“The Hazards of Love” Live (The Decemberists in Tulsa)

Two weeks ago, on October 4th, I saw The Decemberists at Cain’s Ballroom in Tulsa, Oklahoma.  My friend Riley and I decided to make a big trip out of it, so we left Fayettville on Friday, stayed a couple of days with my friend Quinn in Oklahoma City, and then headed up to Tulsa for the show on Sunday.

After battling toll roads and a dying iPhone, we finally made it to Cain’s.  We got a good spot and stood waiting for the show to start.  Fairly quickly we started talking to some of the people around us.  One guy I talked to told me The Decemberists put on the best shows he’s ever seen.  So, needless to say I was more than a little excited.

The opening act was a group who I had never heard of before, but who I’ve recently noticed being mentioned here and there since then:  Laura Veirs and the Hall of Flames.  Veirs is a solo singer-songwriter who has recently been touring with her backing band The Hall of Flames.  Their performance was very entertaining and her songs very sweet.  Before the show started, I told Riley that I really had no interest in an opening band because I was so ready for The Decemberists to start, but after Veirs began these thoughts quickly vanished.  Veirs’s music has a very folky sound to it enriched with beautiful harmonies supplied by herself and the band.  I definitely intend to check out some of her albums when I get the chance.

Following Veirs’s performance, The Decemberists took the stage, and I could barely contain my excitement.  The show was everything I could have hoped it would be.  They performed their latest album, the rock opera aptly titled The Hazards of Love, from start to finish, complete with subtle costumes.  While the band did not necessarily act out the story, there was definitely a theatrical aspect to the show.  There was a lot of hand gesturing and subtle dancing going on that made the performance seem like more than just your average rock concert.  Some of my favorite parts were during the duets between William and Margaret, the story’s lovers and main focus, when Decemberists frontman, Colin Meloy, and Lavender Diamond vocalist, Becky Stark, would be positioned front and center on stage singing to each other.  Another highlight was during the song “The Queen’s Rebuke/The Crossing” when My Brightest Diamond’s Shara Worden was running back and forth across the stage passionately singing toward the audience in her portrayal of the evil Forest Queen.

After the conclusion of The Hazards of Love, The Decemberists took a short break followed by a 2nd set of some of their older material.  I wasn’t as excited about this set simply because I’m not as familiar with The Decemberists older work, but I was definitely entertained.  One of the highlights of the 2nd set was when the band brought Stark and Worden back on stage for an incredible rendition of Heart’s “Crazy on You.” I don’t even like Heart (or that song for that matter) but I must admit that the performance was extremely impressive.

My only complaints about the show would be that I wish it had been a little louder.  There were several rockin’ points from the album that I was looking forward to hearing in a live setting, but they simply weren’t loud enough for me.  This, however, did not really take away from the enjoyability of the concert.  It’s just something I would like to have been different.

There was also a point when the guitarist invited someone from the audience onstage to provide a reggae guitar solo for one of their songs and after playing for about a minute Meloy “gonged” him offstage while making fun of his performance.  This, I thought, was a little unnecessary.  I have heard that Colin Meloy is  a bit of a pretentious ass hole and, while I didn’t really get that vibe from him at any other point in the show, I definitely felt it hear.

However, the show was a blast and I couldn’t have been more pleased as I stepped out of Cain’s Ballroom preparing to make the trek back to Fayetteville.  I would love to see another Decemberists performance in the future, and hopefully I will be a little more versed in the rest of their catalog by then.

Here are a few pictures from the show taken by Jon Haque courtesy of Carly McGehee.  Thanks guys!

And here’s a video of “The Rake Song” from the performance:

~ by wyodico on October 15, 2009.