THE DECEMBERISTS

Great at first, fades over time

My first encounter with The Decemberists was not a pleasant one, purchasing The Crane Wife right after it came out. I sold it within a week or two which means I was pretty unimpressed, although I don't remember the specifics anymore. So I had no intention of buying this album until I started to see all these "masterpiece" ratings being awarded, when I figured the band deserved another shot at my ear. I'm very glad I did as I gained a fair appreciation for the band, but one that only goes so far.

This "folk-rock opera" as perfectly described by Russellk is a nice mix of contrasts: acoustic music with some rock sections, dark themes against sometimes upbeat and sunny melody, male and female vocals (sounds just a tad like an updated Comus although not nearly as interesting musically.) Actually it remind me more of Neil Young's "Greendale" storybook album from a few years back, which incidentally was Neil's finest work since the '70s. "The Hazards of Love" is a sweeping work with musical motifs that resurface throughout the 17 tracks to give the work a true conceptual feel. It is immediately accessible and you will be attuned to the melodies before your first play is even finished. Delightful folk melodies with crisp acoustic instrumentation, pedal-steel providing a nice country feel in a few places, rich character vocals, even some well placed strings and Hammond. It can be a very enjoyable listen especially in the first half of the album. Lyrically the album is as dark as it gets---did you think Comus was dark? How about killing your kids because they're a pain in the ass? Well that's a big part of the story and a side of the disc which just leaves me indifferent. Dark can be great when it feels genuinely necessary or is handled just right, but here the storyline just never felt like more than awkward melodrama. The best parts for me are the female vocals of "Won't want for love" and "Isn't it a lovely night." They have this lovely lilting modesty to them, haunting, ethereal, and absolutely perfect. In an album that is overly wordy and featuring a male singer who overstays his welcome, these female vocals are a breath of fresh air. There is the amazing track "The wanting comes in waves" which is just brilliant, with these perfectly constructed melodies and choruses---absolute folk rock gem track.

"Hazards" is a very good album but that's as far as it goes for me. I cannot put this album with my top 5% masterpiece classics, nor can I even convince myself it belongs in 4 star company when I compare it with some of those titles. My problem with "Hazards" is that the first couple plays were the most enjoyable. After that it becomes a tedious affair for repeated listening. The second half drags considerably over time and the experience of playing it becomes cumbersome. Still I believe it earns 3 stars and could easily win over fans of ambitious folk-rock music. Musicianship is top notch, some nice melodies, but far from the best progressive titles in your collection.

On their previous album "The Crane Wife," the Decemberists began experimenting with longer songs and extended concepts, and on "The Hazards of Love," it appears that the band has done their homework, creating one of my favorite concept albums/(folk) rock operas. It's got all the trademark signs of a concept album: a prelude, segues, interludes (one actually called "An Interlude"), repeated musical and lyrical themes, and an overlying topic, in this case a folk/prog/fairy-tale love story. Other reviewers have properly covered the storyline (see jammun's review), so i'll skip that.

The music varies from acoustic songs, ("The Hazards of Love 1") to ballads ("The Hazards of Love 2"), rockers ("The Wanting Comes in Waves/Repaid"), indie hits ("The Rake's Song"), flat-out folk ("Annan Water"), psychedelic sound collages ("The Hazards of Love 3"), and a glorious combination of all The Decemberists' numerous musical influences. At the very least, everyone can find at least one song that pleases them since the band is able to cover so many different styles while maintaining a unified piece. My best advice: listen for yourself.

The one thing this album lacks in a typical progressive rock sense is instrumental showcasing, but the lack of such "noodling" (as I have heard it put) actually strengthens the album and makes it more cohesive. And although I wouldn't call it a light listen (it took many listens before I could 100% follow the story by the lyrics alone), it isn't incredibly complex, just beautiful and thoroughly enjoyable.

Although i'm giving the album 4-stars, it's really more of a 4.5; although not necessarily a groundbreaking masterpiece in the grand scheme of things, it's an incredibly beautiful album i'm sure any fan of good music - prog or otherwise - will enjoy.

I first discovered The Decemberists with the help of my friend. He actually got me into progressive rock in the first place by showing me "Relayer" by Yes, and although he has since moved on to broaden his musical horizons, I made it my quest to obtain all of the great prog of the past, with relatively few detours. Since we no longer had identical musical tastes, when my friend gave me "The Crane Wife," i expected to forget it very quickly, but I was delightfully surprised at how great this album is.

The album begins with "The Crane Wife 3," the vague yet beautiful conclusion to the rest of the Crane Wife story told later in the album. Instantly upon listening to this song, you'll know your in for a treat.

Next is the multi-part suite "The Island," which instantly appealed to me. After a layered introduction built on an interesting repeated riff, the first section begins. "Come and See" is a nice, occasionally rocking song, and as the title suggests, it beckons you to keep listening. The next section, "The Landlords Daughter," is an energetic piece with excellent organ work and a great Moog solo to boot. Building to an emotional climax, it's the most beautiful song about abduction and rape you'll ever hear! The contrast of the ending piece "You'll Not Feel the Drowning," a beautiful acoustic track with an orchestrated part near the end, leaves you stunned, and after it's all over you'll want to listen to it 100 times more. My favorite track on the album.

Next are a series of shorter songs. "Yankee Bayonet" lets the band's Indie side shine through, and although it's a pleasant song is fairly forgettable. "O Valencia!" is very radio-friendly, but it's still an excellent track with a great story of gang rivalry and love. "The Perfect Crime #2" would've been excellent, but it feels like it drags on forever (and the repetition of the word "Perfect" 1000 times is quite cheesy). "When the War Came" is another rocker and also drags a little long, but is much more interesting that the previous track. "Shankill Butchers" is a beautiful, somber acoustic piece - and very folky - and is one of the album's highlights in my opinion. "Summersong" is best for showcasing how the band can combine folk and indie styles with excellent results.

Finally, we come to "The Crane Wife 1 & 2," the beginning and middle to the story that ended in the first track. The other reviewers already covered the story of this one, so there's no need to be redundant. Colin Meloy is both an excellent songwriter and storyteller, and his abilities really show on this track and the album in general. The album ends with the pleasant "Sons and Daughters," an peppy round that contrasts the sad story of "The Crane Wife."

Overall, this album should please any fan of progressive rock looking to prove that there is still hope for modern music. This, along with their next album "The Hazards of Love" is a masterpiece for the Decemberists. However, in the grand scheme of all things progressive, this album is best suited for a 4-Star rating. But i still recommend this for all prog fans.

So far, collab ratings for this are as following: 2x2, 2x3, 2x4. I'll add 1x3 but still, something is raising it higher - members are (as usual), with their 4-star average rating. What's the point of saying this ? Try to guess. If you won't find it out, just leave it be as "nonsense" (heh).

Music here is quite strange folk. It's not folk I'm used to listen (indie folk anybody?), it's a pleasant one, as it was my first venture to TD territory and I was surprised how "different" it is from what I expected to be prog. Colin Meloy's vocals are pleasant (they are, it's their biggest advantage, even he's not as gifted singer as some others in rock music, even he can do wonders with it).

3(+), but I hesitate between this and 4(-), because it's weird case. I probably can enjoy this album and "probably" (yes, I don't know) like it, but I'm not sure. It would be better to give lower and hope that next ones will sound better. I don't like myself for doing this, as I would like to give them more, but I can't. The sound here is really (as Epignosis said), demo-like. Maybe I'm too influenced by polished Hazards (but note that even they're not exactly clean)

A modern triumph, lush with thoughtful composition, performances, and emotive resonance, "Hazards of Love" is a unique winner.

From the ominous introduction to they fey whimsy of its poetic lyricism, "Hazards of Love" exudes style and a handcrafted feel. The songs are rich, varied, and dynamic, carrying the listener along through the narrative's numerous events and emotions with class. There are sweeping highs giving way to baleful electric intensity, changing back again all to the acoustic strumming of the band's "folksy" instrumentation; beautiful ballads interchange with the occasional driving rock beat. The group's playing is largely understated, making "Hazard's" charms subtle ones, discovered only when one is ready to experience the album as a whole.

Lyrically dense, Meloy's vocals tell a delightfully disturbing tale of doomed love and murder. There are rich variety in the vocals, with memorable rhymes, melodies, and harmonies which keep the narrative moving excellently-- much more so than some other concept albums.

The end effect is one which will likely stay with the listener, and make "Hazards of Love" an oustanding piece of art. Highly recommended (don't be scared off by the "Indie" rep)!

Songwriting: 4 Instrumental Performances: 3 Lyrics/Vocals: 4 Style/Emotion/Replay: 5

Spoiler warning: in the following review, I will be discussing the plot of the album. If one would wish to listen to the album and absorb the plot on their own, then perhaps reading a different review would be preferable.

The album starts off innocuously enough with "Prelude", which is a very quiet song that takes some time to build up in volume. I think that the band did this on purpose, so that listeners would turn up the volume, and listen to the music louder.

Either way, once the album starts in earnest with The Hazards of Love 1 (The Prettiest Whistles Won't Wrestle the Thistles), the listener is in for a real treat. This concept album tells the simple but strangely dark romantic tale of love between a fawn/spirit/man and a pregnant woman, and the intervention of "The Queen" (aka, the spirit of the forest and the fawns mother) and "The Rake" (a dastardly man who killed his own kids to be free of them). The music is simple by prog standards, often involving mostly an acoustic guitar, although the vocal performances are wonderful and the album has some really intense parts as well instrumentally.

We go through the first half of the album without even meeting the villainous Rake; instead the groundwork for the romance between William (The fawn) and Margaret is laid out. As such, the music in the first half is more romantic and acoustic than it will be later. Right before the Interlude that marks the first half of the album ending, we are introduced to The Queen, and learn that she rescued William from death by giving him the form of a fawn. We also learn that she has some sway over William, for he must ask her for permission to spend the night with Margaret. When she is present, the music takes on a more aggressive, electric sound, nicely giving her her own character instrumentally.

The Rakes Song introduces us to the despicable Rake, where he confesses not only that he killed each of his three children, but that he feels no guilt over the act and is glad to be rid of them.

After that point, the second half of the album runs as a single song. It reprises themes from the first half of the album, most notably "The Wanting Comes in Waves" and "The Hazards of Love", so it will sound a little familiar, but it does so in such a way that I feel works strongly in the benefit of the album. (In fact, if this album had been marketed as a single song, this coherence would have me claiming the album was more effective at this than either The Incident or The Whirlwind.)

The reason for the second half being so smooth is that it is runs as a single scene, that is actually rather quick. The Rake captures Margaret, but when trying to escape, finds a river blocking his path. The Queen aids him across, claiming that Margaret is merely a distraction for her son William and being more concerned about that then what she knows the Rake will do to her. William reaches the river just after the Rake crosses, and tries to cross, but the water is too strong and he cannot make it across the river. The Rakes dead children return from the grave as ghosts, killing him and freeing Margaret, who then jumps into the river, and she and William decide to marry each other, before they drown. Definitely a dark twist to this love story.

The music that accompanies this is magnificent, and matches the increased pace and tension of the story. The songs flow into each other quite smoothly, and the mood of the music really provides a lot of emotion. William's reprisements of "The Wanting Comes in Waves", somehow, really enforces his desperation to get Margaret back (especially after he used up whatever it was that the Queen owed him to have this night with her). But the highlight, for me, is "The Hazard of Love 3: Revenge!". This is the song where the Rake's children return, and the childlike singing and vocals sound really eerie, making it quite easy to imagine these child-ghosts re- appearing to kill their father.

Sadly, although it fits the story, The Hazard of Love 4 does not stand out as strongly after the 7 strong songs that preceded it, so the album ends on a bit of a relatively low note (although it is still a good way to end the album).

This year we seem to have been granted a bevy of great concept albums, and this is one of the better ones. 4 stars.

Even though I had been mildly impressed by the band's last album and hearing great things about 'The Hazards Of Love,' it still exceeded by expectations. The Decemberists take on a much different sound than many of the cookie-cutter prog bands that are coming out today, and what is being called by professional critics and typical listeners alike as one of the greatest albums to come out this year certainly deserves it's praise.

'The Hazards Of Love' is no jaw-dropping spectacle of musicianship. Nor is it heavy on strange sounds, or weird effects. While I've probably listened to more mind-blowing music in my time, it's rare that an album with this warmth comes along; especially considering it's a concept album revolving around creatures of the fantastic.

Like many concept albums, 'The Hazards of Love' flows as if it could be a single composition, with no gaps in between the segments of music. There are interludes and all one would expect from a rock opera; the story of which I haven't been able to decipher quite yet. From what I can ascertain however, Meloy and company tell the story of a woman named Margaret, and her quest for love. She meets a fawn named William and things start to get interesting from there...

The lyrics in this album are genius, perhaps even more so than the music itself. While it's hard enough to write a story in poetic form as it were, Colin Meloy fits in so much wordplay and rich imagery into his words that it makes reading the lyric booklet alone an enjoyable experience.

Due to the fact that the album works as a single song cycle, there are alot of recurring themes in the music. Almost too many, as at times; it feels like one is listening to an alternative take of the first half of the work. Even so, I can surely understand this and it does wonders for the cohesion as a piece. That kept in mind, it's an album that must be listened from start to finish to enjoy it completely.

This is definately one of the best musical discoveries I've made in quite a while, and for anyone that dismisses this band of talented musicians as simply a typical indie folk band should check this out. Total masterpiece.

The Hazards of Love is a pleasant and mature folk-rock concept album that will please many fans of the genre. The Decemberist sound like a contemporary take on classic folk rock, mixing influences ranging from REM via Jethro Tull to psychedelic rock. Due to the male vocals they sound like a 2009 incarnation of Fairport Convention fronted by Syd Barrett.

I hadn't cared much about the previous Decemberists albums. An occasional song aside, I found it all fairly predictable, docile and formulaic. On this album they stretched their ambition a bit and it has certainly paid off to some extent. The thematic unity of this album does enhance the individual songs, which stick to classic folk rock formulas with an occasional heavy blues riff.

My first reaction was very positive. I even considered 5 stars. But I've put off my review because the very immediate appeal of this album had made me suspect that it wouldn't survive repeated listens. And indeed this has proven to be true. While I would have initially rated it higher then Porcupine Tree's Incident, a weekly listen made me grow tired of it rather quickly. There are a number of reasons for that.

It lacks a bit of substance for me, especially musically. While the songwriting is very consistent, it all sticks too much to basic folk rock & blues songs. Also the 4 variations on the title track get tiresome after a while. Despite a number of excellent 5 star songs such as 8. The Wanting Comes In Waves, 11. The Abduction of Margeret, 12.Queen's Rebuke and the beautiful 16 Horsepower derived 13. Annan Water, most tracks are fairly average.

Also the vocals are not entirely satisfying. The plaintive voice that Colin Meloy uses is competent but lacks the real emotional turmoil that Sandy Denny from Fairport Convention or Gabriel Yacoub from Malicorne had. The vocals are too uninvolved, flat and cool for this kind of music, they miss intensity and attitude. The female vocals work a lot better actually.

I generally don't care much how 'prog' I think an album is to appreciate it, but I sure do miss some characteristics in this album that I would normally associate with prog. I miss excellence, poise, challenge, originality and one or other striking feature that shakes the ground I'm standing on. That is not present here.

I think I should really start to listen to what my wife says. Right from the first time her reaction was "Bwah da's maar flauw zulle", which would translate to something like "What's that lame stuff again?". Repeated listens have proven her right, again. Damn! I hate it when that happens :) 3.5 stars still, don't miss this album if you are a folk fan.

The art of condensing a significant story into the confines of an hour or so of music is not simply a matter of furnishing a compelling storyline and delivering it with lyrical grace, although both are required. The real challenge is to provide musical accompaniment that avoids overshadowing the tale without sounding rote or add-on. It must give a sense of propelling the proceedings forward, reflecting the plot twists and mood changes. In their earlier work, the Decemberists had trouble doing this even with short stories, but on "Hazards of Love" they have produced one of the better full length musical narratives in recent memory.

Clearly an analysis of this disk cannot consist of a track by track breakdown, so interwoven are the musical and lyrical themes. Colin Meloy has wisely chosen to include a cast of major characters, even guest vocals for the various roles, which all add variety to what is actually an archetypal folk rock collage, sometimes acoustically driven, sometimes riff based, sometimes 60s harmony oriented, sometimes orchestrated or choired. The melodies are functional and rarely of much complexity, but they drive the work to its climax remarkably well. For me, the combination of the gentle acoustic "An Interlude" and the caustic "The Rake's Song" stand as highlights, and, unlike most of what's here, could be plucked out and be quite happy on its own. Likewise, "Annan Water" might be the most progressive piece here, with a haunting folk melody and strummed backing that can easily distract me from the overall flow, but that just means hitting repeat a few more times!

Only "The Queen's Rebuke" seems to need a rebuke of its own, as it succumbs to hard rock cliche, but considering how often this album looks to be doing so only to save itself, this is a thin bone to pick. In addition, the last couple of tracks drag like a movie that would have been perfect if it ended on such and such a scene. Sure, the story isn't over, but the teller lost his touch 15 minutes earlier.

With this significant release, the Decemberists have negotiated all hazards remarkably well. It's not your typical progressive fare, but for those who enjoy modern folk rock with a decidely progressive attitude, "hazards" is a safe bet.

The Hazards of Love is the fifth full-length studio album by American, Portland based progressive folk rock act The Decemberists. I enjoyed the band´s last album The Crane Wife (2006) even though I wasn´t completely blown away. Therefore my expectations were pretty high before listening to The Hazards of Love.

The Hazards of Love is a concept album were all 17 tracks seque into each other the there´s a conceptual story in the lyrics. While most songs follow an ordinary vers/ chorus structure there´s still an undeniable progressive edge to the album. There are re-occuring themes that serves as the glue that holds the album concept together in addition to the lyrical concept. In that way The Hazards of Love kind of remind me of The Incident (2009) by Porcupine Tree.

The music on the album is centered around the memorable song lines and strong vocal performance by lead vocalist/ guitarist Colin Meloy. He has quite a few guest vocalists to help him out though and I´m especially fond of some of the female vocal performances on the album. Just take a listen to a song like The Wanting Comes in Waves / Repaid. That is attitute if I ever heard attitude. I was almost reminded of good old Jenny Haan from Babe Ruth when she was in her prime. The mix of male and female vocals on the album is really a great asset to the music and works well with the story in the lyrics too. The instrumentation is a mix of folky instruments like banjo and accordian and more traditional rock instrumentation like guitar, drums and bass. There´s quite a bit of organ and some synth on the album too. The album features a bit more electric guitar and slightly distorted sections compared to earlier albums by the band and that suits me fine. It brings some good variation to the music. The music is still folk rock though. It´s just a bit more rock than folk this time. I really think there´s a great flow on the album and the 58:36 pass by in a second. I rarely find albums that I think are perfect in length but The Hazards of Love certainly applies.

The musicianship on the album is excellent. Great vocals and great interplay between the musicians. The production is also excellent and suits the music perfectly.

The Hazards of Love has really won me over and I´m much more interested in The Decemberists after listening to this album. This is a sure 4 star rating.