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.
The Crane Wife 1 & 2
The Decemberists Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It was a cold night and the snow lay 'round
I pulled my coat tight against the falling down
And the sun was all, and the sun was all down
And the sun was all, and the sun was all down
I am a poor man, I have not wealth nor fame
And the winter's so, the winter's so long
And the winter's so, the winter's so long
And all the stars were crashing 'round
As I laid eyes on what I'd found
It was a white crane, it was a helpless thing
Upon a red stain with an arrow in its wing
And it called and cried, it called and cried so
And it called and cried, it called and cried so
And all the stars were crashing 'round
As I laid eyes on what I'd found
My crane wife, my crane wife
My crane wife, my crane wife
Now I helped her and I dressed her wounds
And how I held her beneath the rising moon
And she stood to fly, she stood to fly away
She stood to fly, she stood to fly away
And all the stars were crashing 'round
As I laid eyes on what I'd found
My crane wife, my crane wife
My crane wife, my crane wife
La la, la la la...
PART TWO
My crane wife arrived at my door in the moonlight
All star bright and tongue-tied, I took her in
We were married and bells rang sweet for our wedding
And our bedding was ready, when we fell in
Sound the keening bell and see it's painted red
Soft as fontanelle, the feathers in the thread
And all I ever meant to do was to keep you
My crane wife, my crane wife, my crane wife
We were poorly, our fortunes fading hourly
And how she avowed me she could bring it back
But I was greedy, I was vain, and I forced her to weaving
On a cold loom in a closed room, with down wove
Sound the keening bell and see it's painted red
Soft as fontanelle, the feathers in the thread
And all I ever meant to do was to keep you
My crane wife, my crane wife, my crane wife
There's a bend in the wind and it rakes at my heart
There is blood in the thread and it rakes at my heart
It rakes at my heart, heart, heart, heart
Heart, heart, heart, heart, heart, heart, heart, heart, my crane wife
The song is split into two parts. The first half describes a chance encounter between the singer and a white crane with an arrow in its wing. The singer helps the crane and as it is getting ready to fly away, it transforms into a woman, who becomes the singer's wife. The second part of the song describes their marriage, which is initially happy, but the singer becomes greedy and forces his wife to weave cloth from her own feathers in order to make money. The song ends with the singer realizing his mistake too late as his wife transforms back into a crane and flies away, leaving him with only his regrets.
The song draws from a Japanese folk tale, "Tsuru no Ongaeshi" or "The Grateful Crane" in which a crane rewards a man for saving it by transforming into a woman and marrying him. However, the tale goes on to say that the woman's true identity was eventually discovered, and she flew away, leaving the man with only her feathered garment.
Through the lyrics, The Decemberists use the story to explore themes of greed, love, and change. The singer becomes consumed by his desire for money and success, leading him to exploit his wife's magical abilities, causing the downfall of their marriage. The crane represents change and impermanence, reminding us that nothing stays the same forever.
Line by Line Meaning
It was a cold night and the snow lay 'round
The setting of the song is a wintry night with snow on the ground.
I pulled my coat tight against the falling down
The singer is bundling up against the snowfall.
And the sun was all, and the sun was all down
The sun has already set.
I am a poor man, I have not wealth nor fame
The artist is not a rich nor famous personality.
I have my two hands and a house to my name
The artist only has a small amount of possessions- his two hands and a house.
And the winter's so, the winter's so long
The winter season feels very long to the singer.
And all the stars were crashing 'round
The singer sees turmoil and chaos happening around him.
As I laid eyes on what I'd found
The artist has discovered something important.
It was a white crane, it was a helpless thing
The artist stumbles upon a white crane that appears to be in need of help.
Upon a red stain with an arrow in its wing
The crane had an arrow in its wing, which caused it to become helpless.
And it called and cried, it called and cried so
The crane is making noises to draw attention to itself.
My crane wife, my crane wife
The artist is starting to refer to the crane as his wife.
Now I helped her and I dressed her wounds
The singer steps in to take care of the bird and nurse it back to health.
And how I held her beneath the rising moon
The singer spends time with the crane at night, watching over it.
She stood to fly, she stood to fly away
After recovering, the crane was ready to take flight again.
La la, la la la...
The song has a musical interlude.
My crane wife arrived at my door in the moonlight
The crane returns to the artist's home later on, now under the guise of a person.
All star bright and tongue-tied, I took her in
The singer welcomes the transformed crane into their home.
We were married and bells rang sweet for our wedding
The singer and the transformed crane get married.
And our bedding was ready, when we fell in
The artist and their new wife were ready to consummate their marriage.
We were poorly, our fortunes fading hourly
The couple is starting to struggle financially.
And how she avowed me she could bring it back
The artist's wife has a solution to their financial struggles.
But I was greedy, I was vain, and I forced her to weaving
Rather than letting their wife help them, the singer forces them to weave and make money for the two of them.
On a cold loom in a closed room, with down wove
The wife is forced to weave with minimal comfort.
There's a bend in the wind and it rakes at my heart
The singer feels emotional pain, likely related to their treatment of the wife.
There is blood in the thread and it rakes at my heart
The singer is directly or indirectly causing their wife harm.
Heart, heart, heart, heart, heart, heart, heart, heart, my crane wife
The singer repeats the phrase to emphasize the pain they feel regarding their actions towards the wife.
Contributed by Tristan G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.