080: The Decemberists - What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World (2015)

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“The Decemberists have always aimed their sights at bookish fans who wanted music to be significant, who were interested in legends and myths and theatre and thesauruses.”

—Jeremy D. Larson, Pitchfork

At last, we’re talking about the Decemberists, a band that has come up multiple times in other episodes! But instead of going for the more obvious choices like Picaresque or The Crane Wife, we decided on an album that we feel has been underappreciated (even by some of us). What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World may not sound quite like the Decemberists of yore, but their unique identity hasn’t really changed, it’s just been channeled in new directions. Plus, this album contains Amanda’s most AND least favorite Decemberists songs! This is a good one for those of you who like the discord.

Miscellany

• Producer Mike pointed out that “Better Not Wake the Baby” is basically Colin Meloy writing a Richard Thompson song, which makes perfect sense given how many times we compared Richard Thompson songs to the Decemberists.

• We mentioned all the various bits and bobs of music the Decemberists have released outside of their albums. One of those is a song called “One Engine” on the Hunger Games soundtrack, produced by our pal T-Bone Burnett.

• We forgot to point out the Decemberists’ all-time career highlight: their appearance at the Pawnee, Indiana, Unity Concert, participating in a moving rendition of “5000 Candles in the Wind” along with Mouse Rat, Duke Silver, Jeff Tweedy, Ginuwine, Letters to Cleo, and Bobby Knight Ranger. 

• A probably incomplete list of the Decemberists’ “Song” songs:

  • A Cautionary Song

  • Song for Myla Goldberg

  • The Mariner’s Revenge Song

  • Summersong

  • The Rake’s Song

  • Ben Franklin’s Song

  • Calamity Song

  • Raincoat Song

  • Apology Song

  • Lake Song

  • Anti-Summersong

  • A Beginning Song 

Other links 

• Music Theory Remixed: Hypermeter in The Decemberists’ “Lake Song” (YouTube)

• “Make You Better” official video (YouTube)

• “Lake Song” official video (YouTube)

• “A Beginning Song” official video (YouTube)

• Reverb Interview: The Decemberists’ Jenny Conlee (Reverb)

• What A Terrible World, What A Beautiful World: The Decemberists’ “Concept-Free” Classic (Pitchfork)

• The Decemberists Scale Back on What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World (Spin)

• Discord & Rhyme’s What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World playlist (Spotify)

• Discord & Rhyme’s Patreon

Discord & Rhyme Roll Call 

• Amanda Rodgers (host)

• Chris Willie Williams (moderator)

• Rich Bunnell

• Phil Maddox 

What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World tracklist 

1. The Singer Addresses His Audience

2. Cavalry Captain

3. Philomena

4. Make You Better

5. Lake Song

6. Till the Water’s All Long Gone

7. The Wrong Year

8. Carolina Low

9. Better Not Wake the Baby

10. Anti-Summersong

11. Easy Come, Easy Go

12. Mistral

13. 12/17/12

14. A Beginning Song 

Other clips used 

The Decemberists:

• The Island (Come and See)

• The Crane Wife  1& 2

• Here I Dreamt I Was an Architect

• Odalisque

• The Mariner’s Revenge Song

• We Both Go Down Together

• Raincoat Song

• The Wanting Comes in Waves/Repaid

• June Hymn

• Calamity Song

• We All Die Young

• The Island (The Landlord’s Daughter)

• Eli, the Barrow Boy

• The Tain 

Others:

• Rammstein - Du Hast

• Yo La Tengo - Pass the Hatchet, I Think I’m Goodkind

• Yo La Tengo - Beanbag Chair

• Sloan - Everything You’ve Done Wrong

• The Church - Under the Milky Way

• Nick Drake - Northern Sky

• They Might Be Giants - Good to Be Alive

• Papa M - Over Jordan

• Neil Young - Captain Kennedy

• Led Zeppelin - Gallows Pole

• Tucker Martine - Brood X

• Carole King - Smackwater Jack

• Elle King - Baby Outlaw

• The Doors - People Are Strange

Band/album personnel 

• Colin Meloy - Lead vocals, acoustic and electric guitars, bouzouki, harmonica, backing vocals

• Chris Funk - Acoustic and electric guitars, banjo, bouzouki, mandolin

• Jenny Conlee - Piano, Hammond organ, vibraphone, accordion, assorted keyboards

• Nate Query - Electric and upright basses

• John Moen - The Drums, percussion, backing vocals
  

• Rob Moose, Kyleen King, Patti King, Anna Fritz  - Strings

• Rachel Flotard, Kelly Hogan, Laura Veirs, Ragen Fykes, Moorea Masa - Backing vocals

• Victor Nash - Trumpet

• Kyleen King, Laura Veirs, Allison Hall, Bridgit Jacobson, Carson Ellis, Michael Finn, Jeremy Swatzky, Shelley Short, Steven Watkins, Ritchie Young, Moorea Masa - “The Singer Addresses His Audience” choir

• Chris Funk, Nate Query, John Moen, Jason Colton, Tucker Martine - The “Anti-Summersong” Support Gang

Credits 

“Discord & Rhyme (theme),” composed by the Other Leading Brand, contains elements of: 

• Duran Duran - Hungry Like the Wolf

• Amon Düül II - Dehypnotized Toothpaste

• The Dukes of Stratosphear - What in the World?? ...

• Faith No More - Midlife Crisis

• Herbie Hancock - Hornets

• Kraftwerk - Autobahn

• Talking Heads - Seen and Not Seen

• The Decemberists - Make You Better (this episode only) 

You can buy or stream What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World and other albums by the Decemberists at their official website, your local record store, or the usual suspects such as Spotify, iTunes, YouTube, and Amazon. Follow Discord & Rhyme on Twitter @DiscordPod for news, updates, and other random stuff. Editing is by Rich, and special thanks to our own Mike DeFabio, the Other Leading Brand, for production and original music. See you next album, and be ever wonderful.