (Still The Same) was included on The Sound Of Leamington Spa Volume 6 in 2009. They are listed as ‘The Decemberists Of Liverpool 1985-87’ on this album to make a distinction from the famous 21st century group of the same name.
Part V
The Decemberists Lyrics
[PART I]
[crone:] here upon this pillow
Made of reed and willow
You're a fickle little twister
Are you sweet on your sister?
Your fallow won't leave you alone.
And granted for their pleasure
Possesions laid to measure
She's a salty little pisser
With your cock in her kisser
But now she's a will of her own.
[PART II]
[husband:] damn your ankles and eyes wide
From you fingernails to your ponytails too.
King of the insects and the m-5
Over charlemagne in a motorcade too.
And baby needs a new prize
Baby needs a new and shiny prize.
[captain:] in this place called heavenly
You were born here.
This place called heavenly
You were born here.
You were born here.
[husband:] and now all the marchers descend from high
I will dedicate all of my awakenings to this.
And damn all the angles that opress my sight
I will bleed your heart through a samovar soon.
[captain:] in this place called heavenly
You were born here.
This place called heavenly
You were born here.
You were born here.
[PART III]
[soldier:] they settled dust in your hair
To watch you shake and shout it out.
With our armaments bared
We shed our bags and travel alls.
From the lee of the wall
He comes in the chang and the chariot
And all his eunuchs in thrall
Can scarce lift his line and lariat.
Here com loose his hounds
To blow me down.
[chorus of waifs:] blow me down.
[soldier:] on this stretch of ground
I'll lay me down.
[chorus of waifs:] lay me down.
[soldier:] to sleep.
[chaplain:] and now stricken with pangs
That tear at our backs like thistle down
The mirror's soft silver tain
Reflects our last and birthing hour
[soldier:] here com loose his hounds
To blow me down.
[chorus of waifs:] blow me down.
[soldier:] on this stretch of ground
I'll lay me down.
[chorus of waifs:] lay me down.
[soldier:] to sleep.
[PART IV]
[evening]
[widow:] o the wind is blowing, it hurts your skin
As you climb up hillside, forest and fen.
Your arms full of lullabies, orchids and wine
Your memories wrapped within paper and twine.
The room that you lie in is dusty and hard
Sleeping soft babies on piles of yards
Of gingham, taffeta, cotton and silk
Your dry hungry mouths cry for your mother's milk.
When the dawn commes to greet you, you'll rise with clothes on
And advance with the others, singing old songs
Of cattle and maidens and withered old queens.
Let the music carry you on.
The room that you lie in is dusty and hard
Sleeping soft babies on piles of yards
Of gingham, taffeta, cotton and silk
Your dry hungry mouths cry for your mother's milk.
[PART V]
[woman:] darling dear what have you done?
Your clothes are town, your make-up runs.
[daughter:] I ran through brambles, blooming thistle
I washed my face in the river when you whistled me on.
[woman:] darling dear, what hav eyou done?
Your hands and face are smeared with blood.
[daughter:] the chaplain came and called me out
To beat and to butcher his mother's sow
[woman:] but darling dear, they found him dead
This morning on the riverbed.
But hush now darling, don't you cry.
Your reward's in the sweet by-and -by.
Hush now baby, don't you cry.
Your reward's in the sweet by-and-by.
[crone:] and now we've seen your powers
Softly stretch the hours
You're a fickle little twister
Are you sweet on your sister?
As now you go wandering home.
[crone:] here upon this pillow
Made of reed and willow
You're a fickle little twister
Are you sweet on your sister?
Your fallow won't leave you alone.
And granted for their pleasure
Possesions laid to measure
With your cock in her kisser
But now she's a will of her own.
[PART II]
[husband:] damn your ankles and eyes wide
From you fingernails to your ponytails too.
King of the insects and the m-5
Over charlemagne in a motorcade too.
And baby needs a new prize
Baby needs a new and shiny prize.
[captain:] in this place called heavenly
You were born here.
This place called heavenly
You were born here.
You were born here.
[husband:] and now all the marchers descend from high
I will dedicate all of my awakenings to this.
And damn all the angles that opress my sight
I will bleed your heart through a samovar soon.
[captain:] in this place called heavenly
You were born here.
This place called heavenly
You were born here.
You were born here.
[PART III]
[soldier:] they settled dust in your hair
To watch you shake and shout it out.
With our armaments bared
We shed our bags and travel alls.
From the lee of the wall
He comes in the chang and the chariot
And all his eunuchs in thrall
Can scarce lift his line and lariat.
Here com loose his hounds
To blow me down.
[chorus of waifs:] blow me down.
[soldier:] on this stretch of ground
I'll lay me down.
[chorus of waifs:] lay me down.
[soldier:] to sleep.
[chaplain:] and now stricken with pangs
That tear at our backs like thistle down
The mirror's soft silver tain
Reflects our last and birthing hour
[soldier:] here com loose his hounds
To blow me down.
[chorus of waifs:] blow me down.
[soldier:] on this stretch of ground
I'll lay me down.
[chorus of waifs:] lay me down.
[soldier:] to sleep.
[PART IV]
[evening]
[widow:] o the wind is blowing, it hurts your skin
As you climb up hillside, forest and fen.
Your arms full of lullabies, orchids and wine
Your memories wrapped within paper and twine.
The room that you lie in is dusty and hard
Sleeping soft babies on piles of yards
Of gingham, taffeta, cotton and silk
Your dry hungry mouths cry for your mother's milk.
When the dawn commes to greet you, you'll rise with clothes on
And advance with the others, singing old songs
Of cattle and maidens and withered old queens.
Let the music carry you on.
The room that you lie in is dusty and hard
Sleeping soft babies on piles of yards
Of gingham, taffeta, cotton and silk
Your dry hungry mouths cry for your mother's milk.
[PART V]
[woman:] darling dear what have you done?
Your clothes are town, your make-up runs.
[daughter:] I ran through brambles, blooming thistle
I washed my face in the river when you whistled me on.
[woman:] darling dear, what hav eyou done?
Your hands and face are smeared with blood.
[daughter:] the chaplain came and called me out
To beat and to butcher his mother's sow
[woman:] but darling dear, they found him dead
This morning on the riverbed.
But hush now darling, don't you cry.
Your reward's in the sweet by-and -by.
Hush now baby, don't you cry.
Your reward's in the sweet by-and-by.
[crone:] and now we've seen your powers
Softly stretch the hours
You're a fickle little twister
Are you sweet on your sister?
As now you go wandering home.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: COLIN MELOY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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suredoloveya
been a while since i listened to this one
one of the first albums i owned
still makes me feel pensive as always
hushrecords
Oceanside
Shiny 3:29
My Mother Was A Chinese Trapese Artist 8:40
Angel, Won’t You Call Me? 13:23
I Don’t Mind 16:03
Apology Song 20:43
Kifujin Kitade
Now I want to work in a bakery too
Alec Ramsey
Best.
Absolute Degenerate
Based