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The Decemberists — We Both Go Down Together
Album: Picaresque
Avg rating:
6.3

Your rating:
Total ratings: 1576









Released: 2005
Length: 3:00
Plays (last 30 days): 0
Here on these cliffs of Dover
So high you can't see over
And while your head is spinning
Hold tight, it's just beginning

You come from parents wanton
A childhood rough and rotten
I come from wealth and beauty
Untouched by work or duty

And oh, my love, my love
And oh, my love, my love
We both go down together

I found you, a tattooed tramp
A dirty daughter from the labor camps
I laid you down on the grass of a clearing
You wept but your soul was willing

And oh, my love, my love
And oh, my love, my love
We both go down together
And my parents will never consent to this love
But I hold your hand

Meet me on my vast veranda
My sweet untouched Miranda
And while the seagulls are crying
We fall but our souls are flying

And oh, my love, my love
And oh, my love, my love
And oh, my love, oh my love
And oh, my love, my love
We both go down together
Comments (241)add comment
Meet me on my vast veranda is a great line
Everytime i hear this song it goes up a notch
Is he making fun of Michael Stipe?
Isn't there a Taylor Swift song that rhymes "veranda" with "Miranda?" 
Between the two, I'd rather listen to Colin Craven wailing in his bed than Colin Meloy's affected singing voice.

 Ian_and_Annie wrote:

People here seem to be missing the complex roots of the lyrics. It’s about suicide, and the choice of Dover, where the cliffs of Beachy Head are a popular suicide spot, is unusual for a US group. Perhaps they’re alluding to some of Edgar Allen Poe’s works Ironic given the source of their name. Anyway, I enjoyed it.

Beachy Head is near Eastbourne, not anywhere near Dover. The cliffs are similar to Dover, and likewise popular for all the wrong reasons...

 Ian_and_Annie wrote:

People here seem to be missing the complex roots of the lyrics. It’s about suicide, and the choice of Dover, where the cliffs of Beachy Head are a popular suicide spot, is unusual for a US group. Perhaps they’re alluding to some of Edgar Allen Poe’s works Ironic given the source of their name. Anyway, I enjoyed it.



Today I belatedly realized that the "vast veranda" is the cliffs of Dover. Mind blown.
 Majestic wrote:

Find you a partner who loves you as much as Bill loves The Decemberists. 



That sounds like a terrible idea! There are clearly other bands that Bill loves even more and he spreads his love widely all around the world. (for which we love him) 
 MsJudi wrote:
"I found you, a tattooed tramp
A dirty daughter from the labor camps
I laid you down on the grass of a clearing
You wept but your soul was willing"

Well, gee, how lucky for her that a rich man found her and knew that while her body seemed to be saying, "no, get off of me you creep," her soul was saying, "yes, and please keep calling me names while you do it cos that's hot, too."
{#Eek}

I don't think you're supposed to sympathize with this odious aristocrat any more than, say, Patrick Bateman from American Psycho or the investment banker in Richard Shindell's Confession (though I'd hope the one in Confession might get a smidge of sympathy). In Decembrists' other work, you can maybe sympathize with the mariner in the Mariner's Revenge Song or the singer in O Valencia! and still not think they're folks you'd want to be chums with. It's an exploration of an interesting character, a story in song. I love that about them, especially after I've listened to a lot of enjoyable but opaque or semi-nonsense lyrics (which I also sometimes enjoy!)
 
Cheers!
......losing my religion.
I wasn't a big fan of them for quite awhile.  Hazards of Love changed a lot of that.  We went to see them a couple of years back when they played the Chicago Theater.  There are few shows that I've seen that were magical even though I didn't know the music.  That show was one of them.  It was pure joy.
 islander wrote:

It's the hipster take on Tuvan throat singing - Mournful nasal wailing.   

And still:  Quick what's a word that rhymes with Miranda!?!?!



"Crazy Miranda, Lives on propaganda"
(Jefferson Airplane, Bark Album)
Sounds like a parody of REM
 linden wrote:

I was thinking the same thing! Yikes, how horrible this guy is.


Agree, my advice would be let him jump first...
There's that vague, too-preciousy undertone to the Decemberists that the artistry never can quite override, in, say, the way Nick Drake managed. Contrived but trying not to be pretentious at the same time. Tough needle to thread, but, that said, their songs are rich & satisfying, often in an uncomfortable way. And that makes it art. Can't think of any Decemberists' song I didn't sing along with when it came up on RP. 
 Cannon wrote:

(One of) most under-rated groups out there.


Every opinion counts one.
that would be a 69
Find you a partner who loves you as much as Bill loves The Decemberists. 
Only  Lzp I have by them and find it quit enjoyable. Those that don't care for his vocal style probably dislike the Violent Femmes or Ezra Furman both of whom I also like very much. . Dont take it so serious music is varied and shouldn't be taken so serious. Enjoy the diversity.
This song immediately fascinated me very much, I was surprised by the low rating. But when I read all the comments, including the old ones, everything became clear. However, it was the comments that made me listen to the entire album) Not a masterpiece, of course, but it was worth it.
But "We both goes down together" - 10, exciting.
 linden wrote:

I was thinking the same thing! Yikes, how horrible this guy is.

 Do you think the same of Dire Straits: Romeo and Juliet “when we made love you used to cry”?


Crap in a word😡
69?
A song that exemplifies the absolute worst aspects of this band. Execrable singing, a theme of romanticized violence, unimaginative musicianship, and laughable rhymes ("Hey, help me out here! Do you know a woman's name that rhymes with veranda?"). Ugh.
 linden wrote:

I was thinking the same thing! Yikes, how horrible this guy is.
 

Critical to distinguish writer from persona. Big, BIG difference. 
The singer's voice is like nails on a chalkboard for me... It's that affected, over-enunciated indie pop voice that confuses vowel sounds and forces unnatural rhymes to fill the gaps of poor songwriting. 
Not something I've said before. Truly awful. And no sir I did not like it
 islander wrote:

It's the hipster take on Tuvan throat singing - Mournful nasal wailing.   

And still:  Quick what's a word that rhymes with Miranda!?!?!
 
Veranda!!!
What inspired the narrative behind the song? It’s a prequel to “Leslie Anne Levine”?
I didn’t set out to write a prequel — it happened that the characters in “We Both Go Down Together,” as they floated into view, were taking on peculiar similarities to the peripheral (and dead) figures that the titular Leslie spends four minutes cursing. A wealthy cad, a ruined naif, and a bit about a non-consensual tryst. So I had it in my head that the impregnated mother of Leslie, standing there over the cliffs as her sweetheart/rapist attempts to convince her to commit suicide with him, politely declines, pushes him over the edge and heads off into the sunset, or at least into her fate of giving birth in a ditch and dying.
Oh, it's The Hipsters.

Recycled it is, but wondering is this song vegan?
 kingart wrote:
I'm not sure if this is his natural voice and just unappealing, or it's an affected style and thus even less appealing. He's another entry in the Thom Yorke Quasi-Vocal School of Alt-Rock.   
 
It's the hipster take on Tuvan throat singing - Mournful nasal wailing.   

And still:  Quick what's a word that rhymes with Miranda!?!?!
 Ian_and_Annie wrote:
People here seem to be missing the complex roots of the lyrics. It’s about suicide, and the choice of Dover, where the cliffs of Beachy Head are a popular suicide spot, is unusual for a US group. Perhaps they’re alluding to some of Edgar Allen Poe’s works Ironic given the source of their name. Anyway, I enjoyed it.
 
This song is apparently part of a larger narrative that Meloy was working on.  There's a short interview/description at this site. If it makes it any better, ultimately the female character pushes the male character off the cliff.
 linden wrote:

I was thinking the same thing! Yikes, how horrible this guy is.
 
Yes, and I think Meloy likes writing songs from the perspective of horrible or vindictive people (I think it's a bit of a folk tradition).  Check out The Rakes Song from The Hazards of Love (about a man who killed his children after his wife died in childbirth just to rid himself of them).
People here seem to be missing the complex roots of the lyrics. It’s about suicide, and the choice of Dover, where the cliffs of Beachy Head are a popular suicide spot, is unusual for a US group. Perhaps they’re alluding to some of Edgar Allen Poe’s works Ironic given the source of their name. Anyway, I enjoyed it.
So many talented vocalists in the world  and  we get irritating voices like this guy, Neil Young, Billy Corgan, Leonard Cohen etc......They are good writers/ sometimes instrumentalists , sure.    So,
I know they can be a pain in the ass but  FIND A REAL SINGER!!
This guy has a vast veranda,,,,,I hate guys with vast verandas.......
 linden wrote:

I was thinking the same thing! Yikes, how horrible this guy is.

 
POUND ME TOO
 MsJudi wrote:
"I found you, a tattooed tramp
A dirty daughter from the labor camps
I laid you down on the grass of a clearing
You wept but your soul was willing"

Well, gee, how lucky for her that a rich man found her and knew that while her body seemed to be saying, "no, get off of me you creep," her soul was saying, "yes, and please keep calling me names while you do it cos that's hot, too."

{#Eek}
 
I was thinking the same thing! Yikes, how horrible this guy is.
My head is spinning, alright. 
C ya
Blech  Miranda ... Verandah .... PSD for me. 
thought it was Placebo for a moment....
I like some of their stuff, but this is ho hum for me. I heard it and wondered whether I'd rated it. Whenever it was, I thought it captured my sense hearing it today. 
 GeorgeMWoods wrote:
Most over-rated group out there.

 
(One of) most under-rated groups out there.
Anyone who rhymes veranda with Miranda gets my vote
Saint be there on yacht gail mal eyeing Ma.
I heard worse songs about  murder suicide! 
At some point could we hear Angel, Down We Go Together by Morrissey?
Ah it's been a long time since we've heard from Amanda on that vast veranda.
 jbunniii wrote:

Ha, good call. Except it sounds like in this version, Michael Stipe has been castrated and someone is pinching his nose shut. I've heard far, far worse Decemberists tracks, though.

 
Bingo on his sound! yeah, this song is low anyway  : (
 Chuckaluphagus wrote:

I thought the same thing when I first heard the Decemberists.  The instruments were fine, the lyrics were interesting, but I couldn't stand his voice.

Then a few of their songs got stuck in my head.  Over time I sought out their music again, slightly wincing even as I did.  But my views began to soften, as if I had some musical version of Stockholm Syndrome.

Now I like them.  It's the most extreme flip-flop I've ever experienced about a band.  I even saw them play an excellent live show in Chicago with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, that was fantastic.
 
I normally hate a voice that is affected but for some reason I like these guys.  Especially the earlier stuff. 
Their lyrics are very dark and odd.  They have this happy sound with a very disturbing message.   Rake in particular is hard to listen to for that reason.  I think they are named after the 1917 Bolsheviks.  Not sure if that applies though....
These cats rock.
Take that,  haters. {#Wave} 
 GeorgeMWoods wrote:
Most over-rated group out there.

 

A to the men and there are a lot of challengers.
 islander wrote:
Please stop. The seagulls are crying because they feel your shame. 

 

{#Lol}And as Dylan says it takes a lot to make a seagull laugh, but a train to make them cry or something like that.
Most over-rated group out there.
Like lots of their songs, but this isn't one of 'em. His voice grates on this track IMHO 
 Derecho wrote:
What IS that accent/dialect?  Same problem afflicts Mumford & Sons.

 
It is a peculiar way of pronouncing words, he sometimes sounds like a minstrel from a Renaissance fair or putting on a fake British accent.  I'm not sure how (or why) a fellow from Oregon would deploy such an accent.  It's particularly irksome in this song.  However, I believe that M&S suffer from a different spectrum of afflictions.  Not a bad tune though, apart from that almost-yodeling.
Please stop. The seagulls are crying because they feel your shame. 
What IS that accent/dialect?  Same problem afflicts Mumford & Sons.
 Chuckaluphagus wrote:
I thought the same thing when I first heard the Decemberists.  The instruments were fine, the lyrics were interesting, but I couldn't stand his voice.

Then a few of their songs got stuck in my head.  Over time I sought out their music again, slightly wincing even as I did.  But my views began to soften, as if I had some musical version of Stockholm Syndrome.

Now I like them.  It's the most extreme flip-flop I've ever experienced about a band.  I even saw them play an excellent live show in Chicago with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, that was fantastic.
 
I went the other way. I initially liked Bus Mall several years ago. But then through repeated listenings and RP's tendency to overplay them, now I cannot listen at all.... ever.
 kingart wrote:
I'm not sure if this is his natural voice and just unappealing, or it's an affected style and thus even less appealing. He's another entry in the Thom Yorke Quasi-Vocal School of Alt-Rock.   
 
He always sounds flat to me and thus I cannot tolerate the Decemberists any longer.

(But I like Thom Yorke.) 
I'm not sure if this is his natural voice and just unappealing, or it's an affected style and thus even less appealing. He's another entry in the Thom Yorke Quasi-Vocal School of Alt-Rock.   
"I found you, a tattooed tramp
A dirty daughter from the labor camps
I laid you down on the grass of a clearing
You wept but your soul was willing"

Well, gee, how lucky for her that a rich man found her and knew that while her body seemed to be saying, "no, get off of me you creep," her soul was saying, "yes, and please keep calling me names while you do it cos that's hot, too."

{#Eek}
 Zep wrote:
"That's me in the corner
That's me in the spotlight
Losing my religion"


oh wait! 

 
Ha, good call. Except it sounds like in this version, Michael Stipe has been castrated and someone is pinching his nose shut. I've heard far, far worse Decemberists tracks, though.
 Zep wrote:
"That's me in the corner
That's me in the spotlight
Losing my religion"


oh wait! 

  
Bumped. 
It must take a particularly strong desire to force your lyrics into a meter (metre) when you stretch tramp into 3 syllables.
I usually prefer a nice red wine w/ my cheese....
Not what the Italian captain said, sadly ... {#Whisper}
Seems like most Decemberists tunes sound nice and cheery, but when you listen to the lyrics they're almost all about people dying one way or another.
awe, so sweet.. 'his love' must be so touched. O_o
 Zep wrote:
"That's me in the corner
That's me in the spotlight
Losing my religion"


oh wait! 
 

{#Yes}

1 for ripping off the riff.
 NeilBlanchard wrote:
I find this song slightly annoying — it may be earnest, but it is still annoying to me.

Neil
 

It's what they do.{#Lol}
 HoneyBearKelly wrote:
This entire ceedee sucks.
 

Yessuuurr!!{#Yes} Or I should say maam!{#Lol}
I love these guys
"That's me in the corner
That's me in the spotlight
Losing my religion"


oh wait! 
Of all the bands Bill's turned me around on, these guys were the first. Thanks, Bill.
 fredriley wrote:
That title makes this dirty old man think of a vigorous 69... ;)

 

I too once posted the same thing. But upon further listening it's about a pretty messed up relationship that end up in a double suicide...
This entire ceedee sucks.
 chiguy wrote:
That was the most godawful music I've heard in along time.
 
I thought the same thing when I first heard the Decemberists.  The instruments were fine, the lyrics were interesting, but I couldn't stand his voice.

Then a few of their songs got stuck in my head.  Over time I sought out their music again, slightly wincing even as I did.  But my views began to soften, as if I had some musical version of Stockholm Syndrome.

Now I like them.  It's the most extreme flip-flop I've ever experienced about a band.  I even saw them play an excellent live show in Chicago with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, that was fantastic.

That title makes this dirty old man think of a vigorous 69... ;)

I find this song slightly annoying — it may be earnest, but it is still annoying to me.

Neil
"Raspberry Beret" — good disc; great band.
I frackin love this song more every time I hear it, it's easily my favorite from them.
{#Puke}{#Naughty} should never play this crap RP!
Okay, I like the Decembrists... but this one sounds like Tiny Tim was a guest vocalist.
Weird — never heard this version before. I *think* I like it better than the other.
Is that Tim Curry in the middle performing the nuptials?
But seriously. The vast veranda is a bit silly. Fun catchy tune.
Not happening.............

-3-
That was the most godawful music I've heard in along time.
 AiNoTame wrote:
Okay... "meeting Miranda on my vast veranda" just made me spew on my keyboard. It was much appreciated comedy, intended or otherwise.

 
Agreed that line never stops being funny.

 Tal wrote:
Love love love the Decemberists. More. Anytime. 
 
Me too. Any song. Any album.
I'll happily take all the miranda-verandas and lovehas they've got!


 redfern777 wrote:
I like his solo guitar/vocal version of this one better.
 
Me too!

F1 wrote:
Irritating as hell. "My loveha, my loveha...." {#Puke}

nope!  I think this is a great song in the vein of new folk/ songs with a story.  I like it {#Smile}
Oh No! The veranda gang is back!
Irritating as hell.  "My loveha, my loveha...."  {#Puke}
I like his solo guitar/vocal version of this one better.
Love love love the Decemberists. More. Anytime. 
This song and album creep me out, but I love The Crane Wife

So, is the shorthand song title for this one "69"?


bad poetry
Okay... "meeting Miranda on my vast veranda" just made me spew on my keyboard. It was much appreciated comedy, intended or otherwise.
I don't get the faux Victorian thing. Pretentiousness isn't ironic when you pose as a Victorian dandy, its just pretentious. I guess I am saying this sucks.
Blank, Bleep, Mute!
wally42 wrote:
I'm not sure of the complete "reasons why", but I can tell you that the spelling is deliberate as opposed to the correct spelling of the Decembrists from Russian history.
I really don't get this. The liberal revolutionaries from 1820s Russia didn't spell their name in English.
TimeWaster wrote:
(This guy's voice may not be the best, but we all know that the guy from Green Day has the most annoying voice in the world. )
No, no. I'm sorry, but that award goes to Axl Rose.
This is noticibly bad as background music. Maybe if I listened to the lyrics I would appreciate it at that level, but right now - not feeling it!
I've been really getting into these guys, but finding out that Petra Haden is the one playing there only cinches the deal for me... time to hit up iTunes again...
I was thinking that this sounded like the guy from Placebo. Then I realized that any band that sounds some other band and involves a kind of hard-to-figure-out story must be the Decemberists. Checking the playlist, I was right! DAMN, I'm clever I rate it a 5 for "it's ok if you like this sort of thing"
thewiseking wrote:
lyrical, poetic, romantic. a bit overwrought perhaps yet effective. great composition and vocals. original.
Bingo Hey Bill why did you guys sorry The Mariners Revenge. It's a much better tune from this album, and it's seems like the Decemberists are growing on you.
pushkinjim wrote:
I agree - too REM like, and we all know that REM SUCKS!
How many millions of albums have YOU sold? Probably not as many as REM, you must really suck!
wally42 wrote:
this guys voice is as compelling and unique as Michael Stipe's
I agree - too REM like, and we all know that REM SUCKS!
MatClarke wrote:
Why is this band so named?
I'm not sure of the complete "reasons why", but I can tell you that the spelling is deliberate as opposed to the correct spelling of the Decembrists from Russian history.
lyrical, poetic, romantic. a bit overwrought perhaps yet effective. great composition and vocals. original.
Why is this band so named?
Ah yes, from Radiohead Whining to Decemberists bleating... The joy.
Between the 2 albums, Picaresque is better than Crane Wife in my opinion.... Love to hear more on this station!
Their newest album "The Crane Wife" sounds nothing like REM. Yeah, it so happens that this song might bear a resemblance to "Losing My Religion", so what? One song sounds like another song? Big deal. I doubt they sat down and said, "Hey, let's write a song that sounds like 'Losing My Religion'". "The Crane Wife" has elements of Yes, ELP, Pink Floyd, etc, but that is no reason to dismiss it and hate it because it "sounds like something else". (This guy's voice may not be the best, but we all know that the guy from Green Day has the most annoying voice in the world. )
musikalia wrote:
This guy's voice is almost as annoying as Michael Stipe's.
this guys voice is as compelling and unique as Michael Stipe's
musikalia wrote:
This guy's voice is almost as annoying as Michael Stipe's.
I was just about to say this sounds a bit like REM. But I like REM, a little bit.
musikalia wrote:
This guy's voice is almost as annoying as Michael Stipe's.
much worse
This guy's voice is almost as annoying as Michael Stipe's.