With Obama in tow, The Decemberists celebrate
Orpheum Theatre, Boston, November 6, 2008
Reviewed by Jeffrey B. Remz
It's hard to think what the atmosphere would have been like at The Decemberists' concert if Barack Obama was not president-elect. Chances are it would have been one huge downer of a concert considering that the Portland-based band was involved in the campaign.
But, of course, the results were exactly what Colin Meloy and company envisioned, and the result was an upbeat, feel good time of a show.
The Decemberists are not geared to radio play with their blend of folk and art rock, that's for sure as the songs tend to last awhile with intricate lyrics. Several times, the crowd thought a song was over and started clapping, only for the song to continue.
The good time feel was punctuated by an appearance of Obama, well at least a life-sized cardboard facsimile thereof, which was brought out by very fine accordionist/keyboardist Jenny Conlee and handed over to the crowd. Obama surfed the crowd a few times.
The Decemberists trotted out four new songs being released over a three-month period this fall. The songs - Valerie Plame, O New England, Days of Elaine and Record Year - were not on any previous releases because they did not fit so the group is releasing them two a moth as singles. That had nothing to do the quality of the songs, which stood up well to the rest of the material. There was a political tone, of course, to the bouncy, somewhat humorous Valerie Plame, the CIA agent outed by a Washington journalist.
While perhaps on the giddy side at times, Meloy and company closed the regular set with the ultra-serious "Sixteen Military Wives," about the plight of war. It's a sad song about death and making decisions about the lives of soldiers.
Closing the night of the 110-minute show with Sons & Daughtersfrom "The Crane Wife" was a fitting choice. Meloy said the song he wrote the anti-war song about three years "at a very different time...As things change, they take on a different meaning," urging the crowd to "move forward." In performing the song, he said The Decemberists needed help from the crowd, leading about 50 fans to jump on stage to form a giant chorus. The crowd helped as well, singing the refrain, "Hear all the bombs, they fade away."
Meloy has a solid baritone with a lot of vibrancy. While a good chunk of the time, the music is on the softer side, even when turned up, Meloy's vocals still stood out.
And he has a charming stage presence, sometimes with (not over the top) gestures, sometimes actions (going into the crowd during The Culling of the Fold without seeming rehearsed or easily getting fans to snap fingers on The Chimbley Sweep), often communicating simply through music. During 16 Military Wives, he asked the balcony of the packed old theatre to sing the chorus and then asked the much larger crowd on the first level to do so. He commented how in a typical rock show, he then would pit one group against the other. But not as a result of Tuesday's election, where, in effect, everyone is equal. At the close, Meloy led the crowd in a "Yes we can - Yes we did" call-and-response. And the crowd initiated a "Yes we did" chant in calling back The Decemberists for the encore. This would have been a tough night for McCain backers.
Loch Lomond, a fellow Portland, Ore. contingent, opened with an enjoyable half-hour set. The group was just about the perfect match for The Decemberists. Loch Lomond occupies a softer musical terrain than the headliners with a lot of fiddle punctuating the songs.
The group is led by lead singer Ritchie Young, who looked like he was ready for prep school with his tie and sweater with a logo imprint. He sings fine, but should avoid the falsetto - it sometimes didn't work. He also was aided by female vocalists, who fleshed out the songs.
Loch Lomond possesses some of the same musical quirkiness of The Decemberists. Without being over the top, that's a good thing.
