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What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World

The Decemberists

What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World

Seventh LP from Colin Meloy's Portland indie folk quintet

ADM rating[?]

7.2

Label
Rough Trade
UK Release date
19/01/2015
US Release date
20/01/2015
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  1. 8.5 |   Earbuddy

    The tunes are more pop overall, occasionally venturing into country (“Mistral”) or surf-guitar (“Easy Come, Easy Go”), but never losing the thread that ties all of their catalog together
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  2. 8.4 |   Sputnik Music (staff)

    It’s the perfect album to sit around a fire with…to be out on the lake with…to be alone in thought with
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  3. 8.0 |   All Music

    An album where the creative sprawl is more a matter of how this divergent selection of melodies and moods interacts, rather than how many elements can be folded into one song
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  4. 8.0 |   Rolling Stone

    Maybe because Meloy is now a published author (he's penned a trilogy of popular children's books), his songwriting wit seems to have grown sharper and less showoff-y
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  5. 8.0 |   Mojo

    A set heavier on emotion and melody than their previous work, which retains familiar echoes of amplified British folk. Print edition only

  6. 8.0 |   The Music

    While it remains within a very strict and recognisable set of Decemberists sounds, it still manages to find plenty of variation within those limits
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  7. 8.0 |   Drowned In Sound

    The album is a collection of songs from a band at the peak of their powers having their cake and eating it too
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  8. 8.0 |   musicOMH

    The lack of cohesion for the album as a whole may prove to be a turn off for many. For others, though, it’s likely to still be spinning when the band’s name comes around on the calendar once again
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  9. 8.0 |   DIY

    It is safe to assume, the longer you spend with this record and the deeper into it you sink, the greater it will grow
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  10. 8.0 |   PopMatters

    They’re still one of the best modern bands around, and this record will surely be regarded as one of the year’s best come the end of 2015
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  11. 8.0 |   The 405

    Scored through with the group's idiosyncracies but what there is, as well, is maturity, ambition and variety, all of which conspire to form the basis of a very fine indie rock record
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  12. 8.0 |   The Guardian

    It’s another fantastic, emotional album from a band taking heartfelt stock of where they’ve been and who they are
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  13. 8.0 |   The Irish Times

    It’s a satisfying record that quenches a thirst for quality songwriting
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  14. 8.0 |   The Observer

    Best of all is the joyful pop of Cavalry Captain, as irrepressible as it is infectious. A fine return
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  15. 8.0 |   God Is In The TV

    It’s one of those albums that when it’s finished not only do you want to go back and listen to it all over again, but it also makes you want to go and check out their back catalogue
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  16. 8.0 |   Crack

    A delightful addition to the band’s discography, one that both showcases the band’s versatility and beautifully exposes their depth of feeling
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  17. 7.6 |   Paste Magazine

    Just another chapter in the already punctuated saga of one of rock’s best modern lyricists and his talented ban
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  18. 7.5 |   Beardfood

    They may have toned down, but at times their tunes are still larger than life
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  19. 7.5 |   A.V. Club

    It’s the sound of a band unafraid of taking chances, and succeeding more often than not
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  20. 7.0 |   Slant Magazine

    Much bigger sounding, musically diverse effort than its concise, uniform predecessor
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  21. 7.0 |   Uncut

    Less words, more heart
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  22. 7.0 |   The Line Of Best Fit

    Has some wonderful songs and does emit glints of growth, even if it is a tad long and flabbier than previous outings
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  23. 7.0 |   Spin

    More than a decade on, this band is peeking out from behind the veil of obfuscation in an effort to stay relevant
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  24. 7.0 |   The Digital Fix

    While there may no longer be songs about abandoned orphans or man-eating whales, The Decemberists prove they can, if nothing else, just deliver some good quality listening
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  25. 6.7 |   Pretty Much Amazing

    An album with this much warmth, this much pleasantness, in the midst of a harsh winter should be, at the very least, appreciated
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  26. 6.7 |   Consequence Of Sound

    As a singles-driven pop record, it might garner a hit or two; as a Decemberists record, it ever-so-slightly misses the mark
    Read Review

  27. 6.0 |   The Skinny

    A coherent, mostly engaging, albeit slightly overlong piece of work
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  28. 6.0 |   Under The Radar

    It reveals a band older, wiser, and less reliant on the quirks and gimmicks of earlier releases
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  29. 6.0 |   State

    The record works when the band either strip it back or pile it on, the frequent moments when they just play it down the middle fail to make an impression
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  30. 6.0 |   Q

    It's emotional intelligence shines out, but a little more of the earlier records' fleetness and dash wouldn't hurt either. Print edition only

  31. 5.6 |   Pitchfork

    The failure of this album, in addition to being overlong and under-ambitious, is the idea that maturity should beget lazy, hammock songs
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  32. 4.0 |   The FT

    Stodgy and uninvolving in comparison with their past adventures
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  33. 4.0 |   No Ripcord

    Ultimately balances out as a fairly middling work
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  34. Back to main chart

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The Decemberists: What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World

  • Download full album for just £8.49
  • 1. The Singer Addresses His Audience £0.89
  • 2. Cavalry Captain £0.89
  • 3. Philomena £0.89
  • 4. Make You Better £0.89
  • 5. Lake Song £0.89
  • 6. Till the Water's All Long Gone £0.89
  • 7. The Wrong Year £0.89
  • 8. Carolina Low £0.89
  • 9. Better Not Wake the Baby £0.89
  • 10. Anti-Summersong £0.89
  • 11. Easy Come, Easy Go £0.89
  • 12. Mistral £0.89
  • 13. 12/17/12 £0.89
  • 14. A Beginning Song £0.89
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