The Decemberists are a literate, folk-tinged indie pop outfit from Portland, who've released a couple of albums on the hip Kill Rock Stars label. They've built up a club-filling live following across the US and now they're on their first UK tour, promoting a single release from their Her Majesty album.

I was expecting an empty room tonight, especially because the only link I can make between this band and Brighton is that they toured the States with Clearlake and - in a coincidental booking clash - Jason Pegg is playing a rare solo gig across town, killing potential word-of-mouth fanbase crossover. But it doesn't appear to matter: The Decemberists somehow already built themselves a crowd here. Word is the Water Rats was sold out and tonight they've filled the (admittedly small) Freebutt to near capacity. It's not just me who knows the words either; a bunch of people here are already fans. The Decemberists blend driving indie pop and folksier instrumentation. We switch impeccably from electric to double bass and from lovely, wheezing accordian to grinding Hammond. A reference point might be Hefner if they'd gained a hard American edge to their playing and swapped the floppiness for some ambition.

The focus is songwriter/frontman Colin Meloy, strumming acoustic guitar and singing in studenty, pathos-drenched and slightly nasal tones. He's an ace lyricist. He writes beautiful, flowery, visual language and, at the same time, chooses a fantastic array of subject matter. We hear of soldiers and architects and, at one point, he sings of life as a chimney sweep. Almost too many melodies to cope with, using simple rising broken chords more akin to musical theatre than alt-pop. It gives the songs the instant memorability of the working class music-hall, which also feeds the mood; if a common thread runs through the poetry (and Meloy's work undoubtedly qualifies as poetry), it's an olde-worlde, civil-war kind of ambience, like a broader version of Will Oldham's lyrical sense. Immensely satisfying and - occasionally - nicely pervy stuff.