Customer Reviews
Simply Ground Breaking. - By: P. J. Smith, 03 Aug 2008 
Death Cab for Cutie still amaze me, even today's bands fail to even compare to the careful hounest lyrics of Ben Gibbard.
This Album will blow you away from start to finish. My stand out track on this Album has to be "Your Heart is an Empty Room",belive me it'll tug at your emotions & make you think about your life.
Superb 5th album from Death Cab! - By: Mr. D. J. Tatlow, 04 Jul 2007 I've had this album for a while now, & it's grown to be one that I value a lot. I was a big fan of Transatlanticism, but I feel that Plans is a much more focused & coherent work, & flows better as an album.
Lyrically, Ben Gibbard touches upon the perils & joys of relationships, his thoughts on growing older, & mortality amongst other things. I feel that a reviewer a couple of reviews below has not given Ben enough credit when he points out a grammatical errorin his lyrics. Ben Gibbard writes about deeply personal issues, & the "on accident" lyric from Brothers on a Hotel Bed may well be a personal faultin someone close to him, almost an homage to fallability. Make no mistake, Mr Gibbard is a major factorin this review. The music itself is difficult to describe, however I feel that Tiny Vessels, Transatlanticism & Passenger Seat, from their Transatlanticism album, would be the best match for how this album sounds overall.
The album kicks off with the ever-expanding Marching Bands of Manhattan, with tender lyrical sentiments that build into a mini-crescendo of subdued distortion. From then on we are greeted with a variety of sounds & styles, from the now staple Death Cab crowd-pleasing ballad (I Will Follow You Into the Dark), to ponderings of life & death (What Sarah Said) & a closing track that deals with change & the aging process (Stable Song), which isin fact a re-working of the title track from the Stability EP.
If you are a fan of The Photo Album and/or Transatlanticism, there is plenty on this album to please. Even fans who prefer the earlier, lo-fi sounds of the first two CDs will appreciate the band's attempts to bring that sound out of its claustrophobic roots & out into more accessible territory. Time will tell on whether this album will get the appreciation it deserves, but one thing is for certain: this is an accomplished piece of work from a band that is currently at the top of their game.
Personally, I would recommend this album to existing DCFC fans, but also fans of Clarity-era Jimmy Eat World, the mellower moments of Sunny Day Real Estate, Straylight Run & even more progressive soft acts like Jeniferever. This is an essential purchase for anyone with even a passing interestin epic, emotive American indie music
Death, no, fantastic!! - By: Mr. Matthew Munroe, 19 May 2007 When I first heard their name, I thought DCFC would be some kind of hard/emo-core band. I've never been so wrong. Plans is, quite simply, very chilled & even more beautiful! There is a certain meaning & almost urgency to the lyrics & style of the album, the songs are beautiful without being gentle or quiet or even particularly slow. It's a fantastic album & one I am very glad I bought, to be honest, I think most people would feel the same!
Pretty ok. - By: Mr. A. R. Law, 13 May 2007 
Don't get me wrong. I like Death Cab. 'Transatlanticism' is one of my favourite albums of all time, & for the most part I enjoy 'Plans'. The opener ('Marching Bands Of Manhattan') is sublime, & there are melodies & harmonies on here that send shivers down my spine. The effect of the music is,in places, almost profound.
However, I don't agree with the assertions, both here & elsewhere, that Ben Gibbard is some kind of lyrical genius. His lyrics are simple for the most part, & generally serve their purpose well. They paint simple stories & weave their way around the melodies perfectly. But they are little more than that.
The one moment that really ruins this generally great album, though, comesin the otherwise almost perfect 'Brothers On A Hotel Bed': "But now he lives inside someone he does not recognize" croons Mr Gibbard, "When he catches his reflection on accident." Ahem.
Sorry, 'on' accident? Shouldn't that be 'by' accident? Maybe its an Americanism that I'm not aware of. Maybe its just lazy lyric writing. How no one else has noticed this is something of a shock to me. Either way, to me it just doesn't sound right.
Exceptional, better than I ever epected. - By: jamie gough, 04 May 2007 Having only a collection of Death Cab songs downloaded from several different albums, I had no idea what an absolute treat "Plans" was going to be when I purchased it. It is simply wonderful. The sound on "Plans" is fuller, more thoughtful & clever than other Death Cab songs, the standard of lyrics remains at its pure brilliance as I had come to expect.
The structure of Plans as a record is genius. From the more vibrant opening to the somber ending, Plans take you on a journey. The fantastic opener of "Marching Bandsin Manhattan" is beyond belief only bettered by its lead into "Soul Meets Body" a song worthy of REM. As the album moves on we get the atmospheric "Different names for the same things" with an intro reminiscent of The Killers, & the chilling "I will follow you into the dark" a song one might expect of Bright Eyes. Don't get me wrong Death Cab for Cutie aren't trying to be something there not, this album is DCFC, it epitomizes all of their early work, tidied up, neaten, matured & delivered impeccably.
As the album shifts to it's ending we are gifted with possibly the best DCFC song ever writtenin "Brothers on a Hotel Bed." The intro is incredible, reminding alot of "Melancholoy & the Infinite Sadness" by The Smashing Pumpklins. The lyrics are so consciously constructed yet so simple & Gibbard's voice is at its pinnacle. It is a song worthy of being played on repeat for a day. And even after that I guarantee you will still go back for more.
Buy this album, whether you have previous DCFC experience or not it is simply a great album. It has made me want to own every Death Cab record ever released, & if they're a fraction as good as Plans I will not be disappointed.
