Death Cab for Cutie- Codes and Keys

Establishing a consistently pleasing aesthetic treatment of your band’s sound is never easy, especially for LP number seven. Death Cab for Cutie has resolved to “mature” their sound—forlorn frontman and lyricist Ben Gibbard married Zooey Deschanel since their last album, after all—by expanding their use of electronic textures.

This new direction is elucidated in the brighter thematic content of the lyrics, most clearly seen in “Stay Young, Go Dancing” and “Doors Unlocked and Open.” The romantic, emotionally wrought wordplay found in their songs (“We Looked Like Giants” and “We Laugh Indoors” come to mind) of previous albums is almost entirely eschewed.

But in this process of maturation, Death Cab seems to have lost much of the intimacy and depth found in Plans and Transatlanticism that earned them a loyal legion of followers. “Some Boys” stands out as an example of the type of insipid sound that they need to avoid. Trite lines like “Some boys don’t listen at all/They don’t ask for permission/They lack inhibitions” feel more like examples of creative writing gone wrong (“show, don’t tell”) than poignant statements on love and its travails.

This isn’t to say that Codes and Keys is devoid of any memorable or enjoyable songs, however. “Monday Morning” and “St. Peter’s Cathedral” are respites from Death Cab’s recent mediocrity. “Monday Morning,” in particular, showcases the producer Chris Walla’s aptitude for melding drums, pleasing keyboard strokes and fluttering guitar and bass riffs around Gibbard’s endearing tenor. It’s a step in the right direction: a song that retains the lyrical poignancy and rich instrumentals of their previous albums, and gives one hope that the band hasn’t completely stagnated creatively.

This latter point is tricky: how reasonable is it to expect Death Cab for Cutie to advance past their early work without alienating some of their previous fan base? Honest engagement with the music demands open-mindedness, but when the evolution is this uninspired, something has to give before even their most devoted followers lose interest.