Death Cab For Cutie

I heard “Soul Meets Body” on the radio, and it got me excited for Death Cab for Cutie’s new album, Plans. I was even more excited when I was lucky enough to get a sneak preview of the album before it hit stores. While the rest of you are waiting for it to come out, I have already been listening to it since Tuesday, and I am happy to report that it will be worth your wait. Easily as good as their last album, Transatlanticism, Plans delivers a new set of great songs.

As one of the world’s most loved indie bands, it should come as no surprise that there was concern that Death Cab for Cutie had “sold out” when they signed with a major record company. Death Cab’s first album under the Atlantic label does show some of the markings of a major label debut (polished production, and overall relatively low risk) but that doesn’t hurt this album in the slightest. I doubt that many of the long-time fans will be disappointed with this album. I cringe at the thought of Death Cab as a mainstream band, but Plans will surely attract many new fans. Who cares anyway? Does the line between indie and mainstream even exist anymore? It should be about the music and not music snobbery. Death Cab deserves all the praise that they can get.