40 years of Music Millennium....The Decemberists

In celebration of being here in Portland for 40 years, it seems appropriate that we get into the modern age and start a blog. I guess we have always been blogging in one form or another whether it's been on paper or the computer. Some of you may remember the couple of print publications we have done over the years, complete with interviews, reviews and full of information about great records. I'll try to continue that tradition onto thi. Hopefully you can find out more about some of the artists that will be playing our store in the near future.

One of the joys of being a record store in Portland, is being able to experience all the great musical arts that our local artists give us. Today we get the new album from the Decemberists called the "Hazards of Love". My first listen was not till yesterday as we did not get an advance from the label. I've since listened to it twice. They did not try to stay on course with making a continuation to"The Crane's Wife", instead taking on new ideas and musical direction with great results. An odd opening of prelude morphs into the title track "The Hazards of Love", which set's a tone to the album. If you are old enough to know the Incrediable String Band, there are some overtures of their sound here but better yet, a favorite British Folk-Rock band from the early 70's called Trees (a masterpiece of an album by this band is "On The Shore" and has been remastered and reissued recently). Let's get this straight, the Decmemberists are not trying to emulate anyone's sound. They have their own unique sound and with "Hazards of Love", they stretched out a little more. You can find quiet and beautiful passages in the album along with some powerful sections that jump right off the turntable or CD player. I'd give this album a 9 on a 10 scale but with it sounding so great the second time I heard it, it could deserve more. 

Comments

[NPR listener]

The folks at NPR liked it too; they showcased the band's live performance of the entire album and made the performance available for streaming or as a podcast.