Album Reviews
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View That sort of heartbreak defines Narrow Stairs. But where Death Cab's past records made it easy to empathize with Gibbard's narrators, the group's second major-label release zeros in on characters who are often more creepy than cuddly. The result is a dark, strangely compelling record that trades the group's bright melancholy for something nearer to despair.
Death Cab's previous album, 2005's Plans, played to the impeccable craftsmanship of producer-guitarist Chris Walla, who has also made records with indie colleagues the Decemberists and Tegan and Sara. Plans was the sound of a band standing in open space, every note articulated. Its characters dreamed of flight, reveled in sunlight and saw endless possibilities. In one song, Gibbard imagined opening his arms to span the length of Manhattan, and musically, that's exactly what the band did.
Narrow Stairs does the opposite. Elaborate multitrack recording has been replaced with the sound of a band in a room: drum hits elbowing through overmodulating bass lines, feedback squalls obscuring piano and vocals, clotting the air like smoke. The sense of claustrophobia even extends to the breaks between tracks, which are nonexistent or fleeting; songs are cut off by noise bursts or begin with the lurch of a tape-machine capstan. This fits the material — the album is as dark as anything the band has done. The most glaring example is the single "I Will Possess Your Heart," which begins with nearly five wordless minutes of midtempo groove-building before becoming a love letter from a stalker. "You gotta spend some time with me," he sings with a trace of menace, noting his reflection in his beloved's window as he cruises by, "and I know that you'll find, love/I will possess your heart." Restraining order, please!
It's playing against type for a guy with one of rock's purest voices — a vibrato-less, bell-clear high tenor whose choirboy quality only throws the darkness here into relief. "No Sunlight" documents the death of an optimist over a perky New Wave backbeat. The feedback-spiked "Talking Bird" portrays a passive-aggressive lover whose devotion seems tinged with loathing. And "You Can Do Better Than Me" — where a man decides to stay in a troubled relationship "out of fear of dying alone" — comes across as a jaunty, Pet Sounds-style organ-rock stroll. Who knew timpani and sleigh bells could sound so unnerving?
But the most indelible moment is "Grapevine Fires," a minor-key processional framed by churchy organ and electric piano. In it, a man brings his lover and her daughter to a cemetery, where the couple watch the girl dance against a backdrop of brush fires like those that ravaged Southern California last year. "I knew . . . everything would be all right," Gibbard sings, with an angelic chorus flaring up around the last word. But any certainty is wishful thinking. By the song's end, firemen "worked in double shifts." Whether they succeed or fail remains a mystery.
There are some heavy-handed moments. "Your New Twin Sized Bed" ("With a single pillow underneath your single head") and "The Ice Is Getting Thinner" are love eulogies whose metaphors feel a little too easy. But Gibbard's indie-rock blues still plumb emotional depths with remarkable literary detail. The songwriter has spoken about the influence that Jack Kerouac's end-of-the-road narrative Big Sur had on Narrow Stairs, especially on the opening track, "Bixby Canyon Bridge," a tribute to a Big Sur landmark. That song's narrator makes a pilgrimage to the sacred spot but finds himself "no closer to any sort of truth" than when he began. Still, by the end of this haunting record, Gibbard has gained a deep understanding of lovelessness and the way people live in its quiet wreckage.
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- Bixby Canyon Bridge
- I Will Possess Your Heart
- No Sunlight
- Cath
- Talking Bird
- You Can Do Better Than Me
- Grapevine Fires
- Your New Twin Sized Bed
- Long Division
- Pity And Fear
- The Ice Is Getting Thinner
- I Will Possess Your Heart (Radio Edit)
- Album Credits [As Read By Mike West]
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Your Turn
Review 1 of 15
keithlodermeier writes:
While I agree with most of what this review, I think it is a mistake to only compare Narrow Stairs to Plans. Narrow stairs does not deviate from Death Cab's style; Plans does. Narrow Stairs is, if anything, a return to a less polished sound, more of a band playing in a room but a better than average band, nevertheless. I, too, was disappointed when comparing it to Plans but Narrow Stairs is still better than just about anything popular that I'm aware of, musically and lyrically.
Sep 1, 2008 17:20:17
Review 2 of 15
gtmcg writes:
Song for song, this is the best Death Cab album. I have no clue why people are at all disappointed with it, unless they have a problem with a band coming together and hitting their stride as a group. This album, from the epic opening track to the tender finish, has no songs I'd skip. Every other album has at least 2 songs I can't listen to every time. And did I mention it rocks? This is exactly the album I was hoping they'd make.
Jun 16, 2008 11:07:23
Review 3 of 15
deschutes writes:
I agree with some of the comments about this album not being as good as previous releases. I also had the idea that it was over-produced as well. That was until I saw them in concert the other night in Bend, Oregon. This was a small outdoor venue with a marginal sound stage. The live version sounded EXACTLY like the album. DCFC was a machine. It was almost too good. To be honest I liked the Decemberists a little better.
May 26, 2008 21:26:36
Review 4 of 15
TheWhistler writes:
Narrow Stairs is a better album than Plans. AS ONE SINGLE SEPARATE BREATHING LIVING ENTITY, Narrow Stairs is better than Plans. The instruments and lyrics in Narrow Stairs are better than the ones in Plans. BUT, if I had an hour to listen to a Death Cab album, I'd listen to Plans. It's prettier.
May 26, 2008 16:38:03
Review 5 of 15
shortie08 writes:
I think this album is great. I wasn't expecting an album that was dark, and I like that. It goes beyond my expectations. That's the mark of a good band. It keeps the listener interested. I think Ben's lyrics are wonderful. I think they have depth and character. I like how this album is dark and desperate. "Pity and Fear" is by far my favorite song because it's almost hypnotic, the only problem I have with that song is thge way it cuts off. I can stop listening to it. It's a step away from what they've put out in the past but in a very good way. I don't see why people have a problem with this album. If you were expecting something like Plans you will be disappointed or suprised, depending on if your open to a different sound or perspective.
May 22, 2008 14:11:57
Review 6 of 15
randomn8 writes:
I'm trying to like this album, but it just falls way short. This album just runs all together. Ben Gibbard has fallen in love with his voice. I hate to use the term over produced, but it's exactly what it is. I'm a long time Death Cab fan since "we have the facts...." and I'm just disappointed by this album. The best song on this album is "the ice is getting thinner", and even it shadows the lyrics of "brothers on a hotel bed".
May 22, 2008 11:46:58
Review 7 of 15
jmoney135 writes:
i felt like "Narrow Stairs" was miles away from the yellow brick road that was leading DCFC to the Emerald City of rock. the songs are lacking the smart close to your heart writing of old. id agree that ben didn't seem to be right on from the start to finish of every song. "talking bird" is perhaps the laziest song i've heard in a long while. i found the instrumentals were overproduced and technologically altered to the point of being distracting. i recall making my drive home from work longer just to listen to a few more songs of transatlantacism, and was hoping "narrow stairs" would be just as catchy. it isn't. i was hopeful after 4 minutes of the second song, but 4 minutes after that i had doubts. i did however enjoy some songs such as "Cath" and "The Ice Is Getting Thinner"
To all those who want to get to know this band, please don't start with this album!
May 18, 2008 20:11:52
Review 8 of 15
avilion writes:
i hear alot of people saying nothing but positive things about this album. This album is nothing like death cab has ever been with the exception of no sunlight and the ice is getting thinner. this album sounds like death cab breaking up. bens writing doesnt sound like his own. he sounds nothing but bitter in the first single I will possess your heart. the lyrics in songs like talking bird and cath... are sugn clumsily and dont flow as his lyrics once did. the albums production sounds right for the mood but thats all the positive i have to say. this album seems likely to be their last in my mind. death cab for cutie RIP. i hope ben continues on his own, i hope chris's band does well. i wish the best to nick and jason in whatever they decide to do next. death cab for cutie released many good albums, this is not one of them.
May 16, 2008 22:05:37
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