Pitchfork

Yet another contest, folks. Always up for some fan interaction, the Decemberists have joined forces with the t-shirt gurus over at Threadless.com for a design battle to end all design battles. (Until Stephen Colbert comes up with one.)

You know, the kind that includes a grand prize of George MacDonald Fraser's Flashman Papers (recommended by Colin Meloy, of course), an autographed limited edition Decemberists lithograph, autographed copies of The Crane Wife on vinyl and CD, a Capitol Records 5-CD surprise pack (ooh we hope it comes with a Chingy album!), an "I Heart Threadless" tee, a one-year 12 Club subscription, a $300 Threadless gift certificate, and $1,500 in cash!

Damn.

Yeah, we thought that would bring out your competitive nature. So how do you connect your grubby hands to that fine pile of prizes? Simple-- just design the best (as judged by the Threadless staff and a Decemberists rep) shirt you can based on the Decemberists' Crane Wife song "The Island". Entries must be submitted here by 11:59:59 CST on January 1, so get a move on it.

That's right, you heard us. Design a t-shirt based on a 13-minute, three-part epic about rape and murder on the high seas. Easy! Just use the keyboard solo for inspiration.

As previously reported, the Decemberists and Stephen Colbert of "The Colbert Report" will face each other in a guitar solo duel come December 20. That's eight days and counting...

And just to remind you, the Decemberists will tour Europe this February. This week, they're slated for two make-up gigs at Vancouver's Commodore Ballroom.

Dates:

12-13 Vancouver, British Columbia - Commodore Ballroom
12-14 Vancouver, British Columbia - Commodore Ballroom
02-02 Sheffield, England - Leadmill
02-03 Dublin, Ireland - Vicar
02-04 Glasgow, Scotland - ABC *
02-05 Manchester, England - Academy 2 *
02-07 Nottingham, England - Trent University *
02-08 London, England - Shepherds Bush Empire *
02-09 Southampton, England - University *
02-10 Brussels, Belgium - Botanique
02-12 Cologne, Germany - Prime Club
02-13 Hamburg, Germany - Knust
02-14 Berlin, Germany - Postbahnhof
02-16 Fribourg, Switzerland - Fri-son
02-17 Bologna, Italy - Estragon Club
02-18 Munich, Germany - Ampere
02-19 Vienna, Austria - Flex Club
02-21 Amsterdam, the Netherlands - Paradiso
02-22 Paris, France - La Maroquinerie

* with Lavender Diamond