Internal Debate: Decemberists, The Hazards of Love

Features • Tuesday March 24th, 2009 • 12:33 am

Ours is a flawed system. But then again, so is the next one.

I’ll be the first to admit that we’re only perpetuating a broken machine here at Stereo Subversion. Of course, I love our community and what we’re aiming for here, but the current structure of critical reviews is a misnomer. One person receives a disc in the mail, says their opinion after not nearly enough listens and that becomes the official opinion for an entire print or web-based publication.

Case in point: White Lies. I love the new disc. LOVE it. I think the buzz from Britain is right on and I’m along for what is hopefully a long ride. I send it to a reviewer and our “official” review says 2/10. Two. That’s the same region that Miley Cyrus or a Soulja Boy would occupy (if we would review that shit). So we need to do something about it.

Welcome to the latest feature here at SSv: Internal Debate. We can’t make every review a communal effort, but we gotta start somewhere (as some wise person said long ago). And we’re starting with an album that should be featured front and center on most magazines on newsstands or on the ‘net. The Decemberists deserve the take of the SSv masses and we’re proud to give it to ‘em on their latest, The Hazards of Love. We’re making this a regular feature, so check back often for more multi-take reviews. For now, on to our take(s) on The Hazards of Love:

The Hazards of Love has it all: sound and story. Like a waking giant, The Hazards of Love strikes both awe, fear, and curiosity in our hearts, and from there the opera detonates classic rock themes and accents the pastoral through expansive instrumentation and vocals from Colin Meloy, Becky Stark, and Shara Worden. Few records I have heard express the dichotomy between “forceful” and “fragile” as clearly. This could easily be a Best of 2009. [Taylor Birkey]

Colin Meloy and his Decemberists are the ultimate modern prog-rockers. They’ve mastered the art of the concept album, undaunted by those lacking appreciation for the form. Their latest, The Hazards Of Love, is an artfully constructed tale of wanton lust gone awry, and the music backing the tale is intricate and nuanced, making it distasteful that the album is broken up into mere “songs.” If any album of 2009 deserves to be heard from start to finish, this is the one. Repeat as needed. [Jonathan Sanders]

With The Hazards of Love—a record filled with longing, ecstasy, bitterness and rage—The Decemberists have created a concept album that blends the energy of Rent with the gravitas of Phantom of the Opera. Essentially recorded as one song in seventeen parts, and replete with myriad time changes and variations of musical and lyrical themes, Colin Meloy and Co. have woven a spellbinding tale here. [Brian Palmer]

As with most works of the Decemberists, even as they convincingly shred and abruptly shift moods in bombastic rock opera style, it’s difficult to shake the feeling that Hazards of Love is a big, lumbering (again, expertly performed) intellectual exercise. However, it’s still a lot of fun to listen to a collection of bookish types fully geeking out on stolen metal riffs and nerd poetry, and I do sincerely mean that. [Daniel Kirschenbaum]

The Hazards of Love feels like the album The Decemberists were destined to make. Colin Meloy and Co. have always been at their best when creating intricate, epic fairytales and their latest is exactly that, just on a more grand scale. Yes, it’s over the top. Yes, it’s nerdy. Yes, it’s a bit weird. But it’s also totally, completely awesome. From a band like The Decemberists, why ask for—or expect—anything different? [Natalie B. David]

Following the prog-rock leanings of The Crane Wife to their logical extreme, The Decemberists return with not just a concept album, but a full-fledged rock opera, and everything that such a work entails. There is sprawling ambition and complexity, but also a dearth of individual songs that stand on their own, making Hazards an impressive feat but a frustrating and exhausting listen. [Josh Hurst]

Dark and Decemberists aren’t words often used in the same sentence, but Hazards of Love deems that description fitting. In some ways, they’ve achieved what Fleetwood Mac was able to accomplish though such brooding songs as “The Chain” in that they’ve successfully managed to create instrumentally challenging, attractive pop songs while utilizing a healthy balance of male and female vocals. [Steve Schusler]

Tagged as: Internal Debate

By Matt Conner, Josh Hurst, Steve Schusler, Natalie David, Jonathan Sanders, Brian Palmer, Daniel Kirschenbaum and Taylor Birkey

Derek Barber

I think it's funny that the only real debate going on in this Internal Debate exists within the comments posted below...

Here's what I originally wrote:

The Northeast indie turned major label folk-theatre troubadours swing
for the fences (again) and end up with an enigma of a record. While
the seamlessness between tracks is admirable, the result is an
exhausting listen with reprises ("Hazards Of Love 1,2, 3, 4" and
"Wanting Comes In Waves") adding little to overall shape. It's a
soundtrack to a spiderweb story best untangled on stage — not in
earphones. On the plus side, the indie-cameos, melodic guitar-work and
on-point instrumentation provide a much needed distraction from this
slightly misguided effort. For theatre-pop that really works, look no further than last year's Entanglements by fellow North-easterners Parenthetical Girls.

paul vandemark

I don't dig this album. It's too long, It is to produced, and too many kids will buy this album and perpetuate tween angst all over the world. The Crane Wife was ok, I am sure they still had a little bit to do with production...Clearly Chris Walla wrote this whole album.

Scott E

Here, here. I'll drink to that. Now we just need to get some disagreements going on and we're golden.

Not that I disagree with the reviews above; "Hazards of Love" is better than it should have a right to be.

Brian

This feature is a brilliant idea because of the case in point you mentioned, Matt. Everybody thinks differently, so multiple opinions of a new album--especially one with the apparent hype that White Lies has--give the readers multiple viewpoints to consider before listening to or buying albums from an artist. This is an idea whose time has definitely come.