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76 of 81 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
I Will Follow You Into The Dark, January 25, 2006
Normally I try to avoid the hype machine that surrounds a band referenced or namechecked on "The OC" or some other blisteringly popular and annoying teen show. But something about the first single off Death Cab for Cutie's album "Plans" spoke to me in a way that nothing on the radio has in quite a while. So I picked up the album (keeping in mind that they were supposedly "Seth Cohen's favorite band" and not hold it against them). I can say I was pleasantly surprised.
I'm not going to pretend that I know the history of DCFC or their indie-rock roots. This is their major-label debut, and it's pleasantly against what you'd normally expect from a legendary cult band trying to achieve pop immortality on their very first major record. The album starts quietly, and ends quietly. In between, there are a lot of quiet songs.
A snoozefest, right? Not so.
The best tracks, besides "Soul Meets Body" are Summer Skin, I Will Follow You Into The Dark (an aching acoustic ballad that makes the listener weep), Crooked Teeth, What Sarah Said...really, the entire album lives up to the heady expectations that some will bring to it. It's not for everyone per se, but it has certainly had an effect on me.
Again, I'm new to the whole DCFC mythology and mythios. But I know great music when I hear it, and you can't do much better than "Plans". Nevermind the hype, this is the real deal.
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40 of 43 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Beautifully and classically constructed tour de force, November 13, 2006
Every talented, original, innovative band that achieves success over a number of years inevitably reaches the point where a significant part of its fan base accuses the band of "selling out." This usually occurs when one or more of the following happens:
-the band receives major label backing
-the band gets a new producer and/or access to state-of the art production facilities
-the band members make a great leap forward in terms of musicianship and/or songwriting
-the band achieves commercial success and/or critical acclaim
For Death Cab for Cutie, all of the above occurred with "Plans." Studio gloss has sanded off Death Cab's rough edges, their songs have become tighter and more ambitious, and they have achieved nearly household name status. So naturally, their diehard fans who stuck with them through the lo-fi indie years have accused them of selling out.
While some call it "selling out," I call it "getting better." I have heard, and quite like, Death Cab's earlier work, particularly "We Have the Facts and We're Voting Yes" and "Transatlanticism." "Plans" does for Death Cab what "OK Computer" did for Radiohead: it marks their great leap from rock's best-kept secret to a band that's finally achieving the success they deserve through hard work and persistent innovation.
I began listening to "Plans" at the same time I was studying Baroque music at Rutgers. I was quite astonished at how classically constructed Death Cab's songs are. I won't elevate Ben Gibbard and company to Bach's level just yet, but many of their songs - particularly "Marching Bands of Manhattan" and "What Sarah Said" - exhibit the "motoric rhythm" found in Bach's concertos. These songs drive forward with active bass lines, articulate drumming and intertwining keyboard and guitar ostinatos. Also found in Death Cab's work are terraced dynamics - changes in volume level caused by instruments entering and exiting. A harmonic nod to early music is suggested by "Someday You Will Be Loved," with shifting dominant chord relationships found in Renaissance and Baroque dance music. I don't know if Death Cab for Cutie studied music history, but they have clearly evolved from songwriters into composers, and the result is extremely satisfying on a visceral level.
"Plans" is quite possibly the best rock album of 2005, and I believe its reputation will only grow with time. Death Cab diehards, don't begrudge the band's well-deserved success. Embrace it, and satisfy yourself with the knowledge that you recognized their greatness before the masses did.
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163 of 192 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Plans expands on Postal Service, August 30, 2005
If you liked "Give Up" then buy this album immediately. If you think the move towards a more produced sound is going to piss you off, give you more major label woes, you might want to look elsewhere. I don't know, pick up an old Neutral Milk Hotel album and gripe about how everyone is selling out. Me, though, I think this is their best album in a few years. They didn't lose any edge when they jumped onto the label, they just got a better studio for Chris Walla to work his magic. My recommendation? Buy the album. Then again, I just like music, and if I can hear it better, more crisp, more produced, and hence, a better listen? All the better. As long as Atlantic doesn't try to change the whole thing Death Cab has going for them in their sound, then they're still one of the best groups around.
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