Death Cab for Cutie's eighth full-length album, 2015's Kintsugi, finds the group sliding further into the studio smoothness that marked 2011's Codes and Keys.
Produced by Rich Costey -- best-known for his work with Kimbra, Mew, Muse, Interpol, and Chvrches -- Kintsugi is also the last album Death Cab recorded with co-founding member Chris Walla, who announced he was leaving the band during the recording process.
Sentiment has always been lead singer/songwriter Ben Gibbard's calling card, but as he starts to stare down the corridor to 40, he seems comfortable with leaving that open heart unadorned -- or, better still, gussied up in a coat of studio shellac.
Although there are fragile solo numbers dotted throughout the album, most of Kintsugi shimmers upon a gloss constructed out of new wave remnants and faded memories of yacht rock.
Conceivably, Gibbard's intent hews toward the latter -- such clean disco-rock diversions as "Good Help (Is So Hard to Find)" and the galloping collegiate rock echoes of "El Dorado" show a yen for art -- but his open heart nudges Kintsugi toward new millennial soft rock.
This is a feature, not a bug.
Gibbard has a gentle touch so having cushy, sugary melodies mirrored by a production equally as supple feels like a marriage of intent and sound.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | No Room in FrameBen Gibbard, Nick Harmer | Death Cab for Cutie | Play | 04:06 | 9 MB | 24 MB |
| 2 | Black SunBen Gibbard | Death Cab for Cutie | Play | 04:49 | 11 MB | 31 MB |
| 3 | The Ghosts of Beverly DriveBen Gibbard | Death Cab for Cutie | Play | 04:04 | 9 MB | 28 MB |
| 4 | Little WandererBen Gibbard | Death Cab for Cutie | Play | 04:19 | 9 MB | 28 MB |
| 5 | You've Haunted Me All My LifeBen Gibbard | Death Cab for Cutie | Play | 04:08 | 9 MB | 24 MB |
| 6 | Hold No GunsBen Gibbard | Death Cab for Cutie | Play | 03:03 | 7 MB | 12 MB |
| 7 | Everything's a CeilingBen Gibbard | Death Cab for Cutie | Play | 03:41 | 8 MB | 25 MB |
| 8 | Good Help (Is So Hard to Find)Ben Gibbard | Death Cab for Cutie | Play | 04:47 | 10 MB | 34 MB |
| 9 | El DoradoBen Gibbard | Death Cab for Cutie | Play | 03:38 | 8 MB | 24 MB |
| 10 | IngenueBen Gibbard, Jason McGerr, Chris Walla | Death Cab for Cutie | Play | 04:31 | 10 MB | 29 MB |
| 11 | Binary SeaBen Gibbard | Death Cab for Cutie | Play | 04:04 | 9 MB | 23 MB |
| 45 mins | 103 MB | |||||
| 45 mins | 286 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mario Borgatta | Assistant Engineer |
| 2 | Martin Cooke | Engineer |
| 3 | Rich Costey | Engineer, Mixing, Producer |
| 4 | Death Cab for Cutie | Primary Artist |
| 5 | Nicolas Fournier | Engineer |
| 6 | Ben Gibbard | Composer, Group Member, Lyricist |
| 7 | Nick Harmer | Composer, Group Member |
| 8 | Bob Ludwig | Mastering |
| 9 | Jason McGerr | Composer, Group Member |
| 10 | Christopher Possanza | Producer |
| 11 | Sam Riback | A&R |
| 12 | Josh Rosenfeld | Producer |
| 13 | Joe Rudko | Cover Art |
| 14 | Chris Walla | Composer, Group Member |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |