WaterCoolerGossip

Last week the SF Weekly caught up with him for an interview. Below is an excerpt:

This is just your second solo tour, right?
Yeah. When I first moved to Portland it was pretty much all I was doing, but since the Decemberists started I kind of stopped doing any solo dates, and I've kinda been missing it a little bit. I did it last year around this time and it was really fun, so I figured I would head out again.

You've got this new Shirley Collins covers EP — are you a longtime fan of her work or is she more of a recent discovery?
I guess kinda recent. Maybe a year and a half ago I was reading something about British folk and it mentioned Shirley Collins, so I started investigating. I heard a song and I loved it so much that I bought the box set, and I was immediately enamored of her.

Do you think fans of your music would naturally gravitate toward her stuff?
Maybe, I dunno. There's a song she did called "Turpin Hero" that's about Dick Turpin, who was a legendary highwayman in England in the 18th century, and it's pretty funny, so maybe that kinda fits in with what I do. I think some Decemberists fans might be interested in her. But also I just love the songs and love her arrangements, so it's kinda just for my own satisfaction.