Hey there Machinists — apologies for the spare content this week on the Machine Shop; I’ve been a bit hither and thither. HOWEVER, I am here now and thought it was high time to open things up for questions again, if you’’ve got ‘em. Fire away!
I think I just liked the sound of those two words together, sister nebraska. I think I started with the words and then it just turned into a roadtrip song.
Just to throw in this thread my love for Devil’s Elbow, and the dream it was to find I Guess I Was Hoping For Something More at a thrift store ca. 2007.
I'm just wondering why he passed up on such an obvious metaphor for the travel between the over and underworld and just said "which represents....ships". Probably because it was too obvious
In the song "Sons & Daughters", I curious about the lines "We'll build our walls aluminum
We'll fill our lives with cinnamon now." When I was about 8 (60 years ago) the 2 words I had the most trouble pronouncing was cinnamon and aluminum. I would walk and repeat the words "cinnamon and aluminum" over and over and over again.
The USA is on the verge of collapse as a nation. Yay or nay and wtf are we supposed to do? Can we come live on the farm (jk. But also...wow it sucks here).
I worry about this too, my friend, but we can only move forward. Voting, voting all the way down the ticket, for progressive candidates and supporting their campaigns is what I'm doing
I would love to know anything you have to share about the creation and production of the Hazards of Love album! I read a review once regarding it lovingly as “Meloy going full Meloy,” and I’ve always just wanted to know more about how you came up with it.
What is "full meloy" anyway... It came about because I was listening to a ton of 2nd wave (3rd wave?) British Folk Revival records -- Fairport Convention, Bert Jansch, Anne Briggs, Shirley Collins, Steeleye Span, Nic Jones, Watersons etc etc -- and finding all these similarities in the songs, in the characters of the songs. So many Williams, so many Margarets, so many dangerous rivers that have to be forded. I thought it would be interesting, as an experiment, to take all of these kind of standard folk song archetypes and stitch them all together and see what kind of story they made. That's basically it. Initially I wanted to write them all in D (in drop D tuning) but I only made it halfway through before I realized that was *not* a good idea.
Thank you so much for your thoughtful reply! I wish I could find the article, but the writer compared you to George Lucas. He’d said that Lucas went “full Lucas” when creating Star Wars, seeming to bring his talents and interests to fruition, unhindered. So he implied Hazards of Love was your Star Wars.
My kid wants to know what you put on a bagel. I want to know how much is the band involved in shaping Decemberists songs? How collaborative is your process when it comes to writing, melody, arrangements, etc?
I'm an everything bagel toasted with scallion cream cheese and lox kinda guy. As for band collaboration, how it typically works is that I'll record a demo and flesh it out with rough ideas for drums, bass, guitar, and sometimes keys, but then the band is free to take those motifs/ideas and run with them. That's typical, but sometimes a song feels more open for interpretation and we'll just jam on it (in the parlance) in the studio or rehearsal and see what parts work, with everyone throwing in ideas. As for chords/melody/song structure, I do that at home. I'm not really a bring-fragments-into-the-studio-and-see-what-happens kinda guy. Too much of a control freak.
Weirdly specific question about Apology Song - what is the word sang before "joy ride"? Hecsher's? Hesherous? I've always pictured the two naughty neighborhood Hescher brothers having heaved the bike into the pond after their thieving and joy-riding was complete.
In an interview you once said video games are your least favorite habit. Not to ask you to dwell on that which is your least favorite, but…what games have absorbed you the most? 👀
i was noticing you posted an insta pic with elliott smith & had wondered if you knew him well or had any stories to share? i was one of many who spent years over at the old 'sweet addy' elliott smith forum (i was friendlyghost there) where we usually obsessed over his song lyrics & interesting guitar playing style, & it was there that i first heard about you & your music :) thanks..
To be clear, I wasn't in that photo, that was something Sam Coomes from Quasi had posted. I didn't know Elliott, but I was a fan. He was a big deal when I moved to Portland, but he wasn't living there anymore. He'd come through from time to time; I saw him play at Satyricon in like '00 or '01 and I was at a house party that he was at once, but he was just standing in the corner with a couple girls, clearly not wanting to mingle. Those are my Elliott Smith stories.
thanks so much! from a fellow portlander.. i think of him whenever i pass by the satyricon or other certain pdx spots, so glad i discovered your music at the old forum, now i can enjoy listening to your songs, which are at times so moving to me, but not heartcrushing as his are to me now.. xo <3
So awesome, Colin! My question is about your song process: I always feel like I’m getting a vocab lesson with your songs. Do you use a dictionary as you’re writing your lyrics?
On another note, I can’t wait to see you on my birthday, Aug 24 at Wolf Trap. I’ll be in the VIP section and would be over the moon if you stole my phone and called my mom while singing Culling… just saying….
Oh, so many unknowable factors. I would say your own personal mood -- but also some of the best shows are the ones that I've walked into feeling terrible. Standing room is always preferable to seated, but I also am in solidarity with people who like to sit during shows. I get it. Witnessing people being kind to one another in the audience is a powerful thing -- watching people help each other, or connect with one another during the course of the show, is so cool. Or when some drunk asshole who's being a dick to everyone gets ushered from the floor by the crowd and everyone cheers -- that's an amazing thing to behold.
I've been to all of these shows and you're absolutely right - the energy when these things happen really elevate a show. I hope all of your upcoming shows are those shows for you!
Could you speak about the creation of “A Beginning Song”. Love the song it really moves me. Also love that “A Beginning Song” is the last track on the album.
Yeah! It had a few different titles, including "Beginner's Mind" and "Should I Be" which were true to the spirit of the song, but maybe a bit too... I dunno.. metaphysical. These ideas of "coordinating your sights" and "getting square to rights" and "calming riots in your mind" and "finding yourself in time" -- I was getting into mindfulness and meditation at the time, right around the time when there was a lot going on in my life and I was feeling a bit overwhelmed. This song was kind of note-to-self to stay present, calm, stay hopeful, not striving...
"I am hopeful; should I be hopeful" is absolutely my favorite lyric for so many reasons, including how the music emphasizes it by adding it as a 3rd repetition in the refrain. I just love it.
We did have an online database going, I think, in some iteration of the decemberists.com site. I would love to update that, because the lyrics sites are *so awful*.
What are your thoughts about Nirvana's Kurt Cobain as a song writer? Of course Kurt's loss was really tragic. I know that they have had a resurgence in popularity in recent years, I'm don't mean that. Just as a songwriter opining about another songwriter. Colin about Kurt. I've thought I wish I could have heard a Kurt cover of "I Was Meant for the Stage." Please take this any direction you might wish.
Thank you so much for your pioneering efforts with the machine shop sub stack format!!!
I remember hearing Smells Like Teen Spirit when it came out and feeling like I'd heard it already -- that I preferred the replacements and husker du over this new amalgam. I think I came to appreciate it over time, though. Nevermind is a great record.
Hank was a massive lego fan, though he only read the books and catalogues 😂. Milo is a true-blue lego fan, though. He goes for the Star Wars sets these days, with the occasional Ninjago set thrown in. He's finally building them himself, which is a bit of a relief...
Not Mr M, but I'll take a stab because I really love this song too.
"boom" I'd guess "boom and bust" sense of massive growth.
It's "ambling life". I suspect the line implies the current life is easy and peaceful and pleasant (ambling) so when he sings "when this old life isn't ambling any more" he's looking ahead to times that aren't so easy.
I want to brag: I checked it was "life", and when I put the needle down it was exactly on the start of the bridge. I've heard and replayed and studied that song so many times now (larned it with the Mrs as a duo) I feel like I could scrub to a specific bar in iTunes. And I still love the bejaysus out of it.
Thanks, Nat! Those interpretations feel right for sure. I'd sure love for Colin to chime in. One quibble, though: the lyrics in the CD insert say "light".
Also, it took a bit to get it down, but now I love playing it as well!
Is there ever a chance of you (solo Colin) or The Decemberists ever covering a few Tarkio songs? I know you covered Devil's Elbow on your "Sings Live!" album and "My Mother was Chinese Trapeze Artist" made it onto 5 Songs.
I'd love to hear a new interpretation of "Save Yourself", "Keeping me awake", or "Better Half", but am unsure how you or the band feel about revisiting your old work. Maybe at the Wiltern in August ;-P, haha.
My family and I are in London right now on vacation and I couldn’t help but notice how much of your lyrics seem to be written as someone from 19th century England. As we toured London Bridge, I even saw that Engine Driver was a position when the bridge first opened. Where did the fascination for that period begin? Was it a particular book that got you going? Did anyone in the band ever express skepticism on how a song about a mariner out on sea, for instance, may not play well with the young-uns?
Would you tell me more about Davy? I’ve always imagined him as the village fool who was mentally and physically disabled (those crooked legs), but whom everyone loved and sort of took care of. I picture his death as something somewhat tragic but foolish, like drowning (went in the water despite not knowing how to swim), or falling down the well his mother warned him against visiting.
I love how the whole village is helping bury him, and there seems to be a sense that they all knew this was coming, sooner or later, but they’re all still quite sad, of course.
Just wondering what Davy’s back story was, and if I’m close in my imagination of who he was.
That is a perfect story for our poor Davy. To be honest -- and I'm not saying this in a copping out way -- I think I kept Davy's story deliberately unclear so the listener could populate his life however they saw fit, just as you have done. I wouldn't want to intrude on that process by giving out my own theories, but I think you're on a good tack. It's grim, it's sad, clearly Davy did not die under the best of circumstances. Bring out your weeping weeds.
Hi Colin! I'm always curious about an artist's process of choosing which songs make the album and which don't, and then how to sequence the ones chosen. How do you and the band go about it?
My pet Decemberist wonderings about this concern how you decided to leave Perfect Crime #1/The Day I Knew... and After the Bombs off Crane Wife and then the decision to split up the Crane Wife sections and sequence the album in that manner.
(Also thank you so much for all the music and beauty)
That's super tough! Sometimes it's more obvious that other times. I labored over the sequence for What A Terrible World... for months. Perfect Crime #1 felt like an outtake from the get-go (not to mention that it was recorded in a drunken haze). After The Bombs -- that one just felt like it didn't have a place in the tracklisting, that particular mood/feel. Funny thing, though, it ended up as a bonus track at the end of the iTunes version (back when they did that kinda thing) so there are a ton of people who know it as the last song on Crane Wife, as opposed to Sons & Daughters. As re: Crane Wife split, that was Chris Walla's idea. It felt novel and a little cheeky, to put the third part of a three part song first, and we ran with it.
Yes I was one of those people who had it as an itunes bonus track! My friends and I were aware that it wasn't on the actual album but we loved it so much we just kinda chose to believe it was the last song. Perfect Crime #1 does make sense since it has a less "decemberists-y" feel and it's not surprising to hear it was a drunken recording session but boy I love that song, always thought it would have been a very ballsy way to start an album.
While there are so many of your songs that I like, one that stands out is A Record Year for Rainfall. I just love playing the two discordant chords at the beginning. Of course, living in California instead of Portland the title leads people to expect a more happy song. Could you give some background of how this song came about and your feelings about it?
I wrote that song in Missoula when I was, I suppose, still in Tarkio. We weren't recording much and playing a little around town but I don't think there was that much hope for our future. I was planning a move to Portland and the rest of the guys were staying put. So there are a bunch of songs from that time that are kicking around. I think I might've polished it up in '07 or whenever it was when we recorded it, but it's mostly as it was written in (I think) 99. The idea is really as simple as it sounds: I saw a headline in the Missoulian that said it had been a record year for rainfall, and I like the sound and cadence of that line so I just went from there. Then it became a thing about, I think, a crumbling, decaying relationship. Which maybe I was in at the time?
1. You often have your eyes closed when you’re singing. Is that because you’re trying to avoid eye contact with the front row? Or do you have the notes and lyrics scrolling like the Star Wars story crawl in your mind?
2. Can you give high-school yearbook style superlatives to everyone in the band?
1. Not sure why. I don't always have them closed, but sometimes it's a short cut to getting into a kind of space with a song, to find your way into it.
2. Jenny Conlee: most studious. Nate Query: most likely to succeed. Chris Funk: best hair. John Moen: most nicknames.
Do you and the rest of the band get together between tours to just jam and play together or are you all too busy as to make that difficult without lots of planning?
We don't. Even in the early days, most all of our rehearsals were in prep for a show or a tour or a studio session. I think that worked for us in the first few months of being a band, just as we were learning new material and getting a feel for playing together, but once that's been established, we really only get together to work. Which is good, I think.
How involved are you with the show to be based on your Wildwood series and how closely will it stay true to the book itself? My daughter and I are currently reading through the series and look forward to the show.
Cool! We were more involved in the development of the Wildwood movie early on, when there were initial drafts of a screenplay to look at and some concept art. Over time, we kind of drifted away from it, as they were working on other films. We didn't even know if it was going to made, tbh. I think Laika always knew it was going to be a tough one -- armies of coyotes and bandits is no small feat in stop motion animation. When they started production, everything was in pandemic lockdown, so we didn't get a chance to visit the studio. But! We're heading over there in a few weeks to see the sets and some footage, so that's exciting!
That’s awesome! For some reason I thought it was going to be a series and not a film itself, but that sounds even better. Yeah, looking forward to seeing it with her when it comes out - will be interesting to see how it all adapts and how the world comes together.
Hey Colin, I'm a theatre professional and I've always wondered exactly which songs and what the through-line was going to be for that musical about the Butte miners. Rox in the Box, the two Hymns, Burying Davy, etc; I'd love to know how things would have looked if you'd have been able to wrestle all that into a theatrical form.
Yeah, that was a thing, wasn't it. I was getting it all fleshed out and then felt called away to other things. Rox in the Box was definitely one of songs, as was Burying Davy -- another is lying around called "Up the Kaiser" (to be sung by an adhoc militia of pro-german workers). The hymns were never meant for the show, but I think I was going to reappropriate an unused idea from Hazards of Love. It was a love song to be sung between the two star-crossed leads. Maybe I'll put those up on here one of these days...
Hi Colin I am wondering what the story is behind 'Cutting Stone ' I love it, the simplicity and the feel of it. Also I can easily play it at my local acoustic music clubs here in West Sussex UK
Would there happen to be any spare Barger Rothery patches in the known universe? There's a guy in my mirror who says he'd pay a good deal for one. And given how much he's bought from that era, and how close he says he was to winning that scavenger hunt, I wouldn't put it past him.
Ahh I just woke up and saw you were doing this! Damn working nights! Anyway if you’re still out there: is the line in the bridge of The Bagman’s Gambit, “you were there in fours” and what does that mean?
Sometime in HS I discovered Robyn Hitchcock and was particularly a big fan of Globe of Frogs. Have you ever collaborated with him, and could you ever be convinced to do Balloon Man, because I'm convinced you guys could do it justice.
I LOVE Tarkio. It is my “go to” music when riding my bike to work. Singing “Helena won’t get stoned” really loud is much better than yelling “on your left”.
Was listening to CA 1 yesterday and was wondering if you always had the transition in mind when formatting the song? Or did it start as just the first 6 min and grow into the full song as it stands now?
Hi Colin! There’s a release going around some small record stores’ preorder lists called Colin Meloy Sings Together and they don’t seem to know if it’s real or their distributors don’t have any information on it. I preordered it in case it’s real, but anything you can share about it? Thank you!
Hi Colin, are you a fan of The Delines? I believe some Decembrists folks have played and are playing in that band. I was big fan of Richmond Fontaine and Wille's novels, but never got to see the band as they always seemed to be in Europe on tour and didn't make it down to CA much. Anyway, coming up Portland to see them with Minus 5 on the 30th this month. I really like their sound. If other Machinists haven't checked them out, it would be well worth to catch them at Alabama Studios before they...head off to Europe :(. Anyway, thanks for all the song tutorials. June Hymn really made my day... :)
I'd also like to chime in and express some love for Tarkio. Keeping me Awake and Better Half are favorites of mine! I love the sound of the Violin on that album.
Can't wait to see you all in Boston! Roadrunner is a great new venue, glad you ended up there. Also excited for my first standing only Decemberists show, I've found myself being the only person standing and dancing just about everytime I've seen ya. I think I remember some banter from you informing the Buffalo crowd a few years back that they were "a rather sedentary audience"
Hello there- hope I haven’t missed the proverbial boat- writing to you from marseille where pirates abound and accordion fills the streets
What’s your preference on people singing along at your shows? I always wonder cause I always want to loudly but then worry about disrupting. Please share your thoughts on this!
My best friend wrote a play based on "On the Bus Mall." It is a huge passion project for him lasting years of revisions and deep thoughts on the lyrics and LGBTQ themes. He's a recent machinist but also a busy doctor so I know he may not get to ask this question but: would you give your blessing on the project? I know it would mean a whole lot to him to know that you knew about the play and approved of it. Thanks for everything!
Would you consider teaching an in-person songwriting class here in Portland? I’m signed up for one in Nashville during your Ryman weekend but would love to learn from you closer to home. Happy to help TA!
Hi Colin! Greetings from Chile! Many thanks for the Machine shop, such a unique place!!! I was wondering if you could talk a bit about the genesis of the name and the cover of "What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World"
california one/youth and beauty brigade is on my top 5 favorite songs list and i’ve always wondered, what is your connection to the film “Archangel” and how did you choose to put the quote into the song? it’s such a nice detail and it always gives me the chills when i hear it.
Hi Amber! I was introduced to the movies of Guy Maddin in college by a friend (Andy Smetanka, incidentally, who went on to make videos for The Bachelor and the Bride and The Tain). Careful was the first one I saw and I was immediately floored. Andy gave me dubbed copies of a few more of his movies and I just *lived* in them for a time. I wanted to pay homage to him and just nod to that world he'd made. Guy and I corresponded for a bit; we were in talks to have him do a video for The Soldiering Life but, alas, in those days the budget was just not there for it.
I was first made aware of you when someone commented that I resemble you quite closely. Has anyone said you resemble anyone else or mistaken you for another musician ?
I like to think I have a pretty everyman look, so yeah, I think I look like a lot of other dudes (and vice versa). Between Ben Gibbard and Dwight Schrute, I barely have my own identity. Not so much Ben anymore, not since he became like a ultramarathon runner or whatever
Do you attribute what‘s often mistaken for an English accent in your singing voice to a lot of the music you listened to and sang along with growing up?
Yeah, i'd say that. I also feel like the kind of music I was making, particularly in the early days of the band, came from a more British Isles tradition and so it felt right to inflect it that way -- kinda a reverse of what the Stone and the Kinks and the like did with their "American" music.
Everything is Decemberisty that I have a hand in, my friend :)
Ummm, I'm working on some new music -- not sure if it's band stuff or solo stuff or what. And I'm working on music for a theater project that seems to be taking shape...
I have a hard time thinking about songwriting as teachable; it's such a subjective thing. Obv, music and music theory is teachable and is a foundational piece to songwriting, but it's not necessary. That's the beauty, I think, about the kind of music I truck in -- anyone can do it, anyone can do it their own way.
Only that we'd licensed it pre-pandemic, and then the movie, I guess, was on hold for a long time and so when it came out, I'd totally forgotten we'd done the deal. I was watching it with my kid and I was suddenly like, wtf, this is my song. And then I remembered.
Hey folks, that's all I have time for today -- but hold on to these q's and I'll get to 'em next time! Ta ta!
I've not seen you talk about Tarkio much. That band produced two of my favorite songs and I would love to hear about any experiences from that time.
Gosh, what would you like to know? Tarkio had a relatively brief time on earth (96-99) so there aren't a ton of tales to tell... but hit me up.
Well, I bought a banjo because of Sister Nebraska. Was that a Meloy jam? Why Nebraska? Who is sister Nebraska anyway?
Maybe it would be better for a song breakdown but that is a top 10 song for me and just telling you how much I love it is enough.
I think I just liked the sound of those two words together, sister nebraska. I think I started with the words and then it just turned into a roadtrip song.
Who’s in the photo on the cover of “I guess I was hoping for something more”?
I actually don't know. That was shot by a friend, Michael McDermott, who designed the cover. It might've been his girlfriend at the time?
Just to throw in this thread my love for Devil’s Elbow, and the dream it was to find I Guess I Was Hoping For Something More at a thrift store ca. 2007.
Oohhhhh good one! Tristan and Iseult is one of my favorites, but the whole project produced some really beautiful songs.
Look this is not a deep question but I think about Erick and Cheryl and Maya Angelou a lot and I’m wondering if you still have them lol
Haha. Right, the skull, the ship, and the sheep. I think I might still have the skull, but who knows where the other parts of that trio are...
I thought I saw the Maya Angelou on top of your guitar cabinet during a machine shop tour...
I'm just wondering why he passed up on such an obvious metaphor for the travel between the over and underworld and just said "which represents....ships". Probably because it was too obvious
In the song "Sons & Daughters", I curious about the lines "We'll build our walls aluminum
We'll fill our lives with cinnamon now." When I was about 8 (60 years ago) the 2 words I had the most trouble pronouncing was cinnamon and aluminum. I would walk and repeat the words "cinnamon and aluminum" over and over and over again.
Where did the lines come from?
The USA is on the verge of collapse as a nation. Yay or nay and wtf are we supposed to do? Can we come live on the farm (jk. But also...wow it sucks here).
I worry about this too, my friend, but we can only move forward. Voting, voting all the way down the ticket, for progressive candidates and supporting their campaigns is what I'm doing
That and I'm off to be as visibly queer as possible at any fascists who show their dumb faces at pride. Thanks for keeping spirits up with your music.
Well you just inspired the second chapter of Decemberism month fanfic.
I would love to know anything you have to share about the creation and production of the Hazards of Love album! I read a review once regarding it lovingly as “Meloy going full Meloy,” and I’ve always just wanted to know more about how you came up with it.
What is "full meloy" anyway... It came about because I was listening to a ton of 2nd wave (3rd wave?) British Folk Revival records -- Fairport Convention, Bert Jansch, Anne Briggs, Shirley Collins, Steeleye Span, Nic Jones, Watersons etc etc -- and finding all these similarities in the songs, in the characters of the songs. So many Williams, so many Margarets, so many dangerous rivers that have to be forded. I thought it would be interesting, as an experiment, to take all of these kind of standard folk song archetypes and stitch them all together and see what kind of story they made. That's basically it. Initially I wanted to write them all in D (in drop D tuning) but I only made it halfway through before I realized that was *not* a good idea.
Thank you so much for your thoughtful reply! I wish I could find the article, but the writer compared you to George Lucas. He’d said that Lucas went “full Lucas” when creating Star Wars, seeming to bring his talents and interests to fruition, unhindered. So he implied Hazards of Love was your Star Wars.
My kid wants to know what you put on a bagel. I want to know how much is the band involved in shaping Decemberists songs? How collaborative is your process when it comes to writing, melody, arrangements, etc?
I'm an everything bagel toasted with scallion cream cheese and lox kinda guy. As for band collaboration, how it typically works is that I'll record a demo and flesh it out with rough ideas for drums, bass, guitar, and sometimes keys, but then the band is free to take those motifs/ideas and run with them. That's typical, but sometimes a song feels more open for interpretation and we'll just jam on it (in the parlance) in the studio or rehearsal and see what parts work, with everyone throwing in ideas. As for chords/melody/song structure, I do that at home. I'm not really a bring-fragments-into-the-studio-and-see-what-happens kinda guy. Too much of a control freak.
I also am curious about how the band helps finish the songs.
What are the chances of new Offa Rex music? I need more of it in my life; it's stellar stuff.
I don't know, tbh. It might've been a one-off kinda thing...
A one-Offa kinda thing
Ah darn it. Oh well, all the more reason to keep listening to it.
Weirdly specific question about Apology Song - what is the word sang before "joy ride"? Hecsher's? Hesherous? I've always pictured the two naughty neighborhood Hescher brothers having heaved the bike into the pond after their thieving and joy-riding was complete.
In an interview you once said video games are your least favorite habit. Not to ask you to dwell on that which is your least favorite, but…what games have absorbed you the most? 👀
Oh god, Elden Ring. Anything by those guys -- that whole Dark Souls thing, going back to Demon Souls. So genius.
hey colin,
i was noticing you posted an insta pic with elliott smith & had wondered if you knew him well or had any stories to share? i was one of many who spent years over at the old 'sweet addy' elliott smith forum (i was friendlyghost there) where we usually obsessed over his song lyrics & interesting guitar playing style, & it was there that i first heard about you & your music :) thanks..
To be clear, I wasn't in that photo, that was something Sam Coomes from Quasi had posted. I didn't know Elliott, but I was a fan. He was a big deal when I moved to Portland, but he wasn't living there anymore. He'd come through from time to time; I saw him play at Satyricon in like '00 or '01 and I was at a house party that he was at once, but he was just standing in the corner with a couple girls, clearly not wanting to mingle. Those are my Elliott Smith stories.
thanks so much! from a fellow portlander.. i think of him whenever i pass by the satyricon or other certain pdx spots, so glad i discovered your music at the old forum, now i can enjoy listening to your songs, which are at times so moving to me, but not heartcrushing as his are to me now.. xo <3
So awesome, Colin! My question is about your song process: I always feel like I’m getting a vocab lesson with your songs. Do you use a dictionary as you’re writing your lyrics?
On another note, I can’t wait to see you on my birthday, Aug 24 at Wolf Trap. I’ll be in the VIP section and would be over the moon if you stole my phone and called my mom while singing Culling… just saying….
will do!
What turns a good show into a great show for you? What sets apart a great crowd and venue? Thanks!
Oh, so many unknowable factors. I would say your own personal mood -- but also some of the best shows are the ones that I've walked into feeling terrible. Standing room is always preferable to seated, but I also am in solidarity with people who like to sit during shows. I get it. Witnessing people being kind to one another in the audience is a powerful thing -- watching people help each other, or connect with one another during the course of the show, is so cool. Or when some drunk asshole who's being a dick to everyone gets ushered from the floor by the crowd and everyone cheers -- that's an amazing thing to behold.
I've been to all of these shows and you're absolutely right - the energy when these things happen really elevate a show. I hope all of your upcoming shows are those shows for you!
Or when someone brings bean pods... That's always fun...
Could you speak about the creation of “A Beginning Song”. Love the song it really moves me. Also love that “A Beginning Song” is the last track on the album.
Yeah! It had a few different titles, including "Beginner's Mind" and "Should I Be" which were true to the spirit of the song, but maybe a bit too... I dunno.. metaphysical. These ideas of "coordinating your sights" and "getting square to rights" and "calming riots in your mind" and "finding yourself in time" -- I was getting into mindfulness and meditation at the time, right around the time when there was a lot going on in my life and I was feeling a bit overwhelmed. This song was kind of note-to-self to stay present, calm, stay hopeful, not striving...
"I am hopeful; should I be hopeful" is absolutely my favorite lyric for so many reasons, including how the music emphasizes it by adding it as a 3rd repetition in the refrain. I just love it.
It always brings Prufrock to mind for me--"should I eat a peach?"
Who the deep voiced 'he's not' and 'see ya later' backing vocal on anti-summersong?
Lol. That's got to be Nate, Tucker, Chris and John doing those. I wonder if I have footage of them doing it.. it was hilarious
Having seen the live streams last year and John camping it up, I assumed it was him.
Is there a catalog of lyrics somewhere
? I’d like to sign along…correctly.
We did have an online database going, I think, in some iteration of the decemberists.com site. I would love to update that, because the lyrics sites are *so awful*.
Giggle hole in the hallway wall
They really are, I’ve checked on lyrics sites but they seem to be further off the mark than what my mouth was singing.
Most, if not all, of the albums have the lyrics inserted. Hooray for physical media!
this is true!
What are your thoughts about Nirvana's Kurt Cobain as a song writer? Of course Kurt's loss was really tragic. I know that they have had a resurgence in popularity in recent years, I'm don't mean that. Just as a songwriter opining about another songwriter. Colin about Kurt. I've thought I wish I could have heard a Kurt cover of "I Was Meant for the Stage." Please take this any direction you might wish.
Thank you so much for your pioneering efforts with the machine shop sub stack format!!!
I remember hearing Smells Like Teen Spirit when it came out and feeling like I'd heard it already -- that I preferred the replacements and husker du over this new amalgam. I think I came to appreciate it over time, though. Nevermind is a great record.
This is just because I'm watching LEGOcon right now - are the Meloys LEGO fans? If so, any favorite sets?
Hank was a massive lego fan, though he only read the books and catalogues 😂. Milo is a true-blue lego fan, though. He goes for the Star Wars sets these days, with the occasional Ninjago set thrown in. He's finally building them himself, which is a bit of a relief...
Hi Colin, two June Hymn questions: 1. What does "in the boom" refer to? 2. What does "this old light isn't ambling anymore" mean? Thanks.
Not Mr M, but I'll take a stab because I really love this song too.
"boom" I'd guess "boom and bust" sense of massive growth.
It's "ambling life". I suspect the line implies the current life is easy and peaceful and pleasant (ambling) so when he sings "when this old life isn't ambling any more" he's looking ahead to times that aren't so easy.
I want to brag: I checked it was "life", and when I put the needle down it was exactly on the start of the bridge. I've heard and replayed and studied that song so many times now (larned it with the Mrs as a duo) I feel like I could scrub to a specific bar in iTunes. And I still love the bejaysus out of it.
Thanks, Nat! Those interpretations feel right for sure. I'd sure love for Colin to chime in. One quibble, though: the lyrics in the CD insert say "light".
Also, it took a bit to get it down, but now I love playing it as well!
Dang! I could have sworn from listening that it is "life". So much for my purported wisdom :-)
Is there ever a chance of you (solo Colin) or The Decemberists ever covering a few Tarkio songs? I know you covered Devil's Elbow on your "Sings Live!" album and "My Mother was Chinese Trapeze Artist" made it onto 5 Songs.
I'd love to hear a new interpretation of "Save Yourself", "Keeping me awake", or "Better Half", but am unsure how you or the band feel about revisiting your old work. Maybe at the Wiltern in August ;-P, haha.
My family and I are in London right now on vacation and I couldn’t help but notice how much of your lyrics seem to be written as someone from 19th century England. As we toured London Bridge, I even saw that Engine Driver was a position when the bridge first opened. Where did the fascination for that period begin? Was it a particular book that got you going? Did anyone in the band ever express skepticism on how a song about a mariner out on sea, for instance, may not play well with the young-uns?
Would you tell me more about Davy? I’ve always imagined him as the village fool who was mentally and physically disabled (those crooked legs), but whom everyone loved and sort of took care of. I picture his death as something somewhat tragic but foolish, like drowning (went in the water despite not knowing how to swim), or falling down the well his mother warned him against visiting.
I love how the whole village is helping bury him, and there seems to be a sense that they all knew this was coming, sooner or later, but they’re all still quite sad, of course.
Just wondering what Davy’s back story was, and if I’m close in my imagination of who he was.
Thanks, Colin!
(Reposting from the last Q & A)
That is a perfect story for our poor Davy. To be honest -- and I'm not saying this in a copping out way -- I think I kept Davy's story deliberately unclear so the listener could populate his life however they saw fit, just as you have done. I wouldn't want to intrude on that process by giving out my own theories, but I think you're on a good tack. It's grim, it's sad, clearly Davy did not die under the best of circumstances. Bring out your weeping weeds.
Hi Colin! I'm always curious about an artist's process of choosing which songs make the album and which don't, and then how to sequence the ones chosen. How do you and the band go about it?
My pet Decemberist wonderings about this concern how you decided to leave Perfect Crime #1/The Day I Knew... and After the Bombs off Crane Wife and then the decision to split up the Crane Wife sections and sequence the album in that manner.
(Also thank you so much for all the music and beauty)
That's super tough! Sometimes it's more obvious that other times. I labored over the sequence for What A Terrible World... for months. Perfect Crime #1 felt like an outtake from the get-go (not to mention that it was recorded in a drunken haze). After The Bombs -- that one just felt like it didn't have a place in the tracklisting, that particular mood/feel. Funny thing, though, it ended up as a bonus track at the end of the iTunes version (back when they did that kinda thing) so there are a ton of people who know it as the last song on Crane Wife, as opposed to Sons & Daughters. As re: Crane Wife split, that was Chris Walla's idea. It felt novel and a little cheeky, to put the third part of a three part song first, and we ran with it.
I’ve always liked the third part first because it felt like foreshadowing.
Yes I was one of those people who had it as an itunes bonus track! My friends and I were aware that it wasn't on the actual album but we loved it so much we just kinda chose to believe it was the last song. Perfect Crime #1 does make sense since it has a less "decemberists-y" feel and it's not surprising to hear it was a drunken recording session but boy I love that song, always thought it would have been a very ballsy way to start an album.
While there are so many of your songs that I like, one that stands out is A Record Year for Rainfall. I just love playing the two discordant chords at the beginning. Of course, living in California instead of Portland the title leads people to expect a more happy song. Could you give some background of how this song came about and your feelings about it?
I wrote that song in Missoula when I was, I suppose, still in Tarkio. We weren't recording much and playing a little around town but I don't think there was that much hope for our future. I was planning a move to Portland and the rest of the guys were staying put. So there are a bunch of songs from that time that are kicking around. I think I might've polished it up in '07 or whenever it was when we recorded it, but it's mostly as it was written in (I think) 99. The idea is really as simple as it sounds: I saw a headline in the Missoulian that said it had been a record year for rainfall, and I like the sound and cadence of that line so I just went from there. Then it became a thing about, I think, a crumbling, decaying relationship. Which maybe I was in at the time?
Big time second to this question. That song is a GD masterpiece.
Hey! Thanks for doing these. 2 questions:
1. You often have your eyes closed when you’re singing. Is that because you’re trying to avoid eye contact with the front row? Or do you have the notes and lyrics scrolling like the Star Wars story crawl in your mind?
2. Can you give high-school yearbook style superlatives to everyone in the band?
1. Not sure why. I don't always have them closed, but sometimes it's a short cut to getting into a kind of space with a song, to find your way into it.
2. Jenny Conlee: most studious. Nate Query: most likely to succeed. Chris Funk: best hair. John Moen: most nicknames.
thanks! can’t wait to see you in LA later this summer!
Do you and the rest of the band get together between tours to just jam and play together or are you all too busy as to make that difficult without lots of planning?
We don't. Even in the early days, most all of our rehearsals were in prep for a show or a tour or a studio session. I think that worked for us in the first few months of being a band, just as we were learning new material and getting a feel for playing together, but once that's been established, we really only get together to work. Which is good, I think.
How involved are you with the show to be based on your Wildwood series and how closely will it stay true to the book itself? My daughter and I are currently reading through the series and look forward to the show.
Cool! We were more involved in the development of the Wildwood movie early on, when there were initial drafts of a screenplay to look at and some concept art. Over time, we kind of drifted away from it, as they were working on other films. We didn't even know if it was going to made, tbh. I think Laika always knew it was going to be a tough one -- armies of coyotes and bandits is no small feat in stop motion animation. When they started production, everything was in pandemic lockdown, so we didn't get a chance to visit the studio. But! We're heading over there in a few weeks to see the sets and some footage, so that's exciting!
That’s awesome! For some reason I thought it was going to be a series and not a film itself, but that sounds even better. Yeah, looking forward to seeing it with her when it comes out - will be interesting to see how it all adapts and how the world comes together.
Hey Colin, I'm a theatre professional and I've always wondered exactly which songs and what the through-line was going to be for that musical about the Butte miners. Rox in the Box, the two Hymns, Burying Davy, etc; I'd love to know how things would have looked if you'd have been able to wrestle all that into a theatrical form.
Yeah, that was a thing, wasn't it. I was getting it all fleshed out and then felt called away to other things. Rox in the Box was definitely one of songs, as was Burying Davy -- another is lying around called "Up the Kaiser" (to be sung by an adhoc militia of pro-german workers). The hymns were never meant for the show, but I think I was going to reappropriate an unused idea from Hazards of Love. It was a love song to be sung between the two star-crossed leads. Maybe I'll put those up on here one of these days...
Oh I want to hear a song called Up the Kaiser!
Of all the cities you’ve played in which one has your favorite food? (So not a music question ha)
This is a good question! Inquiring minds would like to know a top five.
Top five cities for food:
NYC
San Fran
Nashville
New Orleans
Tie: Austin/Portland, Maine
Hi Colin I am wondering what the story is behind 'Cutting Stone ' I love it, the simplicity and the feel of it. Also I can easily play it at my local acoustic music clubs here in West Sussex UK
Would there happen to be any spare Barger Rothery patches in the known universe? There's a guy in my mirror who says he'd pay a good deal for one. And given how much he's bought from that era, and how close he says he was to winning that scavenger hunt, I wouldn't put it past him.
Will you be releasing any more copies of Colin Meloy Sings Together (Collected EPs 2005 - 2013) on vinyl?
Ahh I just woke up and saw you were doing this! Damn working nights! Anyway if you’re still out there: is the line in the bridge of The Bagman’s Gambit, “you were there in fours” and what does that mean?
It's actually: "You were there in form," which should make more sense? It's a vision, a dream, our singer is having.
It totally does, thanks. And of course you’re still there, what else would there be to do with the deluge outside right now?
Hi Colin,
Sometime in HS I discovered Robyn Hitchcock and was particularly a big fan of Globe of Frogs. Have you ever collaborated with him, and could you ever be convinced to do Balloon Man, because I'm convinced you guys could do it justice.
Is the “Colin Meloy Sings Together” vinyl a real thing? I saw rumblings on a few record stores sites, but all sold out. Will it be formally announced?
I LOVE Tarkio. It is my “go to” music when riding my bike to work. Singing “Helena won’t get stoned” really loud is much better than yelling “on your left”.
Was listening to CA 1 yesterday and was wondering if you always had the transition in mind when formatting the song? Or did it start as just the first 6 min and grow into the full song as it stands now?
Hi Colin! There’s a release going around some small record stores’ preorder lists called Colin Meloy Sings Together and they don’t seem to know if it’s real or their distributors don’t have any information on it. I preordered it in case it’s real, but anything you can share about it? Thank you!
Hi Colin, are you a fan of The Delines? I believe some Decembrists folks have played and are playing in that band. I was big fan of Richmond Fontaine and Wille's novels, but never got to see the band as they always seemed to be in Europe on tour and didn't make it down to CA much. Anyway, coming up Portland to see them with Minus 5 on the 30th this month. I really like their sound. If other Machinists haven't checked them out, it would be well worth to catch them at Alabama Studios before they...head off to Europe :(. Anyway, thanks for all the song tutorials. June Hymn really made my day... :)
I'd also like to chime in and express some love for Tarkio. Keeping me Awake and Better Half are favorites of mine! I love the sound of the Violin on that album.
Can't wait to see you all in Boston! Roadrunner is a great new venue, glad you ended up there. Also excited for my first standing only Decemberists show, I've found myself being the only person standing and dancing just about everytime I've seen ya. I think I remember some banter from you informing the Buffalo crowd a few years back that they were "a rather sedentary audience"
...people stood and danced after that, haha
Hello there- hope I haven’t missed the proverbial boat- writing to you from marseille where pirates abound and accordion fills the streets
What’s your preference on people singing along at your shows? I always wonder cause I always want to loudly but then worry about disrupting. Please share your thoughts on this!
My best friend wrote a play based on "On the Bus Mall." It is a huge passion project for him lasting years of revisions and deep thoughts on the lyrics and LGBTQ themes. He's a recent machinist but also a busy doctor so I know he may not get to ask this question but: would you give your blessing on the project? I know it would mean a whole lot to him to know that you knew about the play and approved of it. Thanks for everything!
Would you consider teaching an in-person songwriting class here in Portland? I’m signed up for one in Nashville during your Ryman weekend but would love to learn from you closer to home. Happy to help TA!
Hi Colin! Greetings from Chile! Many thanks for the Machine shop, such a unique place!!! I was wondering if you could talk a bit about the genesis of the name and the cover of "What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World"
hi colin! hope you are doing well ❤️
california one/youth and beauty brigade is on my top 5 favorite songs list and i’ve always wondered, what is your connection to the film “Archangel” and how did you choose to put the quote into the song? it’s such a nice detail and it always gives me the chills when i hear it.
Hi Amber! I was introduced to the movies of Guy Maddin in college by a friend (Andy Smetanka, incidentally, who went on to make videos for The Bachelor and the Bride and The Tain). Careful was the first one I saw and I was immediately floored. Andy gave me dubbed copies of a few more of his movies and I just *lived* in them for a time. I wanted to pay homage to him and just nod to that world he'd made. Guy and I corresponded for a bit; we were in talks to have him do a video for The Soldiering Life but, alas, in those days the budget was just not there for it.
I was first made aware of you when someone commented that I resemble you quite closely. Has anyone said you resemble anyone else or mistaken you for another musician ?
I like to think I have a pretty everyman look, so yeah, I think I look like a lot of other dudes (and vice versa). Between Ben Gibbard and Dwight Schrute, I barely have my own identity. Not so much Ben anymore, not since he became like a ultramarathon runner or whatever
Do you attribute what‘s often mistaken for an English accent in your singing voice to a lot of the music you listened to and sang along with growing up?
Yeah, i'd say that. I also feel like the kind of music I was making, particularly in the early days of the band, came from a more British Isles tradition and so it felt right to inflect it that way -- kinda a reverse of what the Stone and the Kinks and the like did with their "American" music.
Hey Colin, just wondering if there's anything Decemberisty on the horizon??
Everything is Decemberisty that I have a hand in, my friend :)
Ummm, I'm working on some new music -- not sure if it's band stuff or solo stuff or what. And I'm working on music for a theater project that seems to be taking shape...
Do you feel your approach to songwriting is teachable? Is there a generally similar process you go through for the majority of your songs?
I have a hard time thinking about songwriting as teachable; it's such a subjective thing. Obv, music and music theory is teachable and is a foundational piece to songwriting, but it's not necessary. That's the beauty, I think, about the kind of music I truck in -- anyone can do it, anyone can do it their own way.
Any fun stories or interesting anecdotes from having a song show up in James Gunn’s Suicide Squad?
Only that we'd licensed it pre-pandemic, and then the movie, I guess, was on hold for a long time and so when it came out, I'd totally forgotten we'd done the deal. I was watching it with my kid and I was suddenly like, wtf, this is my song. And then I remembered.
I imagine that’s a solid way to earn cool dad points mid-movie.