2008年 11月 2日 日曜日 00:57

Seeing The Decemberists live felt kind of like having a good cry and then dancing about it. Which was not exactly what happened, at least to me, but anyway! spaztastic and I got there an hour before doors, which meant we ended up standing right next to the stage (although off to the right a bit, though that was plenty close enough to see all the shenanigans). I admit I didn't know most of the words, but I sang along to what I picked up (and "Sixteen Military Wives," which was the last thing before the encore). There was also a large amount of vote-rocking exhortation, but I think college kids in Hyde Park are a pretty sympathetic choir for that. My favorite part was probably "Culling of the Fold," which I had not heard before but have already snagged from iTunes because, seriously:

And take your sweetheart down to the river
Dash her on the paving stones
It may break your heart
To break her bones
But someone's got to do the culling of the fold

…and Colin Meloy ran around grabbing people's heads at the "cut him up, boy" parts. Which reminds me how, near the beginning of the show, he made a complaint that we were being too polite– disturbingly polite. Poor band; nobody told you properly just where you were playing, did they? <3; UofC kids are like that.

Someone Il knows actually has a copy of the setlist, but I know the following songs were included (because I semi-recognized them/remembered lyrics; order probably inaccurate):
July, July!
The Engine Driver
On the Bus Mall
The Bachelor and the Bride
Valerie Plame
Summersong
The Apology Song
O Valencia!
Culling of the Fold
Chimbley Sweep
The Crane Wife 3
Eli, the Barrow Boy
Sixteen Military Wives
Raincoat Song
Sons & Daughters

…so whether or not the video on that poor guy's borrowed camera makes it onto YouTube, a message from the Decemberists (and me) to you: VOTE!