My first experience with the Decemberists was during a guitar solo competition between guitarist Chris Funk and Stephen Colbert. I found Funk's solo to be unusually underwhelming, anti-climactic and kind of boring. When I heard Picaresque, I thought it was unusually underwhelming, anti-climactic and kind of boring. Go figure.
The album opens with momentous pomp in "The Infanta," which is about camels, princesses and a palanquin. Right away I noticed the similarities to Neutral Milk Hotel. The more you consider it, singer Colin Meloy's abrasive, raw vocals mimic Jeff Magnum's signature plain-stated style. Compare "Airplane Over the Sea" with "On the Bus Mall." Even the Decemberists' "Eli, the Barrow Boy" could have been written while they listened to "Two-Headed Boy." Who knows.
But the comparisons end acoustically because the Decemberists can't evoke the kind of emotion and authenticity that's a given with Neutral Milk. Instead they seem to mash together an eclectic mix of whatever instruments are around and ham together a very dry and emotionless album.
But I do like the late-90s pop rock sound of "16 Military Wives," even if it's feels a little heavy-handed lyrically.
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I like this. Has a pop/folk kind of sound in my opinion. Which album would you recommend I start with?
ReplyDeletewell if you like it start right here. i think i was too harsh on them, and like the album a little more each time.
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