The Decemberists

The Decemberists came together in Portland, Oregon, in 2000 around Colin Meloy, a singer and guitarist with a storyteller's itch, and a band that could make his tales swing. Chris Funk plays guitar and whatever else is lying around, Jenny Conlee handles piano, keyboards, accordion and backing vocals, Nate Query plays bass and John Moen plays drums, with Rachel Blumberg and Petra Haden among the early passengers.

Castaways and Cutouts in 2002 and Her Majesty the Decemberists in 2003 set out the stall: wordy, literate art rock where the songs are about historical incidents and folklore, sung with a raised eyebrow and a lump in the throat. Picaresque in 2005 pushed the theatrics further, and "16 Military Wives" is its rabble-rouser, a brassy singalong with its fist in the air.

The Crane Wife in 2006 brought a bigger, prog-tinged sound, with the rollicking "O Valencia!" and the tender "The Crane Wife 3". The Hazards of Love in 2009, with the menacing "The Rake's Song", went darker still, and The King Is Dead in 2011 pulled back to earthy, rootsy folk rock with "This Is Why We Fight", "Calamity Song" and "Down by the Water", which picked up a Grammy nomination for Best Rock Song. What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World followed in 2015 with "Make You Better", then I'll Be Your Girl in 2018 with "Severed", and As It Ever Was, So It Will Be Again in 2024 with "Burial Ground" and "Oh No!", making 9 studio albums in all.

On stage they drag the crowd in, especially during encores: playful restagings of naval battles and other bits of centuries-old history, and songs acted out with audience members pressed into service.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.