Earlier in the 00's I heard a song on a modern rock format that did not fit the crunched-guitar-Eddie-Vedder-wannabe sound. It had an intro that sounded like a ring tone (this was before ring tones had their own chart): the synth sound bounced back and fourth from left to right speaker like a ping pong match. Then the techno drum and bass faded in and we were off!
"Such Great Heights" by the Postal Service featured Ben Gibbard on vocals and had such an Erasure-turn-of-the-80's sound I was amazed to hear in the skinny-pants 00's. The lyrics were interesting and murky and the song was the favorite of all my friends from 20 to 45. Ben was actually the lead singer of Death Cab For Cutie who was about to explode big time after working hard on the fringes for years.
The CD "Plans" is the one I'm most familiar with. I own and have listened to it over and over again on car trips with my wife (living in California you make many car trips--heck, that was true for when we lived in the south, too!). The song "Soul Meets Body" was the biggest hit and I was intrigued that it really didn't have a chorus. However, when that "When Soul Meets Body" chorus kicks in, you can't help but feel uplifted and want to hear it over and over again (versus a song that beats you over and over again with its chorus--I am guilty of writing such songs).
Another song that indirectly references the soul off the "Plans" album still gets played on radio today called "I Will Follow You Into the Dark." I heard that just after Christmas last year driving in a car following my wife driving with her friend just ahead of me (like a typical Californian driving in more than one car). In the song the story tells of someone saying to their loved one if you should die before me I will follow you "into the dark." Interestingly enough, it catches you in a very non-hoaky way (unlike every country song in existence). How does it feel when we imagine the horror of not having our loved ones by our side anymore?
The latest song by Death Cab that's getting constant airplay these days is "Meet Me On the Equinox" from the latest "Twilight" movie. None of the tween-year-old girls will think this that go to see the movie, but that song sounds exactly like Rush circa 1990 (no girls, not Rush Limbaugh, that awful old man your father listens to). I, for whatever reason, am a connoisseur of that music and even Ben's voice sounds very Getty Lee-ish. I love the song, though, not for any nostalgia sake but because it's a great song. It will sound great years after those vampire movies disappear into the bargain bin at Borders. I hopefully will not follow those movies into the dark.
By the way, Benjamin Gibbard is married to Zooey Deschanel. He wins.
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