If Colin Meloy had his druthers, the Decemberists would exist in 1970s England, where they could share stage time and radio airplay with the psych-folk giants of the day: Fairport Convention, the Pentangle, and the Albion Dance Band.
But, of course, as a modern-day musician, the closest Meloy can get is by paying tribute to the artists who inspire him. Their influence can be heard on the Decemberists’ rootsier moments, and on his 2006 EP Colin Meloy Sings Shirley Collins. Recently, Meloy’s musical obsession found a new voice when he happened upon The Longest River, singer/songwriter Olivia Chaney’s 2015 debut.
A fellow student of the British folk tradition, Chaney spent decades gigging and learning songs from centuries’ past before finally committing some to tape, along with a few originals, on The Longest River. In Chaney’s crystalline vocals, acoustic guitar, and harmonium, Meloy heard the long tradition of great British folk artists like Collins, Sandy Denny, and Maddy Prior—in other words, the perfect foil for his dream project. A few Twitter DMs later, they were trading ideas and songs and mapping out a collaboration that would become Offa Rex.