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Waxed - Record Review from Issue #75 May-June 2008

Colin Meloy

Colin Meloy Sings Live! (Kill Rock Stars)

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As concert souvenirs go, this hodgepodge, recorded live by the Decemberists frontman during a 2006 solo trek, is not nearly as precious as Meloy’s tour-only EPs of Morrissey and Shirley Collins favorites. Which is a boon or bust, depending on your degree of fanaticism. Casual buffs of the bookish indie-rocker will appreciate the broad program; die-hards can applaud the inclusion of rarities such as “The Bandit Queen” (found only on the vinyl version of Picaresque) and “Devil’s Elbow”, by his first band, Tarkio. Without support of a full ensemble, Meloy’s distinctive vibrato is almost painfully prominent, but on the other hand, material unsuited to a proper Decemberists record is what really sells Sings Live!: A brief survey of the self-professed worst song Meloy ever wrote (“Dracula’s Daughter”), humorous onstage patter, and the interpolation of snippets from R.E.M., Pink Floyd, and, most effectively, Fleetwood Mac (tacking “Dreams” on to “Here I Dreamt I Was An Architect”).

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Originally Featured in Issue #75 May-June 2008

Cover of Issue #75 May-June 2008

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