The Decemberists

Led by Montana native Colin Meloy, the Decemberists craft theatrical, hyper-literate pop songs that draw heavily from late-'60s British folk acts like Fairport Convention and Pentangle, and the early-'80s college rock grandeur of the Waterboys and R.E.M. Emerging in 2001, the band built momentum in the early aughts with acclaimed efforts like The Crane Wife and Hazards of Love, and found mainstream success with the release of their sixth long-player, the gold-selling The King Is Dead. The album reached number one on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart, after which the Decemberists we...