Album Review // The Decemberists // As It Ever Was, So It Will Be Again

YABB Records

4/5 stars

If the TV show Portlandia stepped through a looking glass, the band The Decemberists might emerge on the other side — Pacific Northwest alt-rock, folk-revivalist, multi-instrumentalist thespians. Six years after their last release, The Decemberists appear to be tracing steps back to their origins. So much so that the album could be mistaken for a retrospective of earlier B-sides — which is a good thing. Tight orchestration defines much of this work. The tracks undulate between traditionally shaped shanties and ballads and pop tunes reminiscent of bands like The Waterboys.

Even the saddest and darkest themes are delivered with the upbeat storytelling signature of lead Colin Meloy, who seems, at times, to evoke Tom Waits, if he was bitten by radioactive They Might Be Giants. The band spins varied rovings to create works like the impressive 19-minute track "Joan in the Garden" with its shadows of Nick Cave, Pink Floyd, and O.M.D. (Dazzle Ships). One can imagine The Byrds taking the stage with the memento mori track "Burial Ground" or Pentangle with the guest accompaniment of Townes Van Zandt on "William Fitzwilliam." Influences are heavy, yet The Decemberists are like none other.