To some extent, this EP — culled from songs left off last year's Narrow Stairs — feels like a Death Cab for Cutie sampler pack: "Little Bribes" is a return to the jaunty guitar rock of The Photo Album; the driving "I Was Once a Loyal Lover" is the Seattle foursome at their poppiest; and the riff-based "My Mirror Speaks" would have fit perfectly on 2005's Plans. "These eyes don't shine half as bright/As they used to do/And they haven't for quite a while," Ben Gibbard croons on "Mirror," making it abundantly clear that — 12 years into his band's career — he's nowhere close to running out of things to be sad about.

“Ambling Alp”

The "Ambling Alp" was the nickname of the six-and-a-half-foot-tall Primo Carnera. Though the song is named after the Italian-born 1930s heavyweight champion, Yeasayer are actually paying tribute to boxing legend Joe Louis with this first-person psychedelic dance-rock tune. “I was always interested in writing a song that had boxing mythology in it,” Yeasayer’s Chris Keating said. “It’s pretty fascinating: There were so many amazing characters, and it was so closely entwined with 20th century history.” Yeaseyer also invokes German champ Max Schmeling and hints at the historical significance placed on the historic bouts between the Nazi-era boxer and the African-American Louis.