Review Summary: As it ever was (more or less)
This album’s title is almost too on-the-nose - it’s not only a classic Decemberist-y phrase, poetically timeless, but also explicitly spells out the record’s aspiration to be that oldest cliche in the book for veteran bands - the “return to form”.
That return to form is necessary, given
As It Ever Was, So It Will Be Again not only marks the group’s first effort in six years, but also serves as the follow-up to the notably disappointing
I’ll Be Your Girl. In the abstract,
I’ll Be Your Girl was a passable record with a few genuine gems - “Rusalka, Rusalka/Wild Rushes” aptly displays The Decemberists’ more grandiose side, while the closing title track dips into their old well of curtain call sentimentality - but, when set against the standard of excellence which long defined the iconic band’s previous output, it fell quite short, bogged down by the ambivalent quality of a large swathe of the tracklist, and a few true stinkers (“We All Die Young”, cough, cough). Given that mediocre offering was the last appearance from these Portland, Oregon dignitaries, it’s fair enough that a demanding fanbase would now request “proof of life”, any kind of demonstration that their beloved standard-bearers still have “it”.
Turns out that The Decemberists” do indeed still have “it” in their arsenal, and they seem to want to trumpet that news through the furthest reaches of hill and dale - releasing early (among other singles) both the opening and closing track, which are not only perhaps the best tracks of their latest album, but also each display one of the group’s most clear-cut strengths in stark relief. The album’s first track, “Burial Ground”, is an absolute classic in a familiar way for the band, simultaneously morbid and very, very, very catchy - a reminder that, besides maybe The Shins, The Decemberists have long been the purveyors of the greatest hooks in indie-dom. Meanwhile, the album’s last track, “Joan in the Garden” see The Decemberists unfurl their full-fledged return to more ambitious compositions - a sweeping, trippy, nearly twenty-minute sprawl - its drone/ambient mid-segment might go on a bit too long, but the song reaches absolutely stratospheric heights in multiple places and can only be assessed as a dramatic success.
In the eleven songs between those memorable bookends, The Decemberists have covered a fair amount of ground, but slow to mid-tempo folk rock predominates. Broadly speaking, the material should satisfy fans of both the group’s early baroque prog-folk era and their later iteration of campfire singalong Americana - even just in the record’s first half, there’s plenty of macabre storytelling fare, like the rollicking (but bloodthirsty) “Oh No” or the sinister “The Black Maria” to balance out more hook-centered rustic tunes like the countrified ghost ballad “Long White Veil” and the immensely beautiful “William Fitzwilliam”. The second half might suffer a bit in comparison, with the inclusion of some weaker material, like the jaunty, but not particularly memorable, “Born to the Morning” or the overlong “America Made Me”. However, that stretch has some gems as well - “All I Want is You” might feel trite at first, but reveals itself on repeat listens to be a very pretty little tune, while the penultimate “Never Satisfied” is weepy and grand, suggesting it would’ve been a perfect closer if the band hadn’t decided to “go big” and end the record with the longest song they’ve ever attempted.
In short, yeah, The Decemberists are “back”, making enthralling music with enough catchiness, complexity, and atmosphere to satisfy the whole generation of listeners who have such high expectations for them. In the scope of their whole discography,
As It Ever Was, So It Will Be Again is probably a slightly weaker entry, given its runtime feels slightly overlong (indeed, this is their longest record, a distinction it doesn’t quite justify), and the fact that there’s a faint whiff of trying too hard to please everyone about these proceedings. The latter matter is hard to fault too much - The Decemberists are firmly in that stage of their career where virtually any sonic adjustment will feel like refracted light off one of their earlier accomplishments, and thus the band are doing their best to navigate within the confines that they’ve previously entrapped themselves in. As such, not much of the sonic territory meandered upon here is particularly new for the band, but they manage to provide highly satisfying renditions of many of the styles they’ve explored over the years. As such, this latest album feels like a rather comfortable, but nonetheless impressive, addition to the canon - some new classic tunes, a bunch of great tracks, and only a couple weaker inclusions. All in all, I don’t ask for more. These aging hipsters might now have sons and daughters of their own at this point, and that old light sure isn’t ambling anymore, but the tattered banner of the youth and beauty brigade still waves proudly when they play. Nothing will stand in their way.
