The Decemberists
Long Live The King EP
Capitol Records [2011]
Long Live The King EP is a nice 26-minute follow-up to The Decemberists’ excellent The King Is Dead LP, which was released earlier this year in January. The six tracks here are outtakes from those sessions and bring a much more diverse sound compared to the early R.E.M. vibe found on The King Is Dead. The first two tracks fall right into The Decemberists’ folk strengths. “E. Watson” features backing vocals from Laura Veirs and Annalisa Tornfelt. “Foregone” dives even deeper into their roots, with the pedal steel in full effect and an enjoyable laid-back swagger from the band that makes this track a favorite. “Burying Davy” is a longer and more somber song that loosely jams on, which makes it evident why it didn’t fit on the full-length album but is included here. The Decemberists’ jamming mode appears again on their solid Grateful Dead cover of “Row Jimmy,” which passes the six-minute mark. The EP ends with the swaying, horn-filled closer “Sonnet.”
Long Live The King is a great EP for fans. The record may not be cohesive, but it comes as advertised with tracks that should be heard and are most certainly enjoyable.
Key Tracks: “E. Watson” / “Foregone” / “Row Jimmy”
Artists With Similar Fire: Neutral Milk Hotel / Lullaby For The Working Class / Freedy Johnston
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