Death Cab for Cutie - I Built You A Tower Review
On the band's eleventh album, Death Cab for Cutie return to the style of their early work to recapture the feeling that fan-favourites Transatlanticism and Plans evoked so long ago.
Death Cab for Cutie has been a staple of the indie scene for over a quarter century, building their legacy through sharp songwriting and catchy melodies, with frontman Ben Gibbard’s distinct vocals leading the charge. On the band’s eleventh album, they return to the style of their early work to recapture the feeling that fan-favourites Transatlanticism and Plans evoked so long ago, unfortunately under the weight of Gibbard’s personal turmoil.
There are a multitude of factors that contributed to the creation of I Built You A Tower. It is the first album the band has recorded since their 2022 album Asphalt Meadows, which was largely created separately due to COVID-induced restrictions. Not only were the band able to collaborate freely in person again, but they also departed from the major label Atlantic to sign with the more indie-rooted Anti-. Additionally, the recording of I Built You A Tower follows the heels of their 10th Anniversary tours of the aforementioned Transatlanticism and Plans, no doubt a trip down memory lane for the group. All these factors culminated in an album that feels like an older, wiser version of the band’s past selves. Bassist Nick Harmer puts it, “The whole experience of this record got back to the earliest versions of this band: If the musicians in the room like what we’re working on, that’s enough. We reconnected with the confidence that comes with that.”
During this time, however, Gibbard was weathering his second divorce. The band had explored themes from Gibbard’s first divorce on their 2015 record Kintsugi, painting the experience with disappointment and sadness. I Built You A Tower feels more defeated than anything, with themes revolving around trying to find oneself in the wake of life-altering grief.
The record features some of the most diverse listening experiences in the band’s late-era catalogue. Slower, more stripped-back ballads such as ‘Full of Stars’, ‘Stone Over Water’, and ‘Trap Door’ feel vulnerable and earnest. Each of these tracks is strengthened by its instrumentals, whether it’s the flowing piano on ‘Trap Door’, or the layered guitars on ‘Stone Over Water’.
On the other hand, songs like ‘Punching the Flowers’, ‘How Heavenly A State’, and ‘Riptides’ are jolts of lightning within the album. Tracks like these demand your attention with a harshness the band hasn’t explored in years. The gravelly bass on ‘How Heavenly A State’ and ‘Riptides’ punches its way through the songs, coloring them with greys and blacks. It is when the band embraces these symphonies of noise that their sound feels more aligned with their younger selves.
The standouts of I Built You A Tower come in the form of the two title tracks. Side A’s guitar melody is infectious, with Gibbard’s tender vocals conveying the sense of yearning the band regularly displays. Side B rounds up the track list, but this final song is hardly a peaceful ending to the album. It flips its softer predecessor with a final, cathartic bow of defeat.
The lyrics throughout I Built You A Tower has Gibbard wearing his emotions on his sleeve. The chorus of “All I need / Is for you to be kind / But it seems / It’s rarely worth your time,” on ‘Full of Stars’ begs one to be kind to themselves, no matter how hard it may be. The desperate attempt to move on with life is put on full display with lyrics like “And now I find I’m waking up at sunrise / And just lying in bed / Giving myself a pep talk / To survive the day lying ahead,” from ‘Pep Talk’, or “But nothing happens every time I pray” from ‘The Flavor of Metal’. If you focus on just the lyrical aspects of the album, it feels like staring into Gibbard’s soul as he fights an unending battle with himself, while choosing to carry on after every defeat.
I Built You A Tower isn’t a “return-to-form”, but rather a “return-to-roots”. Trading in the picture-perfect, maximalist sound the band has come to rely upon in their late-era discography, the band has put out a product whose rough-around-the-edges delivery feels more in-tune with the early releases that fans of the band initially fell in love with. Death Cab for Cutie doesn’t sacrifice artistic integrity for a cheap copy of their most popular work either; they successfully weave in modern contexts to create one of their best works in years. The end product is a beautiful, heart-wrenching album that both fans of the band and new listeners can appreciate.