Death Cab For Cutie (DCFC) is like that really amazing friend of yours who now lives out of town.  You never quite realized how much you cared for them, how much you loved having them around, until they weren't around as often as you wanted.  "The Open Door EP", considered a "companion piece" to 2008's "Narrow Stairs", is that reminder that DCFC is a talent to be reckoned with and not taken for granted. 

"My Mirror Speaks" is my favourite off this little five-song sampler.  The poppy handclaps and up-beat Monkees-style strumming are undermined by a minor-chord melody and brooding lyrics: "These eyes don't shine/ half as bright as they used to/ and they haven't for quite a while/ cuz I'm a man who hides/ from all that binds... I always fall in love with an open door/ or the horizon on an endless sea". 

These simple ideas are what I love about DCFC.  By merely changing the relation between sound and speech, they can emote much more in a single song than most bands will in their entire catalogue. 

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Track Listing:

1) Little Bribes
2) A Diamond And A Tether
3) My Mirror Speaks
4) I Was Once A Loyal Lover
5) Talking Bird (demo)