The Photo Album

by

Death Cab for Cutie

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My first introduction to DCFC was a live show, perhaps the best showcase for their pretty-but-angry sound. In the recording studio, the spare instrumentation sounds like more than the sum of its parts, and Ben Gibbard's arpeggiated vocal lines are almost soothing. DCFC makes beautiful, heartbreaking music, but the current of anger and bitterness runs close beneath the surface.

"Styrofoam Plates" finds company with rage-against-the-father anthems like the Cherry Poppin' Daddies "Drunk Daddy" and Tool's "Prisonsex", unflinching in its portrayal of a betrayed child's emotions, while managing to avoid self-indulgence.

If DCFC are destined to have a breakthrough hit, I believe it will be "A Movie Script Ending" - a haunting, relentless anthem about long distance relationships and hours on the road. But there are other, more imaginative tracks on the album that deserve attention. "Information Travels Faster" is smart and catchy, and "Why You'd Want to Live Here" features some of the best drumming and risky syncopation I've heard in recent popular music. "Blacking Out the Friction" isn't afraid to change-up the rhythm in support of the message in the lyrics, showing off the natural rhythm of frontman Ben Gibbard's poetry - and it is poetry, much more so than just rhyming lyrics squashed within the time signature.

In fact, the drums are one of the biggest reasons to check out DCFC. Rather than being relegated to timekeeping, they take center stage as an instrument on this album, which might be confusing at first. A repetitive guitar line undulates during the instrumental interlude in "Styrofoam Plates," but the drums are playing their own melody line. Michael Schorr, new to DCFC on this album, proves that he has the chops to pick up where Nathan Good left off.

The audible influences (if not influences, certainly close cousins, anyway) are diverse: from the Beach Boys to the Pet Shop Boys, Suzanne Vega and the Flaming Lips; echoes of guitar bands from the 80s and a good helping of Northwest punk keep the music from being just pretty pop.

I've noticed that people tend to rate albums very very highly when they review them, often four or five stars. Some albums deserve five stars, but many don't. Consequently, when reading these reviews people get a biased viewpoint and end up purchasing albums that, well, really aren't five star albums. This, as much as I hate to say it, is not a five star album. Sure, it has its moments, and the lyrics are ok, but it's a very slow, mellow repetitive album, that many would argue is whiney. It's a shame, too, because when they music does pick up or change (such as on the third track) or use some interesting drum arrangements (such as on the ninth track) it really does sound pretty good. If you're into emo and mellow music, then I'd imagine you'd enjoy this. If you're into indie rock (or Modest Mouse or Built To Spill) then you might be particularly annoyed and bored by this album.

This review will probably be rated "not helpful" by many Death Cab For Cutie fans, which is a shame, because I really am trying to prevent music lovers from buying an album which they may find sub-par or mediocre. It's not a terrible album, just a dull one.