Musical Wednesdays: "The Hazards of Love," Live

Last weekend, I got to see the Decemberists play live at the Byham Theater in Pittsburgh. I've seen them play live a few times before, but this show was unreal. They've always been theatrical in their live performances--I once was eaten by a cardboard cut-out of a whale when I saw them from the front row--but this was unlike anything they have done before.

I think it's the nature of the new album. The Hazards of Love, that makes it ideally suited for live performance: it's a completely over-the-top story, featuring a shapeshifter, an evil queen, The Rake, and ghosts. It's a tragic love story, and the Decemberists really played it like it was an opera. Well, maybe an opera mixed with a wrestling match. Right before "The Rake's Song," lead singer "Colin Meloy" stepped back, took off his jacket, and rolled up his sleeves. The rest of the band didn't stop. When he came back to the microphone, he was a different character in a different costume. And Shara Worden, who voices the evil queen on "The Wanting Comes in Waves/Repaid," was incredible. When she sang, she owned the stage. The crowd went insane. She came up and moved like she wanted to fight someone. You couldn't help but yell. She was awesome.

I really liked the album before this show, but now that I've seen it performed all the way through, I love it. There's something really admirable about doing an album like this--songs flow into one another, and the experience of listening to the whole thing is better than hearing individual songs--in the age of the iPod. I think performing the whole album on tour is a way for the band to say, "Yes, we wrote this so you'll listen all the way through. If you're shuffling, here is what you're missing." And then they rock your face off. And the best part was, after they played the album, they took a ten minute break and then did ANOTHER SET.

They did a lot of fantastic older songs, from "Billy Liar" to "The Shankill Butchers" (with the stage bathed in red light) as well as a new one called "Down by the Water," which featured a harmonica. A girl in the audience, when Colin Meloy put on his harmonica holder, made our whole state look stupid by shouting, "What is that?" He said he couldn't tell her, otherwise we'd all want one. He performed the worst song he's ever written, "Dracula's Daughter" (featuring the line, "You think you've got it bad? Try having Dracula for a dad."), a song I admit that I love.

And then, Shara Worden and Becky Stark (the other guest vocalist on the new album) came back onstage to do...Heart's "Crazy on You." It was like an increasingly loud, outlandish, amazing singing contest, with each woman hitting higher and higher notes. We all went crazy in the audience, because there's only so much riling up a performer can do before the crowd loses their mind. I think Shara Worden won, but it makes sense that she'd out-belt another singer, as she studied opera.

The band played two songs in their encore, and one was another new song called "Summer Comes to Springville." It was a really beautiful song, and very reminiscent of older Decemberists stuff, but with the addition of a harmonica. No one asked what the harmonica holder was. Halfway through the last song, "A Cautionary Tale," members of the band performed a short interpretive dramatic piece on the capture of Fort Pitt. By "interpretive," I of course mean, "Bearing absolutely no resemblance to fact." They did this in the audience. Standing on seats. Chris Funk, playing Napoleon, rode an audience member, playing a horse.

All in all, an amazing show. I will keep seeing this band whenever they're nearby. I don't know what comes next, whether it's another concept album or something more like their earlier albums, but I will listen to it, and chances are, I'll drive to another show and leave completely impressed and in awe.