Let’s be honest, the title of The Decemberists‘ 2011 offering, “The King Is Dead,” looks like it unwittingly described a band in decline. Not that The Decemberists were ever king, but they clearly have ascended to indie royalty over the last decade. Over that time, the band has assumed many roles: folk saviors, bookish rockers, prog rockers, etc. Through all these changes, the band certainly never sounded boring, or bored, until “The King Is Dead.”
Shockingly, the latest and most simplistic iteration of The Decemberists at times sounds like little more than an R.E.M. cover band (see: “Down By The Water”). It only makes sense, then, that they recently released a cover of R.E.M.’s “Cuyahoga”. Whether a pastiche or simply a band working through an identity crisis in studio, it is actually a pleasure to hear The Decemberists sound so liberated. Freed from trying to be everything to everyone, the band sounds like they truly enjoyed recording this. If covering a beloved band can reignite The Decemberists’ creative fire, I am all for it; let’s just hope it carries over to the next record.
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The Decemberists – “Cuyahoga” (R.E.M. Cover)
