Customer Reviews

You Can Play These Songs with Chords

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This album is a collection of rarities and b-sides and I would not reccomend it to the first time death cab buyer your best bet is to pick up the photo album the biggest plus to this album is the smiths cover of this charmning man which is done semi tastefully aside from a few lyrical miffs.

I've read and heard far too many reviews of this album that don't give it the credit it deserves, so hear goes.

Honestly, this is an incredible album, but you have to be a Death Cab fan to appreciate it. Yes, this is their first demo and their B-sides. So don't complain if you buy it and aren't pleased because it's not "up to their usual quality"

But this album gives you insight into Death Cab that you aren't going to find anywhere else. So if you care about this band and actually appreciate their music in a moving sense, it's incredible. Some of the B-sides on this album are more incredible than the original songs. Also, it's amazing to hear the differences between the songs that made it onto latter recordings and those which were laid down for You Can Play These Songs With Chords.

So stop complaining. If you didn't like this album, you don't really like Death Cab. If you do, however, this is a rare treasure. Buy it, but only if you're a real fan. You know who you are.

A preliminary note: like the other reviews mention, You Can Play These Songs With Chords isn't the best place for a new Death Cab fan to start. Regardless, it is an excellent collection of songs that pinpoints a band from their infancy to most recent.

The opening eight tracks are a re-release of the demo recordings singer/guitarist Ben Gibbard did in 1997 (released with the same title as this compliation). Playing all of the instruments himself, the bulk of these demos resurfaced a short while later on Death Cab's first proper album, Something About Airplanes (then played with a full band). For the most part, the sound quality is awfully lo-fi, which recorder/future DCFC guitarist Chris Walla was obviously aiming for. As for the music, most of the songs are close enough to the final product, which is two-thumbs-up material. The few demos that didn't make it, like "Hindsight" and "That's Incentive" (with its limber bassline) show that not all songs cut were bad.

The rest of the material is a collection of B-sides from DC's history. Some, like "TV Trays" and the original version of "Song for Kelly Huckaby," are on the verge of being subpar. Others, like the pretty "Army Corp of Architects," the quasi-Built to Spill-ish "Prove My Hypotheses" and the Something About Airplanes misfire "State Street Residential," are some of the best tracks the band has recorded. Some, like the hilarious cover of the Smiths' "This Charming Man" and the 'European Dance Hit' "Tomorrow," just don't fit into any catagory.

For the most part, this is a great collection of songs Death Cab fans will be eager to get ahold of. For the newcomer, this may prove to be a confusing assortment of tracks.

Oh, side note: the CD insert is a great help: I was always interested in who plays on songs, and this delievers in addition to the amusing notes provided by the band members.

I'm fairly familiar with DCFC, having seen them live three times and hearing most of their songs.

This is one of my favorite Death Cab albums. It's raw and fun. It feels like the band is having fun as they play the music. It has a garage jam session feel yet sounds great. If you like Death Cab, you should have this album.

Whether or not you've heard this band before, I strongly reccommend this album!

I might get a lot of negative responses from this review, but in my opinion this is the best album Death Cab has produced. It is very complete, well thought out, and each song says something. I have been a Death Cab fan for a long time, and have every single album they have produced, listened to each one countless times, and this one strikes me as their best one. Maybe this doesnt get the appreciation it deserves because not every fan has this album. Give this cd a chance and listen to each song carefully, and you will see what i'm talking about. Trust Me.

Death Cab for Cutie is a band known for both its mellow, down to earth beats and for it's incredible, easy to relate to lyrics. They are also known to rock out on occasion, on such past tracks as "Company Calls" from the "We Have The Facts And We're Voting Yes" LP. Here, with "You Can Play These Strings With Chords," the band offers its fans a rare look into its early days, putting their original 8 track demo tape onto a CD. Now, while many may consider this as merely filler until their next album is released in 2003, it is much more than that. While by no means a masterpiece, it is a wonderful window into the band's beginnings. They excel the most with songs not recorded on their first album, as I am a big fan of the re-recording of "Pictures in an Exhibition," while this version seems to be missing something. On "Hindsight," "Two Cars," and "That's Incentive" however, we see that not all demos are bad things, as if not for this album these excellent tracks may very well have been lost to the fans of this wonderful band.

The B-Sides are another great added bonus. The only B-side Songs I had heard before this CD were "Wait," "Song for Kelly Huckaby(an extra on my Facts import)," and "Army Corps For Architects." By far, the best song here is "Army Corps," churning out sweet melodies and lyrics which are noticeably absent form most other music these days. This album helps me see how much better the "underground" music is as compared to "mainstream" as not once have Death Cab been on radio in NYC, yet they deserve all that and more. So, when you feel ready to buy this CD, buy "Facts" or "Something About Airplanes" first. It will get you ready for this, and what is to come from the band known only as Death Cab For Cutie.

death cab for cutie's "you can play these songs with chords" is the cutest album ever, musically speaking. all the songs are melodically hypnotic, with adorable chords that make you bob your head (or your bobblehead). all the songs are sweet and desireable. some songs, though, like "president of what" is such a reminiscent of old school rock songs, like from the beatles era. don't gasp, some of the songs (i know im stretching it here) are reminiscent of beatles tunes. others are reminiscent of 70's rock tunes. it's all very classic sounding and beautiful. some tracks could have been better, there could have been some more work done on some of the tracks, but why focus on the negative aspects. "amputations" is a cute little song you can drive to, like the end to a movie sequence. to say this album is "so relaxing" or "enjoyable" is to shortened the real quality worth of the songs as a whole. i really liked "state street residential." another fun track is "flustered/hey tomcat," it reminds me of those old school hip hop album interludes with the DJ cuts (public enemy had them, erik b. and rakim had them). overall this is a fun album for everyone. if you enjoy indie rock, soft rock, anything, this album is cool.

Most of the tracks on this offering are lo-fi and just full of washed-out, Pacific Northwest, dreary-day angst. This sound is distinctive from the brighter, fuller sound on their more recent releases. The last 10 tracks are bonus (compiled from various releases), including a Smiths cover, a glitzy-pop dance song, a sample-heavy track with a hint of hip hop rhythms, and a lovely closer.

I've come to regard this album as one of my favorites. It is an intensely honest, brazenly youthful, at times lonesome, and ultimately accomplished and varied gathering of tracks. A strong sense of time and place (geographical references abound), a personal remoteness balanced with sense of warmth, and a love of city and home run throughout. It takes such a long time to absorb and to get to know the album that by the time you do, you can't help but have a strong affection for it.

I'm a huge fan of DCFC and I love every song on every record, but you can really see why these ones didn't make it on to the records. Sometimes b-sides are pretty cool, but really, the only thing worth the cash on this one is "Wait", which is a cover of the Secret Stars song. If you really want the good DCFC b-sides, buy the UK Photo Album singles, both of which are solid and grab the Stability EP. The only folks who will enjoy this one are hardcore DCFC fans, so if you're new to them, get the Photo Album or Something About Airplane, or even possibly the Forbidden Love EP.

I evidently didn't listen to the advice given here when I bought this CD as my first Death Cab for Cutie purchase. I agree, some songs are a bit odd at first (I thought some sounded like Beatles songs) but after a few listens I really like this album. Highlights are Predesident of What?, Champagne from a Paper Cup, Hindsight, and TV Trays.