Death Cab For Cutie

Editor's Review:

Death Cab has spent years perfecting their craft, and it seems like their efforts have finally paid off. Narrow Stairs follows the pop sensation of 2005’s critically acclaimed Plans with a darker atmosphere and a disheveled foundation that builds the songs into their own little monsters of sorts, towering high above your vision but still holding within them the beauty that has previously outlined their material.
In ways they seem to have come full circle, forgoing cut-and-paste verse-chorus patterns with the usual progressions in lieu of simpler parts put together with pieces of everything, allowing the music and song itself to breathe while each instrument comes in and out, all at differentiating time schedules. Some have waited a decade for DCFC to utilize the noise aspect and ratio into their music, and at long last, they do. Songs like opener “Bixby Canyon Bridge” are a hodgepodge that somehow come out to the listener more akin to a Pink Floyd interlude rather than a modern day indie music phenomenon. Their choice of “I Will Possess Your Heart” as a first single is more than impressive; faced with the challenges of cutting eight-and-a-half minutes down to a radio-friendly jam. Narrow Stairs proves that they are ready to handle the pressures of being pushed into the mainstream public’s eye.


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Record Label Atlantic Released March 2008

Tracks 1. Bixby Canyon Bridge     2. I Will Possess Your Heart     3. No Sunlight     4. Cath     5. Talking Bird     6. You Can Do Better Than Me     7. Grapevine Fires     8. Your New Twin Sized Bed     9. Long Division     10. Pity And Fear     11. The Ice Is Getting Thinner

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