Narrow Stairs Reviews

This is the first 'Death Cab for Cutie' album I've heard even though they've been popular for many years now. I heard 'I will possess your heart' on the Radio and decided to take the plunge, and I'm glad I did. The radio version of the song is actually edited to about half it's length and removes the awesome bass dominated instrumental intro to the song. It's the undisputed highlight of the album. The rest isn't shabby either. The album starts off strong and the first four songs are varied and brilliant. These guys have amazing song craft for an indie band. I guess they're not indie anymore since they're signed to a major label now.

The song writing is uniformly excellent. The slightly obsessive love song 'I will possess your heart' reminds me of the Police classic, 'Every breath you take'. 'No sunshine' is dark and bitter but set to peppy, swinging music. There's also the Springsteen style story-telling of 'Your New Twin Sized Bed'. The music is varied as well, highlighted by the use of Indian percussion instrument 'tabla' in 'Pity and fear'. It ends with the beautifully written 'The Ice Is Getting Thinner', an excellent song to round the album off.