Black Prairie

Black Prairie is a new band featuring three-fifths of The Decemberists and two of the Portland, Ore.'s folk musicians. Their heavily acoustic debut, "Feast of the Hunters' Moon," was produced by Tucker Martine (The Decemberists, Death Cab for Cutie) and is due out on April 6th. As described by Dobroist Chris Funk, the band's sound "bridges the music of Clarence White and Ennio Morricone" in a way that defies genre characterization.

Decemberists guitarist Funk and bassist Nate Query hatched the plan to start a primarily instrumental string band while on the road. Funk began to spend time playing the square-necked Dobro guitar, and the pair recruited fellow Decemberist Jenny Conlee to play accordion. Portland musicians Annalisa Tornfelt and Jon Neufeld played violin and guitar, respectively, on the disc.

Black Prairie's songs consist mostly of instrumentals; their arrangements draw from bluegrass and old-time string band traditions, while Conlee's accordion and Tornfelt's violin instill klezmer and gypsy elements to the band's sound. The quintet sometimes takes an almost-classical approach to composition, with songs containing multiple movements. Tornfelt sings on a handful of tracks.