The Decemberists Announce Summer 20th Anniversary Tour

The Decemberists have lived the life of the road for more than two decades now, and it’s time to pay a little deference to the group that has been one of indie rock’s most consistent and influential creative forces from 2000 onward. In honor of their 20th anniversary, Colin Meloy and co. have announced a special Summer 2020 North American tour, with an array of dates revealed today. Tickets and VIP pre-sales are already underway, with public sales starting on Valentine’s Day. As ever, the band is incorporating a socially conscious element via a partnership with PLUS1, wherein $1 from each ticket will be donated to “non-profits working to transform the accessibility and infrastructure around voting policy and procedure.” More details are available via the official website.

And of course, this wouldn’t be a Decemberists tour without a little jaunty, weirdo maritime flavor, so of course the name of said tour is “20 Years Before the Mast.” They’ll be joined by Fruit Bats as special guest in almost all of the dates.

“Twenty years ago, in a basement practice space in Portland, Oregon, a bunch of musicians threw together under the name The December Brides, a name that lasted only a few hours before it was marginally improved to The Decemberists,” said Meloy in a statement. “In the intervening years, that band has made nine records, six EPs, innumerable singles, a board game, and enough t-shirts, hoodies, and onesies to clothe a continent. On such occasions, it seems fitting to throw some kind of party. And so we’re heading out on the road, we Decemberists, to celebrate the work we’ve made over the last two decades — playing the hits, naturally, but digging into the deep cuts as well. It’ll be a kind of retrospective journey. Come along with us!”

In our experience, that actually sounds pretty much like what the group has already been doing for the last few years, as their vast back-catalog has made recent shows in support of albums like What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World and I’ll Be Your Girl into veritable greatest hits shows, even if they were technically touring in support of those albums. The Summer 2020 tour, meanwhile, will include 18 dates, which you can view below.

20 Years Before The Mast
The Decemberists 20th Anniversary Tour

With Special Guest Fruit Bats*
*with the exception of Kansas City

July

28 – KettleHouse Amphitheater – Missoula, MT
29 – Paramount Theater – Seattle, WA
31 – Edgefield – Troutdale, OR

August

1 – Edgefield – Troutdale, OR
3 – The Mountain Winery – Saratoga, CA (on-sale TBA)
4 – The Wiltern – Los Angeles, CA
6 – Gallivan Center-Twilight Concert Series – Salt Lake City, UT
7 – The Mission Ballroom – Denver, CO
8 – CrossroadsKC – Kansas City, MO (support TBA)
10 – Surly Brewing Co – Minneapolis, MN
11 – Auditorium Theatre – Chicago, IL
14 – Roy Thompson Hall – Toronto, ON
15 – Beak & Skiff Apple Orchards – La Fayette, NY
16 – Wolf Trap Center for the Performing Arts – Vienna, VA (on-sale 2/22)
18 – The Met Philadelphia – Philadelphia, PA
19 – The Boch Center-Shubert Theatre – Boston, MA
20 – Central Park SummerStage – New York, NY
8/22 – Ryman Auditorium – Nashville, TN