9-26-11 - "The Hazards Of Love 1" ~ The Decemberists

The Decemberists seem to enjoy creating albums that beg to be experienced in their entirety.  The Crane Wife is such an album, and The Hazards Of Love is no different.  The opening track of each album (discounting the instrumental prelude on Hazards) draws you in with an impeccably woven allegory, the beginnings of a tapestry you can't wait to fully discover.


The general meaning of this track, the subsequent #2, #3, and #4, and the album as a whole is fairly clear.  We all have witnessed love, and all (well pretty much all) desire it.  Yet love is not easily obtained, and even more arduously kept.  Once discovered, it often is not what it seemed; we have to plunge into the depths of love to discover its truth, and it may not always be entirely pleasant.  Ultimately, however, those who venture forth find love worth pursuing, despite the challenges.

"The prettiest whistles won't wrestle the thistles undone…"