Do The Decemberists have people fooled?

micky wrote: don't forget the 'site's #1 Decemberists fan'  as well

Whistler might have a thing er two to say about that

I myself have yet to buy an album so I have nothing interesting to say

ClemofNazareth wrote: Snow Dog wrote: ~Rael~ wrote: So far, the name of the band "The Decemberists" is the only thing I like about them. But why do you think they fooled us? You think they petitioned to be here? (Maybe they did, I don't know) ..and even if they did...they would have gone through a process (and I was in charge of Band Submissions once, so I understand the lenghty [process) before being added! They didn't petition to be added here.  For the record I literally threatened to hold my breath until I turned blue if the Prog Folk team didn't accept them.  Not very dignified for a supposedly mature adult, but it worked. In fact, my eldest son (who was once an active member here) tried to turn me onto them a few years ago and I wasn't interested.  But coming on the heels of spending an evening watching 'A Practical Handbook' with him there was no doubt in my mind.  'The Hazards of Love' album and concert have just reinforced that opinion.

Edited by Snow Dog - June 13 2009 at 17:25

Those three songs on the band's entry page are as far from prog as you can imagine... Great songs, all of them (especially "The Mariner's Revenge Song"), but, as Ian correctly pointed out, mainly in a folk vein. To hear their progressive side, you should turn to something like "Odalisque" from their debut album, "The Island" from The Crane Wife, the whole of the Tain EP, and of course most of The Hazards of Love. 

Snow Dog wrote: Well the songs provided onm PA definitely show me Folk....don't hear the "Prog"...........but..........but! I need to hear a full album really. And anyway, some people find Prog where others don't.

I submitted The Tain as well but it wasn't added since that song comprises the entire EP.  You can get a sense here though:

Part I (with the Los Angeles Philharmonic)

Part II (same show)

Raff wrote: Now I understand!  You don't like them, but want to make us look like fools for liking them. This has f-all to do with them being prog or anything... It's like I started a thread about how people are idiots for thinking Dream Theater are prog, just because I don't like them. I wonder if you or any of the other naysayers in this thread have ever heard about personal taste.

Dude, what the hell? What's with the sudden animosity? I put down honest opinions and thoughts in this thread.

Listen, there are bands I like a lot, and at one point I started equating what I liked with being progressive. I have learned this isn't the case, I thought maybe it was happening with The Decemberists. Some people pn here like them, and as such thought they were prog. After this thread, I realize this hypothesis was not only hasty, but wrong, as I am the one being fooled, in that it is my personal tastes and limitations preventing me from hearing the progressive qualities of thier music.

That will be my last defense of my opinions and thoughts concerning this thread.

As for what I listen to, here is a list (containing some bands I have listened to in quite a while, and many bands I mos tlikely forgot to list.) Taken from my Facebook page, lol.

Tool, Dream Theater, Kansas, Lamb of God, Mudvayne, Into Eternity, Canvas Solaris, Gordian Knot,  Porcupine Tree, Coheed and Cambria, Pain of Salvation, The Flower Kings, Dimmu Borgir, Fleet Foxes, They Might Be Giants, Ekotren, Spock's Beard, Rage Against the Machine, Between the Buried and Me, Th3ee, Happy the Man, Pantera, Pink Floyd, Genesis, Yes, King Crimson, Opeth, Primus, The Mars Volta, Gentle Giant, System of a Down, Planet X, Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, Slipknot, Killswitch Engage, Pat Methany, Zappa, Evergrey, Spiral Architect, Rush, The Beatles, Jon Lennon, Metallica, A Perfect Cricle, Matisyahu, Wilco,  Beatles, Led Zepplin, Sixteen Horsepower, Devin Townsend, Arsonists Get All The Girls, Divine Heresy, In Flames, August Burns Red.

 


Edited by ~Rael~ - June 13 2009 at 18:01

If you read my post, you'll see that there were other factors that made me think they weren't progressive other than personal taste.

~Rael~ wrote: , Sixteen Horsepower,

Love those guys.  Did you know Wovenhand is here?  Even I can't totally defend their progginess, but I'm glad they're here nonetheless.

~Rael~ wrote: If you read my post, you'll see that there were other factors that made me think they weren't progressive other than personal taste.

ClemofNazareth wrote: Part I (with the Los Angeles Philharmonic)

hmmm.. overblown, pretentious, and way too ambitious

that's prog

~Rael~ wrote: Sure. ". . . 18th century influences. Very interesting, I thought, and then discovered those "18th century" influences were based on the song beginning with a keyboard programmed to sound like a harpsicord, and then it turned into a rather mundane rock song, with a poor Janis Joplin impersonater thrown in." And thanks for the link, Clem, I'll definitely check them out.