Somewhere in a land between pop and roots music lays The Decemberists. The band’s newest record The King is Dead features ten well thought-out tracks that are at once earnest and sentimental but never lean overwhelmingly in either direction. An easy comparison would be Tom Petty although truthfully, these songs are grander and sometimes more poignant than Petty’s work. Highlights from the record include Calamity Song, Rox In The Box and the beautiful June Hymn.