Album review: The Decemberists' 'The King Is Dead'

On “The Hazards of Love,” the 2009 album from the Decemberists, frontman Colin Meloy and his merry band of Pacific Northwest hucksters created a medieval rock opera. The band’s latest album, “The King Is Dead,” takes the opposite tack, exploring Americana, a much more simple, rustic format.

Problem is, you can take the man out of the opera but you can’t take the opera out of the man. Too much of “The King Is Dead” sounds like the showy wunderkind in theater class earnestly laboring through an Arthur Miller monologue when all he wants to do is stand up and trill at the top of his lungs.

“The King Is Dead” clings so closely to formula that it doesn’t sound like homage or even truth; it sounds like the studious but unconvincing work of an extremely gifted mimic. The right players are on the stage with Meloy — R.E.M.’s Peter Buck contributes guitar and mandolin, and Gillian Welch provides vocals that go a long way in establishing some measure of restraint here — but the songwriting never heads in a direction that can’t be predicted from the outset, a choice brave enough to inch the genre a little further along or afield.

One of the tracks that Buck contributes to, “Calamity Song,” is designed as a tribute to R.E.M., so much so that it almost steals the riff from “Talk About the Passion” note for note. Buck’s cooperation with such a stunt would seemingly remove possibility for a copyright lawsuit, but it only underscores what’s missing on the album — the shadowy, idiosyncratic depths of Americana that R.E.M.’s classic debut, “Murmur,” captured so brilliantly.

—Margaret Wappler

The Decemberists
“The King Is Dead”
(Capitol)
Two stars (Out of four) 

Comments

[tom]

Next time The Decemberists release a record, have someone review it who didn't start paying attention at "Hazards." For those of us who've been listening to the band for 10 years, "The King is Dead" is a welcome return to their earlier sound.

[Victoria]

Sad, I really enjoy this. It's Colin and his crew in their delightfully melodic fantasticalness that I adore, only now there is a more vibrant background with more even more melancholy plucking. The king is dead shimmers like morning dew with a lonesome refrain woven through that tugs at my heart and leaves an ache in my soul. Amazing album! Check out the song January Hymn.

[Steve]

I love the Decemberists but this album is too simple for me. Also I don't agree with Tom in saying that it is a welcome to their earlier sound because this record IMO is them trying to get radio play and not really staying true to themselves. There are some pretty good tracks on the album but nothing gives me goose bumps like their earlier albums. This album doesn't come close to albums like Picaresque & Castaways & Cutouts. That being said I still will be excited to see them perform next month although I hope they don't play too many of the new songs.

[douglas]

it would be a shame if people didn't check out this album due to this misfire of a review.

The album is lovely. If you have any interest at all, check out the snippets available on line to see for yourself. A much better gauge than some random reviewer who, in my opinion, has poor taste.

[greg]

I was looking forward to this release, then I read this review and became a little concerned. Went to Amazon and bought it anyway (only $3.99) I figured if Gillian lent her amazing voice, it couldn't be all bad. After a couple of listens, all I can say is: "This album is wonderful!" A masterpiece? No. But two stars? Margret is way off here. This is a solid effort. Ignore her review and download this, you won't be disappointed.

[Pop 'stache]

Great album. We gave it a 4/5 over at Pop 'stache.

[Damian]

I don't think this review is a misfire in any sense. I can't help but agree that the Decemberists self-proclaimed exercise in simplicity seems to be just that: an exercise.
Listening to this album I never got chills and never laughed out loud at a wonderful/ridiculous lyric. I just waited for something to grab my attention.
I don't see it as a return to form, though I never thought that Hazards of Love was the tremendous departure it was made out to be. Nothing they've made has been this stripped down. It sort of hearkens back to Tarkio, Meloy's previous band.
It isn't terrible, it just sort of is. That's a first for the Decemberists and a disappointment.

[Hmm]

Horribly underwhelming review.. Check the album out on your own. It's a shame people will pass on this due to the writers lack of knowledge and understanding of who The Decemberists were before hazards came out..

[Aine]

So, having already heard the album, I didn't come here looking for a preview: I came for an explanation. Having been a big fan since Castaways and Cutouts, I was somewhat startled to hear "The King is Dead" going, in my mind, backwards from what they've achieved. Every release has felt like an improvement on their sound, moving forwards into something really unique and beautiful, and I've been wondering since Hazards was released how they were going to top what they'd already accomplished (not just Hazards, but their other albums, Picaresque and The Crane Wife especially). Unfortunately, it seems that the answer to my question is that they're not. Don't get me wrong, this is a great Americana album, I guess, but it's not really Decemberists in my book. Where's the varying instrumentation? The flowery and poetic lyrics? This album doesn't draw me in enough to get the story out of any of the songs, and frankly, if it weren't for Colin's voice being so damn distinctive, I'd be hard pressed to tell you that this was The Decemberists at all.

To me, The Decemberists are a genre of their own, and this album... well it just isn't all there. I can only hope that this is a phase that they leave behind after this album and go back to what they had.

[Steve]

I agree with Aine 100 percent. The new album is my least favorite Decemberists album. I am all about groups exploring new sounds and trying new things but they took a step back on "The King is Dead". This album is really pretty boring overall; I really hope they go back to what they do best on their next album.

[jamesg]

I give the CD 3 stars out of 4. I give this review 1 star.

Sorry, Margaret, but you missed the mark here. This is a good album. It's a bunch of people getting together and having fun making music. And making other people happy in the process.

It's not a masterpiece. But were they advertising it as such? No.

The songs are considerably less morbid than a lot of their earlier music, which I like. And for those of you who have followed Colin since his early days, a lot of the songs have a very Tarkio quality to them.

If you like good music, this CD is for you.

If you like picking apart good music to find everything that's wrong with it, this CD is not for you. Neither are The Decemberists.

[Mike]

I'm a HUGE fan of this band and have to agree with those who are scratching their heads at this new album. It's pleasant enough, but a "Decemberists" album, it hardly is. The spunk, magic, and originality that often left me in awe of this songwriter and band is just not present. From the first three overbearing beats of Don't Carry it All, I could tell the album was going to be uninspired and overproduced. But, I'm not surprised. This happens to all the greats, they get fame and money and lazy, and the magic disappears. I used to cry listening to the first four Bruce Springsteen albums, now I want to throw up when I hear his new stuff. Oh well, I've still got all the early Decemberists stuff.

[Lor]

I didn't love it at first, but now I feel the Meloy energy reinvigorating a stale (at the moment) form. This does harken back to raw REM and even earlier to Neil Young's attempts at updating the form. (think Down by the River as it's apotheosis.) This release is true Sepia like most Decembrist music but also fresher then anything since Gillian Welch... It was jarring at first but now I feel fresh emotions... the King is Dead -let the King stay dead!

[Kim]

I agree with Steve, Damian, Aine, and Mike...this album was just really underwhelming and disappointing. And this is coming from a person with several Decemberists-themed tattoos. I will usually defend them to the death, but this album...*sigh*.