Thank You For Today (studio album) by Death Cab For Cutie

From Keatownrodriguez 09/09/2019 18:53

The good moments are some of the best death cab has had in a while, but the rest is pretty average, definitely listen to When We Drive, Your Hurricane, Gold Rush, Autumn Love, and I Dreamt We Spoke Again

From SleepDealer 10/20/2018 07:12

For those still interested, this is a pleasant return to form after the lacklustre and unbalanced Kintsugi.

From Brad1770 09/20/2018 12:18

I'm no DCFC aficionado but am familiar enough with their catalogue to have a rational option

'Thank You For Today' is a rather hit or miss affair and passes you by with barely a whimper . Opener "I Dreamt We Spoke Again" kicks things off in 1st gear and things barely improve with "Gold Rush" , "When We Drive" , " You Moved Away" and "Near / Far" all missing the mark by some margin

But its not a complete disaster , lucky for closer "60& Punk" with its off key piano as easily the best track here , and a reminder of Gibbard's better work ('Plans' anyone?) I also didn't mind the poppy "Autumn Love" along with the slower "Your Hurricane" even if lyrically it contains the howler line:

"YOU USED TO BE SUCH A DELICATE KID
A LONELY FISH IN A SEA FULL OF SQUID"

Come on Ben , your better than that

So I've explored 'Thank You For Today' ...TICK

Now where's that Spotify Delete Album Button ?

50 Cheesy Lyrics Out Of 100

A thoroughly enjoyable album. Great sense of melody and some exceptional moments

I am surprised. First listening I thought it was a little boring but with the three highlight through the entire album (Gold Rust, Northern Lights, 60's and Punk) I think this quite a good album for DCFC, one they needed.

An album that took me by surprise. Gold Rush, Your Hurricane and 60 & Punk are stand-outs.

Well... this album has its strong moments (the first 3 tracks, the last one) and some weaker moments (Northern Lights). In fact, if it could have kept the momentum of the first three tracks, this would have been a great album in my opinion. But, it lacks a little bit of consistancy and it kind of looses it down the middle. I think it's a good effort though and I'm hoping it will grow on me.

I'm really enjoying TYFT. In my opinion, their best since Narrow Stairs.

Thank You For Today represents, what should be, a breath of fresh air for Death Cab - two new members in the fold. And if it's anything Death Cab needs at this moment in their career is some new wind.

Though the loss of Chris Walla is often seen as a detriment to the band's future, it seemed that the band was already on, what most would consider, a downwards trend with albums such as 'Codes and Keys' and 'Kintsugi'. Walla's departure is felt in the band's production following Kintsugi. I personally enjoyed the production of Kintsugi, I won't deny that it is overproduced at times, but I felt it fit for the more electronic sound DCFC was experimenting with. However, Thank You For Today takes Kintsugi's sanitized production and ups it to eleven. On some tracks, Gibbard's vocals are filtered through strange effects and he just seems alien at times. And while that could certainly fit, it never does. And for such an album that seems more nostalgic in lyrical content - the in-personal production on Gibbard's voice does not benefit.

'I Dreamt We Spoke' is an unusual introduction to the album. I felt that it should've been a second track - the despondent chords the resolution to something prior. But there is nothing prior - this is the introduction to the album: strange given the otherwise cohesive mood that the album creates through its 38 minute run. The track is okay; it runs out of ideas by the end of the first chorus however and you can't help but feel there should be something greater on the horizon - as if the filter on Ben's vocals should disappear but nothing quite resolves.

Thank You For Today represents a softer turn for DCFC. It is a mesh of the pop sounds of Codes and Keys and the clean production of Kintsugi. And its softer side is where it shines. Tracks like 'When We Drive', 'You Moved Away' and '60 and Punk', tracks where the guitars don't control the primary melodies, are perhaps the best on the album. 'When We Drive' has clean, spacey synthesizer chords and some nostalgic lyrics from Gibbard - it is a pretty, atmospheric pop cut. '60 and Punk' has a odd flanger piano melody with Gibbard recalling a fallen hero, a beautiful closer to the album. 'You Moved Away' has a interesting warped synth melody panning throughout, and the additional acoustic guitars that pop up later through the song are a nice touch. However, the song is hindered by a rather weak chorus.

When DCFC decides to go back to its rockier roots, they falter. 'Summer Years' sounds like a song made by fans of the band rather than the real deal: it's fine, the melodies are fine - the track is fine, but just fine. 'Summer Years' just seems to be on the tracklist for people to recall the days of old DCFC (but with less interesting guitar melodies). 'Your Hurricane' sounds like Title Track but, simply put, not as good. A 30 second teaser was released near the announcement of the album, aiding my personal theory that these tracks were included merely to appease old school DCFC fans.

Tracks such as 'Gold Rush' and 'Autumn Love' are somewhat forgettable and represent a shift into poppier territory. However, they are far from the most egregious attempts on Thank You For Today at crafting a generic pop song - that award goes to 'Near/Far'. The track in question sounds like a Mylo Xyloto era Coldplay track with its danceable guitar melody and Gibbard's faded vocal production. Yet, in spite of its energy, the track is simply boring. The poppier tracks on this album aren't terrible, they're simply too devoid of captivating melodies for pop fans and a far cry from the standard of writing that DCFC were once used to (debatably a decade ago, but still).

The track 'Northern Lights', personally, reminds me of X&Y era Coldplay. It's also boring. There really isn't much to say about a lot of tracks on the album in all honesty: pretty guitar melodies that go nowhere, and you want the track to be over at the 2:40 mark and the song goes on for another minute.

This is Death Cab's worst album. At times, it barely feels like a DCFC album. Tracks such as 'Near/Far' and 'Gold Rush' are so devoid of what made Death Cab, well, Death Cab and the good tracks are few and far between.

Maybe the album will grow on me, but right now I'd give it somewhere around a 4 to a 5.

very pop, but it is a nice album !!