“June Hymn” by The Decemberists

"June Hymn" sits on The King Is Dead, the Decemberists' sixth album, which Capitol released on January 14, 2011. Colin Meloy wrote it and sings it, playing acoustic guitar and harmonica, with Jenny Conlee on accordion and Wurlitzer, Nate Query on bass, and Gillian Welch and David Rawlings adding their voices behind him. Tucker Martine produced with the band, then recorded and mixed it.

That cast tells the story of the record. Meloy said he wanted to step away from the British folk revival that had shaped the band's previous three albums and dig back into American traditions instead, and Rolling Stone's Douglas Wolk called the result their "most pastoral, rustic record" yet.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz.