Death Cab for Cutie's Sound Change

New Album Narrow Stairs Lead Single 'I Will Possess Your Heart'

Apr 9, 2008

Narrow Stairs, the new Death Cab for Cutie album, carries with it a new sound. The reasons for this are many, but Death Cab is ultimately going in their own direction.

When the phrases “ten-minute-long Can jam”, “abrasive”, “heavy”, and “bloody” all refer to a single album, one might think of The Mars Volta or other loud, yet inventive hard rock bands. However, all three terms have been used by Death Cab for Cutie’s guitarist Chris Walla and lead singer Ben Gibbard to describe their newest album, Narrow Stairs. The album, which is due for release a little over a month from now, promises to be a completely different listening experience from what Death Cab has put out in the past.

While the album may be better or worse than Washington’s indie veterans’ previous efforts, it is a landmark in their music (and all music) because it shows Death Cab for Cutie making—for once—exactly the type of music they want to make. No more, no less.

Besides the much-discussed influences from Can on the new single “I Will Possess Your Heart”, Death Cab has decided to take after many different artists on their new album. While singer/guitarist Gibbard takes after Can and has a bleak lyrical outlook on life, bassist Nick Harmer draws from a metal background and guitarist Walla looks to snyth-punk bands for inspiration, most notably Brainiac. These influences are not new developments, but if the band had exhibited any interest in them on their previous albums, it clearly went unnoticed with Death Cab’s sorrowful-yet-optimistic mellow sound.

This divergence of sound is evident even in their single. “I Will Possess Your Heart”—which was released last month—is the infamous “Can jam”, clocking in at 8:36 and only featuring lyrics in the last four minutes. This incredible buildup is not unheard of in Death Cab’s other songs, but they have never taken their music to such extremes. Also, the use of the word ‘possess’ makes the song much harsher and more forceful than even their trademark breakup song, “Someday You Will Be Loved”.

The most talked-about aspect of Narrow Stairs might be the band’s divergence from their previous soft, pensive sound, but it certainly isn’t the most important one. What makes this album important is not the fact that it’s louder or has a different lyrical focus. The importance of this album lies behind the reasons for its being made: purely for the band’s own satisfaction. Ben Gibbard said in a promotional video for the album, “I just don’t feel like we really have anything to prove other than to ourselves and to making a record that we all really enjoy.” This attitude is mostly unseen in today’s culture, but it obviously gives the band a great liberty when producing their music.

Of course, the major rift between Narrow Stairs and the rest of Death Cab’s albums is the same rift between Death Cab’s musical direction and what their fans and record label expect from them. This record is special because the band has made something they actually want to make. They are no longer chained down to a sound, but Death Cab is obviously welcoming the onslaught of criticism which will no doubt come along with the change of direction. It’s good to see that there’s some individual drive left in the music industry.

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