The Hazards of Love

Following in the footsteps of Tommy (The Who), The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (David Bowie), The Wall (Pink Floyd), and Boulevard of Broken Dreams (Green Day), the Decemberists' 5th studio album, the Hazards of Love, is a rock opera (coincidentally released on the same day as Crack the Skye by Mastodon, another rock opera). Hazards of Love is the story of a love affair between a young woman named Margaret and a shape-shifting beast named William, the misfortunes they undergo during their relationship, and the tragic end that befalls their forbidden romance.

The challenge with a rock opera, at least for the listener, is hearing only one continuing story over the course of an album, oftentimes with a congruous musical theme from beginning to end. Thus, if an artist is unable to capture the listener's ear with the first few tracks and the main hooks, they run the risk of the listener losing interest long before the conclusion. Thankfully, in the case of Hazards of Love, my curiosity was peaked enough from the initial song to keep me attentive throughout the entirety of the CD.

The 1st track, appropriately titled "Prelude", sets the tone with spooky synthesizers in the style of Phantom of the Opera. Track 2, "The Prettiest Whistles Won't Wrestle the Thistles Undone", opens the story of Margaret and William with moody acoustic guitar and vocals remiscent of Automatic for the People-era R.E.M. or Death Cab for Cutie. This is followed by "A Bower Scene", the short but edgy tale of Margaret conceiving William's child, which is paralleled by sweetly-soft guitar picking alternating with stomping rock chords. "Won't Want for Love" consists of guest-vocalist Becky Stark (Lavender Diamond) decrying the wonders of infatuation with her nymph-like vocals, and lead-singer Colin Meloy echoing those sentiments with punching declarations of "Can you hear me love?". Another notable track is "Wanting Comes in Waves/Repaid", a bluezy back and forth duet between Meloy and Shara Worden (My Perfect Diamond), emphasized by Worden's sultry vocals, which are temptingly reminiscent of Grace Slick. Also of note is "The Rake's Song" an angry, morbid soliloquy telling of the hope created by a new marriage, the loss of a wife in childbirth, the killing off of the remaining children, and the resulting freedom from the whole mess. Though disturbing in content and a little difficult to digest, "The Rake's Song" is clearly the best "rock" track on the album. Hazards of Love concludes with "The Drowned", beautifully detailing the final spirited reunion of Margaret and William before they meet their watery grave.

Upon my first distracted listen to this disc, Hazards of Love came off as rather redundant and somewhat whiny. However, after three more spins in conjunction with a careful inspection of the lyrics, I was surprised at how catchy it became. This album is a gentle roller-coaster of musical story telling, and is definitely worth a listen. And if you've never listened to the Decemberists before, this would be a worthy place to start.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5