The Hazards of Love
| The Hazards of Love | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
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| Studio album by The Decemberists | ||||
| Released | March 24, 2009 | |||
| Recorded | 2008 | |||
| Genre | Progressive rock Indie rock Folk rock |
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| Length | 58:36 | |||
| Label | Capitol/Rough Trade | |||
| Producer | Tucker Martine | |||
| The Decemberists chronology | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| Blender | [2] |
| Robert Christgau | (C)[3] |
| Consequence of Sound |  [4] |
| Drowned in Sound | [5] |
| Gigwise.com | [6] |
| The Observer | [7] |
| Paste | [8] |
| Pitchfork Media | (5.7/10)[9] |
| PopMatters |   [10] |
| Rolling Stone | [11] |
| The Skinny | [12] |
| Spin | [13] |
| Sputnikmusic | [14] |
| Tiny Mix Tapes | [15] |
| Under the Radar | [16] |
The Hazards of Love is the fifth album by American indie rock band The Decemberists, released through Capitol Records and Rough Trade in 2009.[17] The album was inspired by an Anne Briggs EP titled The Hazards of Love. According to the band, frontman Colin Meloy set out to write a song with the album's title—eventually leading to an entire album. Becky Stark (of Lavender Diamond), Shara Worden (of My Brightest Diamond), and Jim James (of My Morning Jacket) provide guest vocals throughout the album,[18] while Robyn Hitchcock makes a cameo guitar appearance in "An Interlude".
The Hazards of Love is a rock opera, with all songs contributing to a unified narrative, similar to the use of recurring stories in The Crane Wife. The plot is a love story: a woman named Margaret (voiced by Stark) falls in love with a shape-shifting boreal forest dweller named William (voiced by Meloy). William's mother, a jealous fairy queen (voiced by Worden) and the villainous Rake (also voiced by Meloy) bring conflict to the album's story arc.[18]
On January 15, 2009, "The Rake's Song" became available as a free download on their MySpace page. This was followed on February 16, 2009 by "The Hazards of Love 1," again on MySpace.
On March 13, 2009, The Decemberists announced that the album would be released on iTunes on March 17, 2009. The album was released on iTunes Australia on March 14, 2009. On March 20, 2009, Entertainment Weekly began streaming the full album on imeem.[19]
This album debuted at #14 in the US, selling 19,000 copies in its first week.[20]
Album artwork direction and concept by Mario Hugo, with illustration by Carson Ellis and Colin Meloy
[edit] Track listing
All songs written by Colin Meloy except where noted.
- "Prelude" (Jenny Conlee) – 3:04
- "The Hazards of Love 1 (The Prettiest Whistles Won't Wrestle the Thistles Undone)" – 4:19
- "A Bower Scene" – 2:09
- "Won't Want for Love (Margaret in the Taiga)" – 4:07
- "The Hazards of Love 2 (Wager All)" – 4:26
- "The Queen's Approach" – 0:29
- "Isn't It a Lovely Night?" – 3:39
- "The Wanting Comes in Waves/Repaid" – 6:27
- "An Interlude" – 1:40
- "The Rake's Song" – 3:16
- "The Abduction of Margaret" – 2:07
- "The Queen's Rebuke/The Crossing" – 3:56
- "Annan Water" – 5:12
- "Margaret in Captivity" – 3:08
- "The Hazards of Love 3 (Revenge!)" – 3:22
- "The Wanting Comes in Waves (Reprise)" – 1:31
- "The Hazards of Love 4 (The Drowned)" – 5:57
[edit] References
 |
This article uses bare URLs for citations. Please consider adding full citations so that the article remains verifiable. Several templates and the Reflinks tool are available to assist in formatting. (Reflinks documentation) (October 2011) |
- ^ "The Hazards of Love - The Decemberists". Allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/album/r1484647.
- ^ http://www.blender.com/guide/reviews.aspx?id=5484 link[dead link]
- ^ "The Decemberists". Robert Christgau. http://robertchristgau.com/get_artist.php?name=the+decemberists.
- ^ http://consequenceofsound.net/2009/03/19/album-review-the-decemberists-the-hazards-of-love/[dead link]
- ^ "The Decemberists - The Hazards of Love". Drowned in Sound. http://drownedinsound.com/releases/14050/reviews/4136332.
- ^ "The Decemberists - 'The Hazards of Love' (Rough Trade)". Gigwise.com. http://www.gigwise.com/reviews/albums/50011/The-Decemberists---Hazards-of-Love.
- ^ "Pop Review: The Decemberists, The Hazards of love". The Observer. http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2009/mar/15/decemberists-hazards-of-love-review.
- ^ "The Decemberists: The Hazards of Love". Paste. http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2009/03/the-decemberists-the-hazards-of-love.html.
- ^ "The Decemberists: The Hazards of Love". Pitchfork Media. http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/12842-the-hazards-of-love/.
- ^ "The Decemberists: The Hazards of Love". PopMatters. http://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/71979-the-decemberists-the-hazards-of-love/.
- ^ "The Hazards Of Love". Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/music/reviews/album/7910/38671.
- ^ "The Decemberists - The Hazards of Love". The Skinny. http://www.theskinny.co.uk/article/45054-the-decemberists-the-hazards-of-love.
- ^ {{cite web|url=http://www.spin.com/reviews/decemberists-hazards-love-capitol%7Ctitle=The Decemberists, 'The Hazards of Love' (Capital)|publisher=Spin
- ^ "The Decemberists - The Hazards of Love (staff review)". Sputnikmusic. http://www.sputnikmusic.com/album.php?albumid=36012.
- ^ "The Decemberists - The Hazards of Love". Tiny Mix Tapes. http://www.tinymixtapes.com/music-review/decemberists-hazards-love.
- ^ "The Hazards of Love". Under the Radar. http://www.undertheradarmag.com/reviews/the_hazards_of_love_review_032009/.
- ^ "Decemberists reveal The Hazards of Love date, tracklist". Pitchfork. December 10, 2008. http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/news/148104-decemberists-reveal-the-hazards-of-love-date-tracklist. Retrieved 2009-04-03.
- ^ a b "The Decemberists: 'The Hazards of Love'". Top40 Charts. January 16, 2009. http://top40-charts.com/news/Pop-Rock/The-Decemberists-The-Hazards-Of-Love-Features-Guests-Becky-Stark-Shara-Worden-Robyn-Hitchcock/45503.html. Retrieved 2009-04-03.
- ^ "Streaming of Upcoming The Hazards of Love". Noise Press. March 22, 2009. http://www.noisepress.com/2009/03/streaming-of-upcoming-hazards-of-love.html. Retrieved 2009-04-03.
- ^ "Kelly Clarkson Hangs On To Billboard #1". MTV News. March 25, 2009. http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1607703/20090324/story.jhtml. Retrieved 2009-12-13.
[edit] External links
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