Sunday, February 6th 2011

Shows:  The Decemberists

The Decemberists Ride The Boozy Tides in Toronto

By Morad Moazami

Listening to The Decemberists, one always perceives their fans to be like the band themselves: calm, resigned, humble, and appreciative of good music. This was not the case at The Sound Academy in Toronto on February 1st, where from the moment the revered ensemble arrived onstage to the concluding moments where they took their final bows and thanked the audience, the dissonant and obnoxious shrieks and bellows of the mob of drunks in the crowd was ceaseless.

One of the most surprisingly rewarding experiences of the night was Wye Oak, the opening band, not only because of their considerable talent and the sheer energy that stemmed from their performance, but because most of the “fans” who later littered the show with lewd “shout-outs” to the band and a stench that one can only attain by actually swimming in a keg of beer were still busy drinking at the bar. Nevertheless, Wye Oak was impressive, and validated how a good opening act can surely raise the energy level of an entire show. The Baltimore-based two-piece band, which consists of Jenn Wasner on vocals and guitar, and Andy Stack on drums and keyboards played what could only be described as a mix between folk and noise pop. Wasner’s Nico-like howls and Stack’s fervent drumming increased with intensity as the short-set went on, damaging one of their amplifiers in the process, and cutting the set even shorter. Regardless, The 20-minute act was a triumph, displaying a unique sound that certainly resonated with the audience.

Before The Decemberists made it to the stage, the alleged voice of Portland Mayor Sam Adams welcomed the audience to the show and asked them all to introduce themselves to one another, prompting what the band would have hoped to be a friendly and good-natured vibe for the rest of the show.

When Colin Meloy, Chris Funk, Nate Query, Jenny Conlee, Sarah Watkins, and John Moen finally took the stage, the crowd was instantly engaged, singing and dancing along to Song for Myla Goldberg from the band’s sophomore album Her Majesty. A very talkative Meloy thanked all the “Torontites” for turning-up as the band transitioned into Down by the Water, the first single off their excellent new album, The King is Dead.

It was during the aforementioned song when packs of boozy Decemberists fans decided to crash the party, pushing through from all sides, managing to elbow their way to the front, sing along, hold two cans of beer in each hand, and headbang, peculiarly all at the same time. Between one of the songs, a fan kept shouting, “Sing about autism!” to Colin Meloy, whose own child suffers from autism. This wasn’t the only occasion. Every time Meloy would cordially take the microphone to speak to the audience, the fan would persist with obnoxious remarks about autism. His heckling reached a point where Meloy himself acknowledged it early on in the show, looking at the other side of the crowd, and jokingly asking them, “Did you have to bring him along with you? Couldn’t you just keep him at home?”

The fan did not stop, nor did the headbanging, elbowing and unintelligible shouting from all over the floor. But nonetheless, the band pressed on in playing an intimate and remarkable show, performing songs from their entire catalogue.

The Decemberists are a band that have little need for visual effects or colossal amounts of lighting during their shows. Their music brings about such a unique sense of simplicity and ease that a plain, bright backdrop of coniferous trees set the tone for an intimate affair as they played songs both old and new.

The true skill and musicianship displayed by the entire band, who are all multi-instrumentalists in their own right, was also quite impressive. Never lingering in the same sound for long, the Portland-based indie rockers used a wide array of instruments – from fiddles to bouzoukis – to fluidly transition from folk-based songs such as Don’t Carry It All to heavier, more complicated tunes like The Rake’s Song.

The highlight of the night was during the first encore, when the band’s charm and eccentricity came into full display, as Meloy and Co performed live favorites, The Chimbley Sweep and The Mariner’s Revenge Song in theatrical fashion. During the former, Meloy climbed down from the stage and approached the audience, even taking a fan’s camera, and taking pictures of himself and the entire band with it before handing it back to her. He also took over John Moen’s drumming duties during the song, as Moen casually broke into a mini-cover of Tiny Bradshaw’s The Train Kept A-Rollin’. By now, the mood of the entire show had changed; most of the drunks had either passed out or were melted away by the lively and animated turn the show had taken.

Closing the show with June Hymn, the band sent the fans home happy, demonstrating that a superb performance assorted with a great deal of intimacy, theatrics, and humor can overpower whatever tanked-up abuse that stands in its way. In the end, what mattered was the music, and The Decemberists offered plenty of that.

Setlist:

Song of Myla Goldberg
Down by the Water
Calamity Song
Rise to Me
Won’t Want for Love
The Crane Wife 3
The Sporting Life
The Engine Driver
All Arise!
January Hymn
Don’t Carry It All
The Rake’s Song
16 Military Wives

Encore #1:

The Chimbley Sweep
The Mariner’s Revenge Song

Encore #2:

June Hymn