The Decemberists return with end-credits song for Wildwood film
The Decemberists have released their first new music in two years, a song written to close the animated film Wildwood.
The track is titled 'The Better Part of Bravery', according to Pitchfork. It was written to play over the end credits, the music heard as the story ends and the names roll.
The release is the band's first track since its 2024 album, As It Ever Was, So It Will Be Again. That two-year gap makes the film song the band's first new material since that full-length record. The timing links the return directly to the cinema schedule rather than a separate album rollout.
Colin Meloy, lead singer and songwriter for The Decemberists, wrote the song. Meloy is also the author of the 2011 novel on which Wildwood is based. He said writing the end-credits song gave him a chance to return to the world of Wildwood in a different way.
The novel was illustrated by Carson Ellis and is described by Laika as a bestselling book. The film adaptation is directed by Travis Knight. It reaches theatres on October 23, two weeks after the song's premiere was reported on October 9.
The voice cast is large. It includes Peyton Elizabeth Lee, Jacob Tremblay, Carey Mulligan, Mahershala Ali, Angela Bassett, Tom Waits and Richard E. Grant. The names cover leading roles and supporting voices across the story.
The song appears on "Wildwood: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack", the album of music from the film. Universal Music Group is credited as the provider of "The Better Part Of Bravery" to YouTube, according to the video listing (YouTube). That listing places the Decemberists track as part of the official film music package.
Studio Laika is submitting the song for Oscars consideration as an original song from Wildwood, according to Variety. The original song category is for music written specifically for a film. A submission is the first step toward possible nomination, not a nomination itself.
For fans, this means two returns at once. Meloy revisits characters he first created on the page, now with his band behind him. Listeners will hear the new track first as part of the film's closing moments from October 23. The soundtrack release lets people hear it separately from the cinema.
