The Decemberists

The Decemberists，十二月黨，來自于 Portland, Oregon, United States的Indie Rock, Chamber Pop, Indie Pop,Progressive folk 5人樂隊.成員分別是Colin Meloy,Chris Funk,Jenny Conlee,Nate Query,John Moen.
他們的名字源自于俄國樂隊Decembrist Revolt 和與12月相關(guān)聯(lián)的某些氛圍.(=.=不會翻譯the atmosphere associated with the month of December).他們的歌曲曲風(fēng)多變.從upbeat pop 到 lush ballads.他們經(jīng)常會使用一些像手風(fēng)琴這樣的樂器.在歌詞創(chuàng)作方面,他們避免了那些和現(xiàn)代搖滾樂隊取材相同的內(nèi)容,諸如憤怒,焦慮或者自我反省. 取而代之的是他們具有敘事風(fēng)格的歌詞.比如下面這幾句歌詞. "My mother was a Chinese trapeze artist / In pre-war Paris / Smuggling bombs for the underground" (選自歌曲 "My Mother Was a Chinese Trapeze Artist", 專集5 Songs) 和 "We are two mariners / Our ships' sole survivors / In this belly of a whale / Its ribs our ceiling beams / Its guts our carpeting / I guess we have some time to kill" ("The Mariner's Revenge Song", 選自專集 Picaresque). 他們的歌講述的傳說故事從怪異的"Here I Dreamt I Was an Architect"到史詩風(fēng)格的("The Tain") .他們常調(diào)用從世界各地搜羅來的傳說故事. 早期, The Decemberists的音樂和歌詞內(nèi)容經(jīng)常被評論家與 Neutral Milk Hotel相比較. 從他們的首次演出開始他們的歌就一直處于演變和發(fā)展中,比較顯著的就是他們雖深受folk的影響但卻一直沒有停下向progressive rock轉(zhuǎn)變的腳步
The Decemberists今年的新專輯《The Crane Wife》（鶴妻）便是以此為主題，專輯旋律輕松悅耳，歌詞中度情節(jié)，依舊具備強(qiáng)烈的畫面感，Colin Meloy熟悉的嗓音，還是原來的十二月人，還是那些熟悉的記憶。
十二月人核心Colin Meloy曾經(jīng)在Tarkio擔(dān)任主唱，在2oo1和其他四位成員組成The Decemberists，目前在獨立樂壇有著挺響光的名氣。
The Decemberists有著他們獨特的魅力，其中最大的因素應(yīng)該是Colin Meloy“文人系詩人”的派別稱號， Colin Meloy這位來自美國密蘇里州的文學(xué)學(xué)士憑借其文學(xué)修養(yǎng)為我們帶來一個個包羅萬象、光怪陸離的故事。在他們EP《5 Songs》低調(diào)走民謠路線，Colin Meloy也以平民質(zhì)樸的精神在傳唱；到了首張專輯《Castaways and Cutouts》，民謠主調(diào)加上怪異歌詞的調(diào)味，但是這次有所不同的是，專輯體現(xiàn)的音樂性不再是低調(diào)的民謠而已，The Decemberists明白高調(diào)才是王道，所以曲風(fēng)呈現(xiàn)豐富多元，出現(xiàn)鼓點激烈的快歌，出現(xiàn)鋼琴帶奏的輕訴，還有Colin Meloy歪歪斜斜的聲線，《Castaways and Cutouts》給當(dāng)時的樂迷帶來了巨大的驚喜；之后的一張《Her Majesty》似乎又回到了原點，低調(diào)低調(diào)低調(diào)，在上一張專輯的出色表現(xiàn)之后淺嘗輒止，專輯呈現(xiàn)了一種被孤寂凄迷的情感包圍， Colin Meloy的聲音又真實而神情，其實表現(xiàn)的很好，只是我個人偏好他們的荒誕；2oo4年發(fā)行的單曲EP《Tain》，像是一場盛大的搖滾歌劇，哦不，或許該被稱為狂歡劇，現(xiàn)場感十足的Colin Meloy帶來了一張全新的十二月人專輯，也帶來了未來樂隊無限的可能；在去年的專輯《Picaresque》中，回看十二月人一路走來的痕跡，似乎是一個未完成大小雙峰模型圖一樣，而《Picaresque》正是在那個未知的峰頂，已經(jīng)不再低調(diào)民謠的十二月人在《Picaresque》中加入了更多的音樂元素，同時也穿上了流行的外衣，專輯十分容易入耳，卻也依舊保持了一貫的耐聽，難得難得，更多人指責(zé)他們太過相似的曲風(fēng)，缺乏搖滾激情的時候，我看到的是一個固執(zhí)、堅持、獨立的Colin Meloy和十二月人，以及他們抿著嘴朝你歪歪的壞笑。
　樂隊The Decemberists來自美國俄勒岡州的Portland，目前已經(jīng)發(fā)行了三張專輯和一張EP，歌曲風(fēng)格是自己非常鐘情的Indie Pop/Indie Rock。
　樂隊由五名成員組成，他們分別是：Colin Meloy/Chris Funk/Jenny Conlee/Nate Query/ John Moen,其中核心人物是素有“文人系詩人”之美稱的Colin Meloy。
The Decemberists
Led by Colin Meloy, the Decemberists are a five-piece outfit whose pop sound has been compared to the likes of Neutral Milk Hotel and Belle & Sebastian. Meloy, who hails from Missoula, MT, is the main songwriter for the group, whose initial lineup consisted of Ezra Holbrook on drums, Nate Query on bass, Jenny Conlee on keyboards and accordion, and Chris Funk on theremin and pedal steel guitar. Frontman Meloy, who also held a degree in creative writing, previously devoted some time to an alternative country group before breaking off to pursue his craft as a singer/songwriter in the city of Portland, a period that eventually led to the Decemberists' formation. Before Hush Records released the Decemberists' first album in 2002, the group put out an EP of five tracks. Their full-length debut, Castaways and Cutouts, was re-released that same year on the Kill Rock Stars label, and the band began to accumulate a serious fan base. After adding organist and keyboardist Rachel Blumberg to the group, in 2003 the Decemberists released Her Majesty, another fine collection of theatrical indie pop with British folk sensibilities that further cemented their growing reputation as a band to watch. The next year the five-part epic EP The Tain, based on the eighth century Irish poem of the same name, came out, followed by their third full-length, Picaresque, in 2005. The group, who at this point consisted of Meloy, Conlee, Query, Funk, and drummer John Moen, made the move to the majors (Capitol Records) for 2006's The Crane Wife, which managed to hit number 35 on the Billboard 200, and even grabbed the attention of comedian/actor Stephen Colbert, who challenged Funk to a guitar solo competition during a live taping of his show, The Colbert Report.