The Decemberists — The Hazards Of Love

The Hazards Of Love

Capitol/EMI

Jen White (CHARTattack)

03/27/2009 4:24pm

The Hazards Of Love was first conceived as a musical, but when Decemberists frontman Colin Meloy realized the impossibility of bringing the story to the stage without changing his compositions, he reconfigured them into a rock opera. It became the Portland, Ore. quintet's fifth album.

Born of his recent obsession with the British folk revival of the '60s, Meloy took the album's name from Anne Briggs' 1966 debut EP of the same name. Many of its themes and characters from the recurring motifs are found in the classic folk songs of that era.

Hazards tells the story of Margaret (Lavender Diamond's Becky Stark), who heads to the forest to look for her shape-shifting lover William, who ravaged and impregnated her. She encounters a jealous queen (My Brightest Diamond's Shara Worden) and a cold-hearted knave on her journeys.

The hour-long opus was produced by Tucker Martine, who co-produced their last effort, 2006's The Crane Wife. It's quite the affair, with its 17 connected tracks weaving the epic tale.

Yes, it's heady, but would you expect anything less from the literary bunch? Don't get your pantaloons in a knot. This album's well worth the effort, especially if you can listen to it all in one sitting, as Meloy suggests.

The record opens with the instrumental "Prelude" and classic Decemberists track "The Hazards Of Love (The Prettiest Whistles Won't Wrestle The Thistles Undone)" before transitioning into "A Bower Scene," the first hint of the album's lingering Black Mountain influence.

Stark's vocals sound awkward when they're first introduced on "Won't Want For Love (Margaret In The Taiga)," but she eventually settles into character.

Worden's vocals are a stark contrast. She totally owns her role as the queen, especially on "The Wanting Comes In Waves/Repaid," with her controlled wailing on the chorus and then entirely letting loose at the end of the thick, murky Black Mountain-esque tune.

Hazards begins to falter by the time you hit "Annan Water," which sounds out of place with its more folky feel. "Margaret In Captivity" almost completely rips off the opening riff of Bon Jovi's "Wanted Dead Or Alive," so it's hard to take it seriously. "The Hazards Of Love 3 (Revenge!)" is shocking when you hear the kids choir at first, but is an interesting twist to the track with its fragmented, circus-like feel.

The album is saved by its final tracks. "The Wanting Comes In Waves (Reprise)" is filled out nicely with violins and anxiously builds until it falls apart into album closer "The Hazards Of Love 4 (The Drowned)," a beautifully airy duet between Meloy and Stark that's complemented by lap steel.

While it's not as stellar as The Crane Wife, it's a valiant effort from a talented songwriter and his band of merrymakers.

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