In Issue 1053, Ben Gibbard talked with Jenny Eliscu about Death Cab for Cutie's leap to the majors for their 2005 album Plans and his love of Elvis Costello, as well as the band's latest album, Narrow Stairs. The singer-guitarist also mused on indie rock's new role in the music business and looking to R.E.M.'s career for guidance:

How different is the audience for Death Cab now than when you first started putting out albums?
There are choices now for people to find out what they like. They don't have to like what the major labels put out there in front of them. If people hear Death Cab, they don't have to buy Death Cab — it's not the only option they have for melodic indie rock. But I think if this was 10 years ago and you lived in Boise, Idaho — like, I think that's the closest thing that I like, so I buy that, you know what I'm saying? Everybody votes with their dollars now. They have an infinite number of choices, they don't have to take whatever the major label hands to them anymore and I think that's fucking great!

And there seems to be more room for "challenging," different-sounding music as a result.
As ubiquitous as Dark Side of the Moon is, it's a pretty crazy record. And that record is the number-one selling record of all time. There's always gonna be room in the public spectrum for really interesting, challenging music. It's just that those things used to come so few and far between. I think we are in a situation now where we are able to give [the audience] more credit, allowing them to make more decisions. Up until the last couple of years, you had what was on the radio, you had what was on your college station, you have whoever's older brother that maybe has Who records that your friends are able to steal a couple and put on tape.