The Decemberists – The Rake’s Song (The Hazards Of Love, 2009)

Though I generally like The Decemberists, I’ve found that it’s easy to pick my favorite track off of each of their past three albums – and The Rake’s Song  definitly qualifies on The Hazards Of Love.

First off, as in most good Decemberist songs, there’s a story to be told:

I had entered into a marriage
In the summer of my twenty-first year
And the bells rang for our wedding
Only now do I remember it clear
Alright, alright, alright

The song builds really well – there’s this super catchy instrumental progression that sort of accomnies the progression of the song’s plot. It starts with simple acoustic guitar, no chords even, just some strumming. Then on the first ‘alright, alright, alright’, some electric bass jumps in, along with guitar chords, and finally a hint of percussion accentuating the next verse.

No more a rake and no more a bachelor
I was wedded and it whetted my thirst
Until her womb start spilling out babies
Only then did I reckon my curse

The percussion comes in full, along with that electric bass, expertly distorted as the song gets a little more twisted:

 

First came Eziah with his crinkled little fingers
Then came Charlotte and that wretched girl Dawn
Ugly Myfanwy died on delivery
Mercifully taking her mother along

What can one do when one is widower
Shamefully saddled with three little pests
All that I wanted was the freedom of a new life
So my burden I began to divest

The breath of air during the murder verse is perfect, and the growing screaming in the background of the ‘alright!’ sections is another nice touch:

Charlotte I buried after feeding her foxglove
Dawn was easy, she was drowned in the bath
Eziah fought but was easily bested
Burned his body for incurring my wrath

And at the end, there’s no moral to the story, which I like – the narrator gets away with the vicious murder of his own unwanted children. The line “her womb starting spilling out babies” is perfect for expressing his disgust with the situation.

And that’s how I came your humble narrator
To be living so easy and free
Expect you think that I should be haunted
But it never really bothers me
Alright, alright, alright
Alright, alright, alright