New Death Cab For Cutie - "I Will Possess Your Heart"
You guys had fun with our game building jokes out of Death Cab's new record title Narrow Stairs (e.g. Ned said: "How do you confine an obese person to the lower floors of a house?" -- and that's the most politically correct one) ... but we think you're gonna find even more to love out of the record's first listen, "I Will Possess Your Heart." Walla's back on production of course, setting the scene instrumentally for almost two minutes with a groovy bass vamp, a little piano, and atmospheric guitar chatter. Actually, it's not too far from a Phish jam (that's not a joke), until Gibbard starts in with the earnest requests to spend time together and the threats of heart possession. This is the bass line that soundtracked that video preview last year. We're liking it.
If you're into buying your music, Amazon will possess your wallet.
Narrow Stairs is out 5/13 via Atlantic. The tracklist:
01 "Bixby Canyon Bridge"
02 "I Will Possess Your Heart"
03 "No Sunlight"
04 "Cath..."
05 "Talking Bird"
06 "You Can Do Better Than Me"
07 "Grapevine Fires"
08 "Your New Twin Sized Bed"
09 "Long Division"
10 "Pity and Fear"
11 "The Ice Is Getting Thinner"
Posted at 2:24 PM
Tags: Ben Gibbard | Chris Walla | Death Cab For Cutie
i love it. little skeptical at first but i can't wait to hear the rest of the album.
Posted by: d at March 18, 2008 2:46 PM | ReplyScore = 0
yeah, so i got transatlanticism and thought that was boring. then i got plans, and i thought that was even more boring. then i just heard this 4:30 minute intro, oh god, don't get me started. i hope long division isn't a fugazi cover they messed up into a 10 minute song.
Posted by: reid in reply to d's comment at March 26, 2008 9:07 PM | ReplyScore = -1
I dug it. You're right about the Phish-y intro though; and once upon a time, I would have said that was a good thing. Nowadays, not so much...
Posted by: The Spilken8r at March 18, 2008 2:51 PM | ReplyScore = 4
Woah, long intro. I dig.
Posted by: Sundeep at March 18, 2008 3:04 PM | ReplyScore = 3
Well the lyrics are still full of what I call "Gibbardsms," but overall I love the song and the production is impeccable as always.
Posted by: Ju Bean at March 18, 2008 3:04 PM | ReplyScore = 1
"gibbarish" is you will
Posted by: anon in reply to Ju Bean's comment at March 18, 2008 10:42 PM | ReplyScore = 3
What are the odds that "Long Division" is a Fugazi cover? That would be...odd.
Posted by: SolidGoldInternetMachine at March 18, 2008 3:12 PM | ReplyScore = 0
i can only handle my death cab in 3:30 doses. this is boring and stupid. they're a great pop band, why mess with that?
Posted by: nick at March 18, 2008 3:33 PM | ReplyScore = -5
I can't wait for this album.
Posted by: toyourdismay at March 18, 2008 3:33 PM | ReplyScore = 1
That bassline was good the first twenty seven times.
Posted by: Luis at March 18, 2008 4:12 PM | ReplyScore = 3
what a weird choice for first single ?
Posted by: joey at March 18, 2008 4:16 PM | ReplyScore = 0
the song's alright... but those vocals are awful. yeah very much "gibbardisms" i guess, but what's with his delivery on this one?
Posted by: ben at March 18, 2008 4:22 PM | ReplyScore = 0
His vocals seem too suitable for the radio now unlike The Photo Album, We Have the Facts, and Something About Airplanes. This in fact really bothers me.
Posted by: Jules in reply to ben's comment at March 19, 2008 7:33 PM | ReplyScore = -1
@ Joey, the radio single will be sans intro. Anyways, definitely digging the jam session intro...reminds me of their live show.
Posted by: Curt at March 18, 2008 4:34 PM | ReplyScore = 3
Pretty good tune, psyched to hear the record!
Posted by: omg at March 18, 2008 4:34 PM | ReplyScore = 1
Oof. What a sigh of relief when those vocals finally hit. And then a great disappointment. I disagree that the lyrics are Gibbardesque (I like the adjective form better than the noun -ism form); there's far too much repetition and far too little imagery. Well, good for him for trying divergent styles. I'm just not into it.
Posted by: Beth at March 18, 2008 4:38 PM | ReplyScore = 0
I feel compelled to reply to my own comment. I heard it this morning on the radio sans lengthy guitar intro and I loved it. I guess it's one of those songs that just has to grow on you.
Posted by: Beth in reply to Beth's comment at March 22, 2008 11:11 AM | ReplyScore = 0
i wonder if they'll shorten it for a radio edit or something... cause i don't know if the general public can handle this much...um not words
Posted by: dan at March 18, 2008 4:41 PM | ReplyScore = -5
Neds joke would've been funnier if he switched "obese person" with "pregnant girlfriend".
@ Nick: Couldn't agree more. But maybe that's the ADD.
Posted by: JAck at March 18, 2008 4:45 PM | ReplyScore = -1
death cab are heading towards a new direction with this one. i bet they'll play Lollapalooza this year.
Posted by: djaskldas at March 18, 2008 5:20 PM | ReplyScore = 0
I agree, it's interesting. Long single but I like the decision to do something different. Far from a disappointment, looking forward to hearing the rest of the album.
Posted by: Liquiddj21 at March 18, 2008 5:27 PM | ReplyScore = 2
I admire the experimentation (for them), but it got dull after the first 7 minutes. Like a failed Yo La Tengo excursion.
Posted by: innercityblues at March 18, 2008 5:45 PM | ReplyScore = 0
i love every second of it. i wonder if doing this was a conscious decision to drive away all the 13 year old girls and people like nick up there. i dont so much see the phish comparison, but jammy it indeed is.
Posted by: annie onymous at March 18, 2008 5:49 PM | ReplyScore = 2
It has its moments, but hardly sounds like a hit single (not that this is a bad thing). Color me very curious about the rest of the album. Though I find myself infinitely more excited about Tapes 'n Tapes.
Posted by: Reed at March 18, 2008 5:58 PM | ReplyScore = 0
I like it, though the intro sounds a lot more like Tortoise to me than it does Phish...
Posted by: DaveO at March 18, 2008 6:03 PM | ReplyScore = 1
the vocals felt Interpol-esque to moi. makes heart possession sound like a dire threat.
Posted by: @meli@ at March 18, 2008 6:06 PM | ReplyScore = 2
It was okay. The bass line was just as unnecessarily repetitive as the chorus.
Posted by: Martin at March 18, 2008 6:44 PM | ReplyScore = -2
Not trying to be a hater, but i honestly did not like that in the least. That band is over.
Posted by: Fred at March 18, 2008 7:12 PM | ReplyScore = -6
wow,a nice departure for sure. wasn't so sure about it at first, but it definitely grew on me with repeated listenings.hope the rest of the album is full of jammy indulgence, i always thought that Walla's production was their biggest asset.
Posted by: Kall at March 18, 2008 7:20 PM | ReplyScore = 0
This song is every bland piano ballad from Plans crammed into one.
Hopefully this gets it out of their system and the rest of the album is GOOD.
Posted by: Evan at March 18, 2008 7:32 PM | ReplyScore = -2
I liked it, much better than I thought it would be! Honestly, it could have been worse... Is that the actual cover art?!
Posted by: emnem at March 18, 2008 7:33 PM | ReplyScore = 1
I love it. The subtle variations in the long build up are great.
Posted by: Miles at March 18, 2008 8:42 PM | ReplyScore = 3
Props on knowing what a Phish jam really sounds like. It really is more like this than the endless noodling people assume it to be.
Posted by: scratchiti at March 18, 2008 9:01 PM | ReplyScore = 1
i'm gonna agree with annie onymous. and also..
Posted by: liz at March 18, 2008 9:54 PM | Replya reminder that music doesnt ever NEED lyrics to be good. and for those of you that are pissed about it being repetitive, they probably wrote it this way to get the listener into that 'jam' feeling, or almost in a trance like the way their song transatlanticism does. it is an incredible buildup to a beautifully layered song. i absolutely love it.
i'm sure they'll keep up the good work for the rest of the album. can't wait to hear it!
Score = 1
Porcupine Tree anyone?
also, how irritating that something with echoing, rolling bass and piano, needs a 'nahnahnah' bit.
Posted by: Bob L'Eponge at March 18, 2008 10:35 PM | ReplyScore = -1
Is this track an April Fool's joke? Miserable DOA effort from these usually more reliable geeks.
Posted by: Not Ben at March 19, 2008 10:43 AM | ReplyScore = -3
i love the song. i can't wait for the new DCFC album :D
Posted by: killabot at March 19, 2008 10:48 AM | ReplyScore = 0
Talk Talk, anyone? It had to happen. Life's what you make it.
Posted by: The Swede at March 19, 2008 10:50 AM | ReplyScore = 0
Comparing this to Talk Talk is an insult to Talk Talk.
Posted by: Chris in reply to The Swede's comment at March 21, 2008 7:42 AM | ReplyScore = 1
This is a good song. You do start to think it's just an instrumental but then Gibbard makes his appearance. I really like where DCFC are heading with this one.
Posted by: Music Critic at March 19, 2008 11:02 AM | ReplyScore = 0
Wow, that is surprisingly fantastic. I mean, I thought I'd like it, but I didn't think I'd like it *that* much. The intro is super amazing.
Posted by: suzie at March 19, 2008 11:32 AM | ReplyScore = 0
I dig the song, but to me it sounds a little like "Death Play for Cold Cutie".
Posted by: tylenolmonkey at March 19, 2008 12:46 PM | ReplyScore = -2
coldplay? ive never known anything sound less like coldplay ever. how many 8 and a half minute singles do they have.
Posted by: will at March 19, 2008 1:06 PM | ReplyScore = 0
song of the year...downright mind blowing.
Posted by: spencasaurus at March 19, 2008 1:40 PM | ReplyScore = 0
talk talk
i hear it
also i liked plans
Posted by: brody at March 19, 2008 2:32 PM | Replysuck it haterz
Score = 0
the lyrics at points sound stalkerish at points, quite unsettling.
Posted by: simonthepieman at March 19, 2008 3:11 PM | Reply"its like a book that is elegantly bound, but in a language you can't read... yet"
Score = 2
the super crazy long intro ultimately seems pointless to me. i suppose the album will give it more context...
Posted by: dunno at March 19, 2008 4:25 PM | ReplyScore = 0
Anyone ever heard of Talk Talk?
Posted by: derek at March 19, 2008 4:50 PM | ReplyScore = 0
no
Posted by: mike in reply to derek's comment at March 23, 2008 4:52 PM | ReplyScore = 0
I love it. I think the intro is a bit long, and could be shortened a little, but overall I'm very impressed. I think I'll like it even more when I hear it used in the album, that should have it make a little more sense.
Posted by: Brian at March 19, 2008 5:03 PM | ReplyScore = 0
not a fan. he's a better softy than a rob thomas.
Posted by: ben at March 19, 2008 7:05 PM | ReplyScore = -2
I heard it on the radio today and it had the entire intro.
Posted by: leigh at March 19, 2008 7:34 PM | ReplyScore = 0
Does the title remind anyone else of Temple of Doom?
http://www.deepsealife.org/possessurheart.jpg
Posted by: Kevin at March 19, 2008 10:26 PM | ReplyScore = 1
Wow, this is the first Death Cab song I've heard that managed to hold my attention all the way through. It does kinda show up the inadequacies of the rhythm section, though. It's also inspired me to go back and listen to A Storm In Heaven by The Verve, for some reason.
Posted by: The Ecuador Thee at March 19, 2008 10:42 PM | ReplyScore = 0
I have the facts and I'm voting yes.
Posted by: Finchmeister at March 19, 2008 10:43 PM | ReplyScore = 3
I TRIED to find something I didn't like about this track. Failed miserably. LOVE it. Really different, and damn good.
Posted by: Meniskus at March 20, 2008 1:41 PM | ReplyScore = 1
i liked it quite a bit, but i'm not sure i'll be able to say that after the 100x times i'm bound to hear it.
Posted by: maude at March 20, 2008 2:32 PM | ReplyScore = 0
i have to agree with all of the articles about the new
album; they say that you'll either "love it or hate it".
and these responces make that a fact.
i personally think it's a gutsy endeavour and brilliant.
Posted by: danny at March 20, 2008 3:07 PM | ReplyScore = 0
I like the comment about Amazon... classic
Posted by: juanzelada at March 21, 2008 9:09 AM | ReplyScore = 1
This song is a move for the better. It's definately got me curious for the album, which is sounding better than Plans already. The long intro and repetition is an asset to the song and (as usual) Chris Walla's production is perfect.
Posted by: aari at March 21, 2008 11:08 PM | ReplyScore = 1
Good track. I think this could be a more interesting record than Plans.
Posted by: Fame Throwa at March 23, 2008 8:48 PM | ReplyScore = 0
The alternative rock station out here in Seattle has been playing a shortened "radio edit" of the song, which is kind of a relief to me...I mean, the song is kind of a gamble, and I thought they had lost it to put out an 8-minute single...so, never fear.
By the way, I like it a lot. Bold move that just might work out.
Posted by: christian at March 26, 2008 7:33 PM | ReplyScore = 0
If you glance at at the tracklist on iTunes, you'll see a radio edit for 'possess.' As for the song itself - without the intro, I like it just fine. I really wish it went somewhere but as far as failed ventures go this is pretty good.
Posted by: Alex M at March 26, 2008 10:42 PM | ReplyScore = 0
probably a wilco like attempt to express pain through music.
i mean a good majority of you hate the intro.
give it time, it may grow on you.
i disliked the spiders(kidsmoke) intro when i first heard it,
Posted by: kevin at April 25, 2008 2:44 PM | Replyand now i cant get enough of it.
Score = 0
Don't know if anyone said this... but maybe the long intro has something to do with the lyrics? It does take some time, but in the end, you're hooked.
Posted by: hmmm... at April 28, 2008 6:11 PM | ReplyScore = 0
Don't know if anyone said this... but maybe the long intro has something to do with the lyrics? It does take some time, but in the end, you're hooked.
Posted by: hmmm... at April 28, 2008 6:11 PM | ReplyScore = 0