The Execution of All Things is the second full-length album released by Los Angeles-based indie pop band Rilo Kiley. Expanding on their previous musical sound that mostly incorporated guitars, vocals, percussion and pianos, the album contains heavy electronica sampling mixed into the songs in a rather unusual and displaced-sounding way. Also, unlike their previous tracks which were written in very traditional manners, the lyrics to the songs on Execution are very wordy and read like prose. Musically, the record has a very sunny disposition, with bouncing bass lines and simple melodies complemented by lead singer Jenny Lewis's vocal style, but the upbeat music is generally counterpointed by the often dark and morose subject matter that the lyrics reference. The album was recorded at Saddle Creek Records in Omaha, Nebraska, and the aforementioned features show the influence of that studio's associated Omaha Sound. The album is also strung together by a song that is broken into pieces and that trails between several tracks. Called "And That's How I Choose to Remember It", it tells the story of Lewis' childhood and her parents' divorce. This theme is visited throughout the album, which is lyrically filled with childhood recollections of loss, displacement, anger and hopelessness. The songs "So Long" and "Three Hopeful Thoughts" feature lead vocals by Blake Sennett. Lewis sings lead on all other tracks. The song "With Arms Outstretched" played in the final moments of the series finale of Weeds, just as it had in the pilot. The song "A Better Son/Daughter" was played in the trailer for the first season of the Netflix original series Orange Is the New Black. It is also featured at the end of Hannah Gadsby's 2018 Netflix special Nanette. This album is the 47th release of Saddle Creek Records. As of July 2006 the album has sold 66,000 copies in United States.
Track listing
All songs written by Jenny Lewis and Blake Sennett, except where noted.
Amy Huffman – violin on "The Execution of All Things" and "Capturing Moods"
Gretta Cohn – cello on "The Execution of All Things" and "Capturing Moods"
Jiha Lee – flute on "Hail to Whatever You Found in the Sunlight that Surrounds You"
Kristen Bailey – saw on "And That's How I Choose to Remember It"
Mike Mogis – pedal steel, guitar, vibraphone and glockenspiel on "The Good That Won't Come Out", pedal steel on "Paint's Peeling", pedal steel and vibraphone on "Hail to Whatever You Found in the Sunlight that Surrounds You", banjo on "And That's How I Choose to Remember It"
Rick Ricker – French horn on "Capturing Moods" and "My Slumbering Heart"
Ryan Fox – saxophone on "The Good That Won't Come Out"
