Album Review: Narrow Stairs by Death Cab for Cutie

by Liz Kantner in Album Reviews

Death Cab for Cutie is a band that evokes emotions some didn’t even know they had.  They were my favorite band a few years ago due to the release of ‘Transatlantcism,’ which I listened to on repeat for weeks. Death cab has a song that can relate to pretty much every relationship I have ever been in. From the hard break ups to the times I was truly in love. While they are no longer my favorite band, they have always been there for when I want to get lost in memories of the past.

On Tuesday, May 13th, Death Cab for Cutie came out with their new and highly anticipated album, Narrow Stairs, This is their first album since Plans was released in 2005. Their newest single from the album, ‘I Will Possess Your Heart’ is a really good song but has an incredibly long instrumentalwhich seems similar to Mars Volta’s style. The album is much darker and attempts to be more mature than previous albums. Death Cab is pretty much the only indie band with a platinum record, so they went in a different direction than was expected.

Overall, the album is not too thrilling. They seem to be trying to stray away from the typical Death Cab for Cutie, but it ended up being very similar to their older albums. There were a few good songs in the midst of a mediocre album. In general, the album is perfect to listen to after a major break up, because all of the songs relate to the ending of a relationship.  If you listen to only one of their songs, make it  ’Grapevine Fires’ which is the best song on the album.