Death Cab for Cutie released (streaming from their MySpace) the first single from their forthcoming album, Narrow Stairs. It’s an 8 and a half-minute jam called “I Will Possess Your Heart,” where the at least the first half is a bass-infused groove reminiscent of a more mid-tempo, jammier, “National Anthem.” It’s pretty good. The lyrics strike me as typical Gibbard fare. I think it could’ve been shorter, but they warned us. People are already preemptively calling this Album of the Year, which is a bit far to go after one single, but it definitely has promise.
Honestly, though, it’s not quite as much of a change as I was expecting, given the original promises/threats. Take a listen: