Death Cab for Cutie will reel in skeptical fans with ‘better tempo mix’
Death Cab for Cutie/Narrow Stairs
Reviewed by Edward Wallace
The last Death Cab For Cutie album, Plans, had great singles, and no stinkers, but the album was duller than the sum of its parts because there were too many slow ballads in a row. This time around, it’s safe for more skeptical music fans to call a cab. Narrow Stairs solves the pacing problem with a better tempo mix. The instruments stand out from the pulsating bass in “I Will Possess Your Heart” to the rollicking punk drums and feedback at the climax of “Bixby Canyon Ridge.” “No Sunlight” has bouncy keyboards. Only towards the middle do things mellow out.
The album version of “I Will Possess You Heart,” unlike the radio edit has a long build up before the vocals kick in, but those who stick around will be rewarded. Plans focused on love songs; its title described things which were hoped for. Stairs is more about obstacles and moving on in life.
Ben Gibbard’s singing is still quaint. But as always, Gibbard’s power is in his lyrics. Jason McGerr, the drummer, still kicks butt, and has the Scottish marching quality. The song “Cath…” is not a Bluebells cover, but it is an incredible drama about a woman trapped in a loveless relationship. “Bixby Canyon Bridge” is my initial favorite, telling of a pilgrimage to the place of a dead artist for inspiration. Only the finale “The Ice is Getting Thinner” seems cliche. But after the experimental journey of the other tracks, a rest is not unwelcome.
I’m ranking Stairs as my second favorite Death Cab album, behind The Photo Album (my sentimental first DCFC experience), and just ahead of Transatlanticism.
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