New track: The Decemberists - "Down By The Water"

Guilty of overlooking The Hazards Of Love at the time, I returned to it again yesterday evening, and to be honest, I wasn't blown away by what I heard. Overly sprawling, with too few standout moments to warrant the length, it at least has the courtesy to end on "The Hazards Of Love (The Drowned)," which is easily one of the finest songs The Decemberists have ever recorded.

All that being said, on January 17th they have a new album due. Entitled The King Is Dead, I'm hoping it'll be a return to form. They've now shared the first song from the record, "Down By The Water," which is available for download courtesy of the widget below. As far as I'm concerned, the jury is still out, but I remain optimistic that one of my most beloved bands will deliver.