twenty-three

"Hi. We’re Death Cab for Cutie. We think it might be worthwhile re-introducing ourselves, because we just released our newest full length album. And it doesn’t really sound like us. Or at least you might not think so. So, pleased to meet you once again."

Here’s the first review I was eluding to with yesterday’s post. I’m just wrapping up my first listening to "Narrow Stairs", the newest offering from Bellingham’s-own Death Cab for Cutie. Thanks to an iTunes pre-order, I’m listening to the deluxe edition before the release date, which clicks over in about an hour. So, that’s cool. But let’s get to the album.

I’ve been reading, over the past few weeks, that this new album might ruffle a few feathers, might make people uneasy, might not quite be what people expect. They’re saying things like "some people might not like this album". I like the line in the last track, "The Ice Is Getting Thinner": "we’re not the same dear, as we used to be |
The seasons have changed and so have we." There’s definitely something different going on here and it seems like they’re ok with admitting it. For one, the band seems a whole lot more aggressive on this album than any of the past. Where songs like "The New Year" and "Crooked Teeth" (of previous albums) had some "piss and drive" to them, they pale in comparison to the kick in the teeth that "Bixby Canyon Bridge", "Long Division", and "Pity and Fear" throw at you.

The other note I’ve heard again and again with regards to this album is about frontman Ben Gibbard’s rediscovery of the guitar. Whereas Plans, their last release, had very little distorted guitar, Narrow Stairs is saturated with long, sustained power fed by heavy distortion. This kicks the band up a notch as they shake off some of their old standby styles for a fresh look at their sound. Embracing new sonic perspectives, with songs like "I Will Posses Your Heart" (the 8 minute long jam) and "Pity and Fear" (a little more sitar, please), the band moves into uncharted territory, unexplored landscapes of sound that I’ve only heard them dance around on previous albums and mildly entertain in their live performances.

Stand out tracks, for me, have to be "Bixby Canyon Bridge", a tale of Gibbard’s soul-searching journey to meet up with Jack Kerouac’s spirit in Big Sur, CA; "I Will Posses Your Heart", the creepy stalker tale that just doesn’t go away (8:35 minutes of building, layered, sonic mess sweetness that isn’t half bad as a single); and "The Ice Is Getting Thinner", because while they depart stylistically through the middle half of the album, exploring way too many major keys and bright harmonies than one would expect from a grey-skied Bellingham/Seattle band, they return home to dark, sparse, and brooding to close the album.

It’s a different game. They’ve decided to change the rules a bit. This isn’t the Postal Service, it’s not Plans, and yet, it is the proper evolution. These guys, who I saw when they played the Viking Union at WWU my freshmen year of college, showing off their new release, The Photo Album, have changed. And that’s alright.

PS: I’ll be interested what a few more listens will bring out. I always a need a few times around to get it really settled in my mind. We’ll see what happens, I suppose.

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