The Decemberists are fresh off a new album and sounding as great as ever. They stopped by KCRW this week to play a nice long live session and talk with Jason Bentley. A free audio download of the session is available on the Morning Becomes Eclectic Podcast.
For fans of the band, this is required viewing. Colin Meloy talks about the historical fact that the city of Portland, Oregon proclaimed January 20th, 2015 to be "Decemberists Day." This meant The Decemberists needed a proclamation for Portland, so they had one written by Lemony Snicket (aka Daniel Handler). You can check it out on The Decemberists' official website. The interview also covered the process of writing and recording What A Terrible World, What A Beautiful World.
In addition to the insightful interview, the beauty of these live radio sessions is that you get the excitement of a live performance with the high quality sound of a studio recording. Chris Funk's electric guitar leads really shine in the first two songs, "Make You Better" and "Wrong Year." Bassist Nate Query gets his time to shine on the upright bass during "Lake Song." The other great thing about the video is the intimacy. You really get up close and personal with the band.
The second half of the set begins with "Carolina Low," which may be as bluesy as anything The Decemberists have ever done. This is followed by a cover of The Kinks' "Do You Remember Walter" which sounds a little sloppy but has a nice Beatles-esque psychedelic vibe. The band plays an uplifting "Beginning Song," which is followed by a web exclusive performance of "Down By The Water" from the band's 2011 album The King Is Dead.
You can read our review and listen to What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World here on Zumic. The album is currently available on Amazon (Vinyl, CD, MP3) and iTunes.
For The Decemberists' latest music, news, and tour dates, check out their Zumic artist page.
Source: KCRW
