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CD Review: Death Cab for Cutie - Codes and Keys

Posted at 12:01 AM on June 6, 2011 by The Current
Filed under: CD of the Week

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My confession at the outset is that I don't have the same deep, storied bonds with Death Cab for Cutie as many of their fans. They're one of those bands who connect with their audience in a very personal, often emotional way. Many longtime Death Cab fans I know give a wistful sigh when they remember how much the band meant to them in their early days, only to have fallen off the wagon for the last few albums, which (almost certainly uncoincidentally) happen to coincide with the band signing to a major label in 2004. I am blissfully free of the burdens of fandom, which I felt allowed me to approach the band's new album, Codes and Keys, with a proverbial clean slate.

If a band has been operating for more than a decade, they invariably need new ways of branding their product, other than saying, "here's a batch of 11 new songs!" In Death Cab's case, band members indicated in pre-album interviews that Codes and Keys is intended as a move away from guitar-driven rock and into one more populated with keyboards and other textures. This notion gained legs, to the point where no one would have been surprised if the new album sounded like Ben Folds Five. Naturally, the lead single from the record, "You Are a Tourist" debunked these ideas entirely: a booming, guitar-riff-driven song that felt like the natural extension of their recent, arena-ready tracks like "Meet Me on the Equinox."

While Chris Walla's guitars haven't gone away entirely, the foundation of the band's sound is indeed rooted in pianos and strong bass lines. (side note: the bass has played such a prominent role in recent albums, I mistakenly thought for a long time that producer Chris Walla must, by extension, be the bass player. Wrong.) A few songs, notably "Unobstructed Views," wander into the same open ether that marked past single "I Will Possess Your Heart." There are also elements of Krautrock and dub, which also happen to be two notable genres that artists like to emulate in efforts to broaden their sound. The classic, lush Death Cab sound hasn't gone away entirely, present in soon-to-be-hits like "Underneath the Sycamore."

I've always found it difficult to come up with artists that Death Cab for Cutie have clearly influenced or been influenced by. This may be in part due to Ben Gibbard's distinctive, one-of-a-kind vocals as frontman. Gibbard is capable of being either the hang-up or the hook when it comes to the band's music; on Codes and Keys, he takes on a slightly more relaxed, pleasant tone that is sure to not offend. If anything, the sentiments (if not the words) recede into the background, requiring a little more attention from the lyrical end. As per usual, there are songs of yearning and songs of angst. A few tracks dive into weighty, metaphysical issues, like the ultimate fate of the human soul. "Doors Unlocked and Open" posits that we'll exist in a sort of watery, free limbo, while "St. Peter's Cathedral" bluntly reminds us that "there's nothing past this." It isn't all gloom, though, as Gibbard also adds a few happy odes to new love (no doubt inspired by his recent marriage to Zooey Deschanel), including the cheery album closer "Stay Young, Go Dancing," which suggests exactly what the title implies.

Death Cab for Cutie have made an album that is both deep and immediately enjoyable, a rich tonic for the days and nights of summer.

— Mac Wilson

Contribute now and get Codes and Keys as a Thank You Gift.

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