Jeff Kraus 2008-08-04

0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:

You're not going to hear a ton of new music on this album -- the majority of tracks are off of previously released albums. But if you're a Decemberists fan, you'll love it anyway. It's just... fun. Meloy's understated style of humor is sprinkled throughout, and the previously mentioned "Dracula's Daughter" track is a perfect example.

Even after hearing this album dozens of times, I find that it still gets at least as much play time as all of my other Decemberists albums. And that's saying a lot, because my other Decemberists albums get a LOT of play time.

Pratt 2008-06-23

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

He is so talented. Its takes alot to be just as as good live (if not better) as you are in studio. Colin Meloy is a fantastic performer, writer, and vocalist.

P. Lutter 2008-06-08

0 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

Not bad, but "Wonder" is a rip-off of Pat Benatar's "My Clone Sleeps Alone." Listen to the first 35 seconds of each song and you'll see the notes are nearly identical.

Stephen J. Easley 2008-06-05

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

What can I say - he writes as well here as for the Decemberists. I also enjoy the unplugged nature of the recording - you can really appreciate the lyrics.

John Provis 2008-05-03

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

On this album (a collection of live recordings), Colin Meloy manages to do something that takes quite a bit of talent: taking songs from a full band with diverse and sometimes pretty deep instrumentation, and make them work in the singer/acoustic guitar format. It doesn't quite have the quirkiness of the full Decemberists lineup, but it doesn't need to - Meloy obviously knows which bits of the songs absolutely need to be there to back up the vocals, and puts them there while leaving out everything else. He's obviously enjoying himself (as shown by "Dracula's Daughter", described as 'the worst song I ever wrote' but played with a wink), and he quotes a couple of sections of well-known and less well-known songs almost seamlessly into the middle of his own songs. Particular highlights for me are "We Both Go Down Together," and the 12-minute version of "California One / Youth And Beauty Brigade" with just a little bit of the Smiths thrown in for good measure. All in all, it's a great album.