His voice is definitely aging but his style overall is pretty unchanged. I don’t think there’s been that drastic of a difference
Yeah it’s like he’s enunciating more which is probably “better” but it makes his voice less unique and, imo, more boring
could be talking out my ass but there's a slight shift in the vocal melodies too. it becomes a little more formal. probably more dynamic and more is technically happening, but it lands a little less natural to my ears
After several spins, I can safely say that there’s nothing on this that I like more than my least favorite tracks from Asphalt.
If your least favorite tracks on Asphalt are still a 9.9 out of 10 for you and everything on Tower is 9.8/10, that statement makes sense I think.
There have been so many statements in this thread that would get people’s asses deservedly This Just In’ed but us Death Cab fans are all about love and souls meeting bodies so we let it slide like a stone over water off the back of a depressed duck whose starting to notice grey feathers.
We don’t need to belabor it if it’s bumming out the less negative of us here but as an example on the vocal thing: vs It’s something about the way he enunciates, there’s an effortlessness to the way he sang before. I really don’t hear it as an aging thing, it feels like a deliberate choice. I’d also argue that with the major label budgets they had to work with in the second half of their career that the access to better mics doesn’t suit his voice as well but that’s a lot subtler part of it
It isn’t an age thing or not sounding like he did 20 years ago thing considering it has been this way for 15 years now lol
For me it’s the lack of Walla. I think he brought some depth and mystery to their songs that gave everything more complexity. He was also good with restraint and embracing space. Just a unique part of their former sound that I don’t think they have anymore. Most Walla-esque song in this era is probably “Foxglove” ? That’s one of the more memorable songs to me since he left.
I guess I see what you’re saying but it’s not that big of a difference and if that’s what’s holding you back from enjoying anything new from them than I really don’t know what to say. Sorry?
For a lot of male singers, the voice does not fully develop until early to mid-30s. Ben was in his early 20s when the band released their first albums, mid-20s when they were recording Transatlanticism, and 31 when Narrow Stairs came out. There's a reason all the singers we started listening to when they were very young men sound subtly but noticeably different now! The voice is not a static thing; it's always developing and changing. I personally think his voice sounds a little different on each of those 2000s records, and then is more consistent from album to album in the 2010s and 2020s. Which would make sense, considering his age at each of those junctures.
I think Pat is the only one who referred to it as "irreparable damage" lol I may prefer how he used to sound but it seems like most folks in here love this record. And I love a lot of the stuff they've done between NS and this record, too.
I am giving Asphalt Meadows another spin since I loved it on release and just haven't gone back to it much. I do think "I Don't Know How I Survive" is one of their best openers, but I also think they don't really miss when it comes to opening tracks
so it's okay for you to be dramatic online about Ben Gibbard's voice changing but not for me to be dramatic online about not wanting to hear Brian Bell sing...smdh
irreparable damage is pretty funny tbh. like he’s still a good singer, maybe even a better one but we just miss when he sounded more emo