Categories : Music Reviews, Rock + Pop.
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Rating: 4/5 Released: August 30, 2005 Reviewer: Nathan Atnikov |
Indie kids the world over held their breath when they heard that their favourite band, Death Cab for Cutie, was signing with a major. After their last album, Transatlanticism, hit it big, Atlantic Records scooped the band up and helped them release their major label debut, Plans. Luckily for the band’s fans, Death Cab’s signature heart-on-sleeve style remains intact, and the stylistic differences between Plans and Transatlanticism seem like natural growth instead of mainstream interference.
Sonically, Plans is Death Cab’s most impressive effort. Layers of sound are blended subtly, giving the entire album a rich texture without being distracting. As usual, Ben Gibbard’s vocals and lyrics are the anchor of the album, and when they fail, so do the songs. There are two noticeable missteps on Plans. The first, ‘Different Names for the Same Thing’, feels unfinished and overlong by about two minutes. ‘Someday You Will Be Loved’ is then a prime example of Gibbard crossing the line from endearingly sincere to trite. Both of these errors are forgivable, because the rest of Plans is a deceivingly strong record.
‘Summer Skin’ is carried by an acrobatic bass line, and ‘I Will Follow You into the Dark’ is Gibbard at his best. A quiet acoustic number, the song is an anchor for the record’s theme – the tightrope connection between love and death. When Gibbard sings “Love of mine, someday you will die,†it’s not a threat, but the beginning of a promise: “But I’ll be close behind and I’ll follow you into the dark.†This sentiment is completed on ‘What Sarah Said’: “love is watching someone die.†Gibbard’s pessimistic and vaguely cynical form of optimism are what make Death Cab’s songs so unique – finding beauty in all the wrong places.
So indie kids, put your fears to rest. Death Cab for Cutie not only retain their credibility on Plans, they make forward progress while doing so. Plans is the sound of a band growing, and one that intends to be around for some time – long after the O.C. gets cancelled.
