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- Summary: Chris Walla produced this third album for the literary Portland, Ore.-based five-piece led by Colin Meloy.
- Record Label: Kill Rock Stars
- Genre(s): Indie, Rock
- More Details and Credits »
Top Track
We Both Go Down Together | |
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Here on these cliffs of Dover So high you can't see over And while your head is spinning Hold tight, it's just beginning You come from parents... | See the rest of the song lyrics |
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Score distribution:
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Positive: 29 out of 32
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Mixed: 2 out of 32
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Negative: 1 out of 32
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It's hard to imagine The Decemberists topping such a fantastic and ambitious record, but as their previous albums show, I'm sure they'll have no problem one-upping themselves again.
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"Picaresque" is by far the Decemberists' best work to date.
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The effect is one of musical theater.
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The Decemberists’ first two records—Castaways and Cutouts and Her Majesty (both in 2003)—felt a touch spotty.... Picaresque trumps them both by dint of its focus, consistency and restraint.
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While Picaresque follows its predecessor's -- the treacly Her Majesty -- predilection for seafaring and mythology, its boot-covered feet are more firmly planted in the present, resulting in the group's most accessible -- and decidedly upbeat -- product to date.
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Where 2003's Her Majesty the Decemberists unfurled tales of royalty, and debut Castaways and Cutouts talked of the sea, Picaresque drafts a whole new cast of characters just as colorful.
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Over rudimentary, skiffle-derived hooks, a kitchen-sink orchestra creates an aura of portent. Then in steps Meloy, doping up the whole affair with empty melancholy until it has to breathe through a tube, wailing big words in a forced accent that conveys despair but fails to signify its cause, fails to signify anything.
Score distribution:
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Positive: 54 out of 60
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Mixed: 2 out of 60
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Negative: 4 out of 60
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Oct 9, 2017
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FrankApr 23, 2005
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AlexSJan 1, 2006
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ChristopherBMar 25, 2005
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RichardLAug 21, 2005
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AndyWApr 28, 2005
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JakeMar 23, 2005no....No.....NO!!!!!!!!! Someone needs to put this bleating donkey and his insufferable band of assorted a-ses out of their misery....
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