The Annotated Decemberists No. 1: ‘Oceanside’
I don't want to dwell too much on the song's title because it might just be a pretty word, but there's something odd about trying to get someone to come "oceanside" when they're already at the beach....
View ArticleThe Annotated Decemberists No. 2: “Shiny”
In his typical, understated fashion, The Decemberists' songwriter Colin Meloy has said little about this ballad other than, "This is a song about a gypsy." In it, a dejected narrator pines over a young...
View ArticleThe Annotated Decemberists No. 3: “My Mother Was a Chinese Trapeze Artist”
As related to Sean Nelson for a detailed article in the Seattle alt-weekly paper The Stranger, "My Mother Was a Chinese Trapeze Artist" was inspired by a particularly awful family canoe trip. Continue...
View ArticleThe Annotated Decemberists No. 4: “Angel, Won’t You Call Me?”
The narrator's relationship to this "Angel" is not explained in detail and therefore left open to interpretation, but basically we have a fairly straightforward musical love letter—albeit one couched...
View ArticleThe Annotated Decemberists No. 5: “I Don’t Mind”
It sure sounds to me like this verse describes an elderly, infirm woman being abandoned in the woods. It also seems reminiscent of a folk tale, though I can't point to a specific example. Folklore is...
View ArticleThe Annotated Decemberists No. 6: “The Apology Song”
The sixth and final entry from The Decemberists' debut EP, Five Songs. Yes, you read that right. There are six songs on Five Songs. Continue reading →
View ArticleThe Annotated Decemberists No. 7: “Leslie Anne Levine”
Perhaps no band’s lyrics better lend themselves to pseudo-academic analysis than those of The Decemberists. The Annotated Decemberists is an attempt to puzzle through the Portland, Oregon, group’s...
View ArticleThe Annotated Decemberists No. 8: “Here I Dreamt I was an Architect”
Perhaps no band’s lyrics better lend themselves to pseudo-academic analysis than those of The Decemberists. The Annotated Decemberists is an attempt to puzzle through the Portland, Oregon, group’s...
View ArticleThe Annotated Decemberists No. 9: “July, July!”
Perhaps no band’s lyrics better lend themselves to pseudo-academic analysis than those of The Decemberists. The Annotated Decemberists is an attempt to puzzle through the Portland, Oregon, group’s...
View ArticleThe Annotated Decemberists No. 10: “A Cautionary Song”
Perhaps no band’s lyrics better lend themselves to pseudo-academic analysis than those of The Decemberists. The Annotated Decemberists is an attempt to puzzle through the Portland, Oregon, group’s...
View Article
