The Decemberists - O Valencia!

This instrumental element of this track centres around a guitar melody, supported by bass, drums and acoustic strumming for additional texture. In the pre-choruses there is a piano that adds an uplifting layer of momentum that leads perfectly into the chorus. The combination of wide, open piano and guitar notes layered on building drums pitted in call/response with the groove creates an effective "almost there" anticipation for the release of the chorus.

The chorus sees the addition of a percussive shaker and a shift in piano work to a quarter note drive. Another additional sound is an electric organ. To thicken the vocal on the hook "O Valencia" I can hear some double tracking. The guitar strumming is more active following a similar rhythm to the shaker. This is all wound up into a slowing down effect that brings us down into the next verse. The slowing down effect is most evident in the last chorus where the music must be brought to a close.

The vocal component to this track is quite simple and direct. There aren't too many effects that might confuse the vocal focus. On occasion there is a subtle backing vocal layer to emphasise the second half of a phrase. These occur more often after the first chorus. This would constitute as an effort to maintain some of the energy of the chorus into the next verse while bringing it down low enough to allow for an impact following it.  All in all though, the result is a fairly 'no-nonsense', in the room with band vibe.