In 2011, The King Is Dead gave the Decemberists a surprise US No 1 after a decade in the indie trenches, and their seventh album wastes no time in addressing the band’s longer-serving fans. “We know we belong to you,” sings Colin Meloy. “But we had to change some.” As with The King Is Dead, their more complex musical adventures have given way to a more straightforwardly melodic sound, which echoes REM, 80s scousers Pale Fountains and English folk. Subtle orchestrations, stupidly catchy choruses and hooks abound, while Meloy’s lyrics have become more beautifully personal. Evocative songs about lost love and distant summer glows nestle against introspective confessionals and Morrissey-type wordplay. “All I wanted in the world was just to live to see a naked girl,” he sings, while 12/17/12 refers to Obama’s address – and Meloy’s own sense of helplessness – after the Newtown school shooting. It’s another fantastic, emotional album from a band taking heartfelt stock of where they’ve been and who they are.
