Picaresque

Today's Music That Is Pretty Great is the Decemberists' Picaresque. I'm a little surprised that I haven't written about this album yet; though it's not my favorite Decemberists album, that has more to do with my personal connections to some of their other music and isn't really a judgment on the quality of this work. It does seem to be one of, if not the most well-received album from Colin Meloy and his band in general.

This is a marvelous album, with all the hallmarks of the Decemberists' sound: many instruments, somewhat nasal (not far from Stipe-ish) vocals, lyrics that seem to be lifted from 19th-century literature, just a bit of a flippant attitude. The balance on this album is exemplary, as there are a reasonable number of ballads and uptempo songs; some tracks are dark, whereas others are more good-natured. Overall I am more fond of the more boisterous arrangements of The Crane Wife or the simple charm of Castaways and Cutouts, but I don't have much to complain about here. I especially appreciate the gaul of this album's six and seven minute tracks, and one that falls just shy of nine minutes! Piss off, popular radio!

"The Infanta" is an inspired opener for an album, and it has enough energy to carry through the somber following tracks to "The Sporting Life". I know that "The Mariner's Revenge Song" is probably the crown jewel of this album, but I'm more partial to "Sixteen Military Wives". Still, the tracks are ordered impeccably, with the gentle "Of Angels and Angles" serving as the album's closer. Its brief, comforting melody is a nice contrast to the epic "The Mariner's Revenge Song".

I really have a hard time faulting this album for anything. They make interesting, enjoyable music that doesn't ever insult my intelligence; most of their songs stand alone very well, but their albums are really things of beauty to be appreciated as complete entities. Cripes, my inner fanboy is not bashful today.

In Other News:
When it rains, it pours. Why aren't things ever consistent?

The Crane Wife

Well I wanted to blog about the Brian Jonestown Massacre today, but I'm listening to something else that's pretty great, so I'm going to talk about that instead. You don't like it? Well, go rent Dig!. You should do that anyway. Or just wait until Monday.

No, today's Music of the Day is The Crane Wife, by The Decemberists. Now I've blogged about the Decemberists before, so let's just discuss this album. It certainly sounds like a Decemberists album, but it seems to be more intricate than some of their other albums, particularly the layering of the instruments and the vocal interplay/harmonies. I really like this album so far! It seems to be really driving, without as much of the sweet laid-back songs as some of their previous albums (Her Majesty, Picaresque). Much of the time, when bands mess with their sound and over produce the music, it seems to get bloated and overdone, but here it really seems to work. In particular, I really like the first track ("The Crane Wife 3"). But don't worry, this album is still full of lyrics about wars and ships and old-timey family things, with a side of guitars and nasal voices.

In other news:
I'm so glad for Friday that it's not even funny.

Castaways and Cutouts

Today's Music That Jason Knows Isn't For Everyone But Still Likes is The Decemberists' Castaways and Cutouts. This album was released in, maybe, 2001. Just a little background on the Decemberists: They sort of picked up where Neutral Milk Hotel left off, with a little more of a naval fetish. Their music doesn't suit everyone - I know Colin Meloy's voice grates on some nerves - but for the most part I enjoy it. I guess I'd describe their music as 'nerd-folk', though not quite 'geek-folk', in that it's literate but not about wizards and dragons and such. Most of their songs tell stories, about escaping from prison or being a sailor or things like that, very ribald turn-of-the-century blue-collar sort of escapades.

There's a good personal story that goes with Castaways and Cutouts - specifically the song "July, July!" - but I'm not going to take the time to type it here.

Castaways and Cutouts is a pretty good album. It gets a little melancholy towards the end but has a number of wonderful songs. Some are upbeat ("July, July!" or "A Cautionary Tale") though most tend to be darker ("Odalisque", "Leslie Anne Levine") or just very mellow ("California One/Youth and Beauty Brigade"). Still, it's a smart album with a good dynamic songlist. There aren't a ton of instruments here, including (I think) a well-placed accordion on a couple songs, but the simplicity works in the album's favor. I think The Decemberists work best as a group when they allow the lyrics and uncomplicated music to stand alone, rather than using elaborate, multi-layered song structure. I prefer this album to some of their other enjoyable work (namely Picaresque or Her Majesty) simply because the moods and tempos are more varied.

I do appreciate that The Decemberists aren't really concerned with being 'cool', but make their kind of music without being ironic. That is, if anything is truly unironic anymore, or at least not overly self-aware.

In other news:
I can't believe I went this long without a Decemberists blog. Shame on me.

I'm still a little sick but better today. This weekend wasn't much fun.

I'M GOING TO SEE THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS TOMORROW. HELL YES I'M EXCITED.