Songs for Beowulf and Garfunkel

The newest album from The Decemberists, Picaresque, is a refreshing break from mainstream music. Most music in pop culture has similar undercurrents, whether it’s a feeling or a drumbeat or sound effects on guitars and electronic pianos. The Decemberists do not seem to immerse themselves in pop music, which is evident in this newest effort.Picaresque is a slightly kitschy mish mash of all kinds of eclectic styles. It is mainly influenced by folk; with harmonies like those of Belle & Sebastian, melodies like those from Simon & Garfunkel, and lyrics like those by Joni Mitchell. Singer Colin Meloy sounds rather similar to a male Delores O’Riordan of The Cranberries in terms of basic accent (even though The Decemberists are from ye olde Portland, Oregon!) and vocal style manifested in songs like “Eli, the Barrow Boy.” Songs such as “We Both Go Down Together” utilize a vast array of instruments from an accordion to strings, an electronic organ and what sounds like a mandolin. These songs incorporate older elements of style, the simple breakdown of songwriting from a more delicate era.

The most interesting aspect of their music is the fact that many of the tracks such as “The Mariner’s Revenge Song” sound quite akin to nondescript European folk songs. The tune could be of German, French, Irish, or Welsh origin, the lyrics seem as if they were translated by a scholar at Oxford University from a mostly-forgotten version of some other language. It is nostalgic in style and content though it is not copy-cat. The Decemberists definitely have their shit together, and not in an ordinary way.