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Death Cab For Cutie: Live at Birmingham Academy

20th July 2008 | by Ross Riley

There are few bands around that can command the same level of adoring fandom as Death Cab For Cutie and sure enough the Academy was full tonight for one of the few dates on the Seattle band's brief tour of the UK.

There is now a sense that Death Cab are a more mature and workmanlike band, that's not always a bad thing since the quality of tonight's performance reflects, but the converse is that the songs seem to rattle by a little too formally.

The audience tonight is the usual mix of old fans and newcomers, the band's latest album Narrow Stairs has been picking up a lot of radio play and one of the biggest cheers of the night is reserved for the epic intro of 'I Will Possess Your Heart'.

The strength of the band's previous album 'Plans' really shows through, it was a slow burner but quite a few of the tracks really stand up with the best of Transatlanticism. Tonight we're treated to excellent versions of Crooked Teeth, Marching Bands of Manhattan, Soul Meets Body and a genuinely moving stripped down performance of 'I Will Follow You Into The Dark'.

It's still Transatlanticism, though, that provides the epic set closer. Ben Gibbard starts out playing keyboard at the back of the stage, before moving front-stage as the volume and intensity reaches crescendo. By this point the venue has reached a sweltering temperature and the band retreat off-stage with a simple thank-you.