For The Decemberists, to call them grandiose would only be an understatement. On each of their four previous full length albums, their songs have entranced the listener with tales of love and deceit and death. With The Hazards of Love however, Colin Meloy and his band of storytellers have crafted an album that is in itself a heroic story. Each song weaves together the masterful tale of Margaret the villager and William the son of the Queen of the forest - a jealous and contemptuous woman.
It is no small feat to create a "rock opera," but Meloy has definitely succeeded on this incredible risk. At every juncture where he could have failed, he excelled, as did every musician on this album. With every power chord, every melody, every cadence, every lyric, there is impeccable timing to surround the listener with pieces of an epic story, and in the end tie all those pieces together.
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